Deep Field Orchestre d'harmonie, Chorale-Voix [Conducteur et Parties séparées] Hal Leonard
Adapted for Wind Ensemble, Choir, and Smartphone App Score and Parts. Composed...(+)
Adapted for Wind
Ensemble,
Choir, and Smartphone App
Score and Parts. Composed
by
Eric Whitacre (1970-).
Eric
Whitacre Concert Band.
Classical. Softcover.
Published by Hal Leonard
Deep Field Chorale, Orchestre [Conducteur] - Intermédiaire Hal Leonard
For Wind Ensemble, Choir, and Smartphone App Complete Score. Composed by Eric ...(+)
For Wind Ensemble, Choir,
and
Smartphone App Complete
Score.
Composed by Eric Whitacre
(1970-). Eric Whitacre
Concert
Band. Classical.
Softcover.
Duration 269 seconds.
Published by Hal Leonard
SAB choir, assembly, piano accompaniment - Beginning SKU: GI.G-9749 Arran...(+)
SAB choir, assembly,
piano accompaniment -
Beginning
SKU:
GI.G-9749
Arranged by
Carol Browning. Simple
Gifts. Tune Name: Land Of
Rest. Sacred. Octavo. 8
pages. GIA Publications
#9749. Published by GIA
Publications (GI.G-9749).
UPC: 785147974901.
English. Text by Sylvia
Dunstan.
“How
Deep the Silence of the
Soul†appears as a
two-stanza text, paired
with KINGSFOLD (Common
Meter Doubled), in Sylvia
Dunstan’s
collection In Search of
Hope and Grace, G-3614.
With this arrangement,
Carol Browning splits the
stanzas into four,
setting them to LAND OF
REST (Common Meter).
Listen to the music and
follow the score in this
preview video.
(Words and Chords to Nearly 1200 Songs 9x12 Spiral Bound). Edited by Annie Patte...(+)
(Words and Chords to
Nearly 1200 Songs 9x12
Spiral Bound). Edited by
Annie Patterson and Peter
Blood. For Vocal. Vocal.
Softcover. 304 pages.
Published by Hal Leonard
(Words and Chords to Nearly 1200 Songs Spiral-Bound). Edited by Annie Patterson ...(+)
(Words and Chords to
Nearly 1200 Songs
Spiral-Bound). Edited by
Annie Patterson and Peter
Blood. For Vocal. Vocal.
Softcover. 304 pages.
Published by Hal Leonard
From Terra Nostra.
Composed by Stacy Garrop.
Full score. Duration
3:15. Theodore Presser
Company #312-41902S.
Published by Theodore
Presser Company
(PR.31241902S).
UPC:
680160690589.
English.
Commission
ed by the San Francisco
Choral Society and the
Piedmont East Bay
Children’s Choir,
Terra Nostra is a
70-minute oratorio on the
relationship between our
planet and humankind, how
this relationship has
shifted over time, and
how we can re-establish a
harmonious balance. Part
I: Creation of the World
explores various creation
myths from different
cultures, culminating in
a joyous celebration of
the beauty of our planet.
Part II: The Rise of
Humanity examines human
achievements,
particularly since the
dawn of our Industrial
Age, and how these
achievements have
impacted the planet. Part
III: Searching for
Balance questions how to
create more awareness for
our planet’s
plight, re-establish a
deeper connection to it,
and find a balance for
living within our
planet’s
resources. In addition to
the complete oratorio,
stand-alone movements for
mixed chorus, and for
solo voice with piano,
are also available
separately. Terra
Nostra focuses on the
relationship between our
planet and mankind, how
this relationship has
shifted over time, and
how we can re-establish a
harmonious balance. The
oratorio is divided into
three parts:Part I:
Creation of the World
celebrates the birth and
beauty of our planet. The
oratorio begins with
creation myths from
India, North America, and
Egypt that are integrated
into the opening lines of
Genesis from the Old
Testament. The music
surges forth from these
creation stories into
“God’s
World†by Edna St.
Vincent Millay, which
describes the world in
exuberant and vivid
detail. Percy Bysshe
Shelley’s
“On thine own
child†praises
Mother Earth for her role
bringing forth all life,
while Walt Whitman sings
a love song to the planet
in “Smile O
voluptuous cool-breathed
earth!†Part I ends
with “A Blade of
Grass†in which
Whitman muses how our
planet has been spinning
in the heavens for a very
long time.Part II: The
Rise of Humanity examines
the achievements of
mankind, particularly
since the dawn of the
Industrial Age. Lord
Alfred Tennyson’s
“Locksley
Hall†sets an
auspicious tone that
mankind is on the verge
of great discoveries.
This is followed in short
order by Charles
Mackay’s
“Railways
1846,†William
Ernest Henley’s
“A Song of
Speed,†and John
Gillespie Magee,
Jr.’s “High
Flight,†each of
which celebrates a new
milestone in
technological
achievement. In
“Binsey
Poplars,†Gerard
Manley Hopkins takes note
of the effect that these
advances are having on
the planet, with trees
being brought down and
landscapes forever
changed. Percy Bysshe
Shelley’s “A
Dirge†concludes
Part II with a warning
that the planet is
beginning to sound a
grave alarm.Part III:
Searching for Balance
questions how we can
create more awareness for
our planet’s
plight, re-establish a
deeper connection to it,
and find a balance for
living within our
planet’s
resources. Three texts
continue the
earth’s plea that
ended the previous
section: Lord
Byron’s
“Darknessâ€
speaks of a natural
disaster (a volcano) that
has blotted out the sun
from humanity and the
panic that ensues;
contemporary poet Esther
Iverem’s
“Earth
Screaming†gives
voice to the modern
issues of our changing
climate; and William
Wordsworth’s
“The World Is Too
Much With Us†warns
us that we are almost out
of time to change our
course.
