Five notes of the piano need to be prepared with picture hanging putty. Yarn mallets are used on the lower strings in movement 3 and 4. These requirements have been vetted by a registered piano technician who has assured us that they will do no harm to the instrument. As an extra precaution, it is suggested that you wear gloves when working with the strings on the piano. An assistant is needed for movements 3 and 4. It could be a percussionist, (ie a friend, a student, or a page turner).

I. Gyre – Piano and Plastic Bottle

One empty plastic water bottle is required for this movement. Keep the cap on the bottle. The plastic bottle is to be played by the pianist as indicated by the notation and instructions in the score. When performing on the bottle, the pianist should use their best discretion as to dynamics and aleatoric sound.

II. Bleaching – Piano with 5 Prepared Notes

Create grape-sized balls of picture mounting putty. Using these, prepare the following five pitches: B6, C#7, D#7, G#7, and A#7 making certain that each ball dampens all three strings of each pitch.

III. Thwaites Glacier – Piano with Yarn Mallets

An assistant is needed for movements 3 and 4 to perform with mallets inside the piano on the lowest range of notes (low A to B-flat 7). Two medium yarn mallets are required to perform the part. The mallet part is noted on a separate staff in the score.

IV. Calving- Piano with Yarn Mallets

Pedal markings in this movement are indicated as follows: damper ped = damper pedal ped ad lib = use damper pedal at your discression sost ped = sostenuto pedal ½ ped = depress the pedal halfway