Remove the Guillotine, Please.
Composer, Steven Hobé | Completed, February 2021
Composer’s Note
As its name suggests, this is a satirical piece at heart. The musical interplay between instruments reflects the dramatic nature of a beheading scene from the excitement of the crowd to the hesitancy of those being lead to the guillotine. At its peak, the crowd becomes more and more frenzied as the guillotine is erected, excited by the spectacle and eager for the “show” to begin. But the swift pace of the music is hindered by “the damned” pleading for mercy, appealing to the royalty’s sense of humanity. This falls on deaf ears. In fact, those in power are more preoccupied by their general fatigue with the endless beheadings and tumult and would prefer the guillotine be removed altogether. The entire piece has almost a lopsided feel to it as it comments on the ridiculous and surreal nature of the setting. It forges its way through numerous chromaticism and dissonance landing on the final, and somewhat out of place, major key resolution.
Steven Hobé 