Svetlana Savić

Svetlana Savić (1971, Belgrade) is an assistant professor (docent) at the Composition Department of the Faculty of Music in Belgrade. She has collaborated with renowned Serbian and foreign performers, ensembles, and orchestras. Her major works include Sirota tužna Don Huanova kći (The Poor Sad Don Juan’s Daughter) for soloists, women’s choir, and electronics, Quincunx and Trans-verzije (Trans-versions) for string orchestra, Sustineo and Ekstraverzije (Extraversions) for symphonic orchestra, Pesme o zvezdama (Songs about the Stars) for women’s choir and chamber orchestra, Re-verzije (Re-versions) for chamber ensembles, D-versions and Versions fugitives for electronics, Il tempo sensibile and Tempo mobile for clarinet, violin, and piano, Zarobljena (In Captivity) for women’s choir and electronics, and Soneti (Sonnets) for female vocals, violoncello, piano, and electronics. Her piece Zarobljena won the 2014 Mokranjac Award.

The work Tempo mobile was inspired by Movement, pulse, ticking, and time. It emerged out of the five tone rows I devised for the second movement of my work Il Tempo mobile, ‘San’ (Dream). Each row comprised five notes, which, when stacked up vertically, formed a chord. Whilst playing them, I could see colours. The first chord (F, G flat, A, B, C) was red, the second (E, G, A flat, B flat, C flat) was purple, the third (F sharp, A, B, C, D flat) blue, the fourth (G sharp, A sharp, B, C, D) green, and the fifth (A, C, C sharp, D sharp, E) yellow. I combined monochromatic rows and chords… sometimes I mixed them… both horizontally and vertically.

In addition to the magical number five, the number three (trio; three movements) is also active in this piece. The outer movements are mobile, vibrant, at times similar to music boxes. The second movement slips into allusions to Albinoni’s Adaggio – grieving for lost time, joy, and colours.

Tempo mobile is dedicated to my dear friends Madlen, Maja, and Miloš and their wonderful Movement for the Affirmation of New Serbian Music.