Back in 2001 I was one of five ‘young composers’ selected to compose and workshop an orchestral piece with the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra. I had just read The Hobbit and was struck by the attack of the giant spiders. This formed a core part of the piece (2:50 of audio, page 13 of score). I had the entire string section plucking at random intervals to achieve a giant spider attack. The orchestration was heavily influenced by Stravisnky’s Rite of Spring. I was trying to explore orchestral colours as much as possible during the prescribed five minute limit. The result of the piece is quite episodic and kaleidoscopic.