For solo cello.
2011
Dedicated to the memory of Lorenzo Corbolini
Che cos'è il fine? — "What is the end?" — was commissioned by a cellist for a graduation recital. The brief called for an extended work that would stretch the instrument's expressive range: percussive techniques on the body of the instrument alongside playing, speaking, and singing. The piece was ultimately not presented at the examination, but received its premiere at the Mondi Sonori festival in Trento.
During the compositional process, Lorenzo Corbolini died suddenly. He was a cellist, a classmate from piano studies — someone known for his warmth and good humour. The piece became a dedication to him.
The text spoken by the cellist is drawn from Seneca's Epistulae Morales ad Lucilium (Epistle 65):
Maior sum et ad maiora genitus quam ut mancipium sim mei corporis, quod equidem non aliter aspicio quam vinclum aliquod libertati meae circumdatum.
I am greater, and born for greater things, than to be a slave to my body, which I look upon as nothing more than a chain thrown around my freedom.
The score was presented as a unified object: the musical notation mounted on a painted support created by the composer's cousin — an approach that reflects the piece's attention to the work as a total artefact.
Technical details
Type - Solo cello (with spoken text and extended techniques)
Year - 2011
Dedication - In memory of Lorenzo Corbolini
Text - Seneca, Epistulae Morales ad Lucilium, Epistle 65
Score design - Silvana Isgrò
World premiere - 18 May 2011, Omar Flavio Careddu (cello) Mondi Sonori XIV edition, concert Canti senza parole Conservatorio F.A. Bonporti, Trento