Chicks and Robot

for accordion, megaphone and symphony orchestra (2013)

Twelve newly hatched chickens were placed in a cage in the center of a closed room. Outside the cage there was a robot moving freely on the ground; the robot's movements were controlled by a random number generator. The robot was the first thing the chickens saw in their lives; the chickens recognized his robot as their mother. The chickens were staring intently at the robot; after some time the robot moved around the cage much more often.

The composition was created in the summer of 2013, commissioned by the Polish Composers' Union, with Maciej Frąckiewicz in mind as a solo performer.

Performance history:
PREMIERE: March 16, 2016; Concert from the Generations XVII series; Concert Studio for them. Witold Lutosławski in Warsaw; performers: Maciej Frąckiewicz, Polish Radio Orchestra, Michał Klauza (cond.)