Commissioned by the Australia Ensemble to mark its 30th birthday
First performance by the Australia Ensemble, Sir John Clancy Auditorium, University of New South Wales, Sydney, 12 September 2009
Reviews
The sparse textures of Andrew Ford's melancholy On Winter's Traces, the most substantial of the seven miniatures, transported the audience to a different world altogether. Ford also used the full forces of the ensemble, but with much finely nuanced orchestration, particularly the wan sound of the piccolo in its low register. However, in this work the distinctive timbre of the viola was the star of the show, and the performance featured some wonderfully heartfelt solo playing from the work's dedicatee, Irina Morozova. This was the longest and most serious of the seven miniatures and I was left wanting more.
Geoffrey Gartner, Resonate
The viola solo (Irina Morozova) in Andrew Ford's On Winter's Traces became increasingly dark with spare notes of accompaniment.
Peter McCallum, Sydney Morning Herald