D a v i d   V e s s

When I call this Soliloquy "Talosian," you may think of the great Greek automaton Talos, a giant, bronze, robotic creature said to guard the island of Crete. And that certainly would make for a very interesting piece, but my Soliloquy has nothing to do with Greek mythology — and everything to do with a special science fiction television show from the 1960s. In the original unaired pilot of Star Trek: The Original Series called "The Cage" (even before Kirk ever set foot on the bridge), the Enterprise is summoned to a strange planet called Talos IV. What the crew doesn't know is that the Talosians are master illusionists, capable of making their visitors believe that whatever they see or hear is absolutely real — from the strange, the surreal, to the sublime. So what does the tuba have to do with a random race of aliens? The power of fantastical illusion. My instrument is often swept under the rug, viewed as limited in its capabilities. Ours is the realm of whole notes, the grinding monotony of 1s and 5s, and the occasional dog-fight in a Sousa March. Yet we are capable of so much more. In this work I will use many techniques considered to be unnatural — multiphonics, spectral techniques, and more. I will push this instrument to the brink for a single purpose: to cast a spell on you. To summon you to a planet of strange and impossible sounds, to trap you forever in the grand illusion of 'Talosian Soliloquy'.