Ariel

for Nils Mönkemeyer

Based on the character from Shakespeare’s ‘The Tempest’, this short piece portrays the magical and elusive qualities of Ariel, the spirit who is enslaved to Prospero.

The material is constructed of a single cell which repeats and turns in on itself, forming different shapes and gestures.

The final section is a wordless setting of part of Ariel’s song ‘Full Fathom Five’, and ends with the tolling of a distant bell, which has been sounding intermittently throughout the piece.

Ariel was commissioned by Nils Mönkemeyer, and first performed by him on 22nd May 2013 at the Schwetzinger SWR Festspiele. It is one of a series of instrumental pieces written alongside my work on The Tempest with choreographer David Bintley, for Birmingham Royal Ballet.

Sally Beamish