Contemporary/agrarian
poet Wendell
Berry’s “The
Want of Peaceâ€
speaks to us at the
climax of the oratorio,
reminding us that we can
find harmony with the
planet if we choose to
live more simply, and to
recall that we ourselves
came from the earth. Two
Walt Whitman texts
(“A Child said,
What is the grass?â€
and “There was a
child went forth every
dayâ€) echo
Berry’s thoughts,
reminding us that we are
of the earth, as is
everything that we see on
our planet. The oratorio
concludes with a reprise
of Whitman’s
“A Blade of
Grass†from Part I,
this time interspersed
with an additional
Whitman text that
sublimely states,
“I bequeath myself
to the dirt to grow from
the grass I
love…â€My hope
in writing this oratorio
is to invite audience
members to consider how
we interact with our
planet, and what we can
each personally do to
keep the planet going for
future generations. We
are the only stewards
Earth has; what can we
each do to leave her in
better shape than we
found her?
High Flight Chorale SATB SATB, Piano Theodore Presser Co.
Choral SATB Choir and Piano SKU: PR.312419020 From Terra Nostra. C...(+)
Choral SATB Choir and
Piano
SKU:
PR.312419020
From
Terra Nostra.
Composed by Stacy Garrop.
Sws. Performance Score.
12 pages. Duration 3:15.
Theodore Presser Company
#312-41902. Published by
Theodore Presser Company
(PR.312419020).
ISBN
9781491131862. UPC:
680160680474. 6.875 x
10.5 inches.
English.
Commission
ed by the San Francisco
Choral Society and the
Piedmont East Bay
Children’s Choir,
Terra Nostra is a
70-minute oratorio on the
relationship between our
planet and humankind, how
this relationship has
shifted over time, and
how we can re-establish a
harmonious balance. Part
I: Creation of the World
explores various creation
myths from different
cultures, culminating in
a joyous celebration of
the beauty of our planet.
Part II: The Rise of
Humanity examines human
achievements,
particularly since the
dawn of our Industrial
Age, and how these
achievements have
impacted the planet. Part
III: Searching for
Balance questions how to
create more awareness for
our planet’s
plight, re-establish a
deeper connection to it,
and find a balance for
living within our
planet’s
resources. In addition to
the complete oratorio,
stand-alone movements for
mixed chorus, and for
solo voice with piano,
are also available
separately. Terra
Nostra focuses on the
relationship between our
planet and mankind, how
this relationship has
shifted over time, and
how we can re-establish a
harmonious balance. The
oratorio is divided into
three parts:Part I:
Creation of the World
celebrates the birth and
beauty of our planet. The
oratorio begins with
creation myths from
India, North America, and
Egypt that are integrated
into the opening lines of
Genesis from the Old
Testament. The music
surges forth from these
creation stories into
“God’s
World†by Edna St.
Vincent Millay, which
describes the world in
exuberant and vivid
detail. Percy Bysshe
Shelley’s
“On thine own
child†praises
Mother Earth for her role
bringing forth all life,
while Walt Whitman sings
a love song to the planet
in “Smile O
voluptuous cool-breathed
earth!†Part I ends
with “A Blade of
Grass†in which
Whitman muses how our
planet has been spinning
in the heavens for a very
long time.Part II: The
Rise of Humanity examines
the achievements of
mankind, particularly
since the dawn of the
Industrial Age. Lord
Alfred Tennyson’s
“Locksley
Hall†sets an
auspicious tone that
mankind is on the verge
of great discoveries.
This is followed in short
order by Charles
Mackay’s
“Railways
1846,†William
Ernest Henley’s
“A Song of
Speed,†and John
Gillespie Magee,
Jr.’s “High
Flight,†each of
which celebrates a new
milestone in
technological
achievement. In
“Binsey
Poplars,†Gerard
Manley Hopkins takes note
of the effect that these
advances are having on
the planet, with trees
being brought down and
landscapes forever
changed. Percy Bysshe
Shelley’s “A
Dirge†concludes
Part II with a warning
that the planet is
beginning to sound a
grave alarm.Part III:
Searching for Balance
questions how we can
create more awareness for
our planet’s
plight, re-establish a
deeper connection to it,
and find a balance for
living within our
planet’s
resources. Three texts
continue the
earth’s plea that
ended the previous
section: Lord
Byron’s
“Darknessâ€
speaks of a natural
disaster (a volcano) that
has blotted out the sun
from humanity and the
panic that ensues;
contemporary poet Esther
Iverem’s
“Earth
Screaming†gives
voice to the modern
issues of our changing
climate; and William
Wordsworth’s
“The World Is Too
Much With Us†warns
us that we are almost out
of time to change our
course.
Contemporary/agrarian
poet Wendell
Berry’s “The
Want of Peaceâ€
speaks to us at the
climax of the oratorio,
reminding us that we can
find harmony with the
planet if we choose to
live more simply, and to
recall that we ourselves
came from the earth. Two
Walt Whitman texts
(“A Child said,
What is the grass?â€
and “There was a
child went forth every
dayâ€) echo
Berry’s thoughts,
reminding us that we are
of the earth, as is
everything that we see on
our planet. The oratorio
concludes with a reprise
of Whitman’s
“A Blade of
Grass†from Part I,
this time interspersed
with an additional
Whitman text that
sublimely states,
“I bequeath myself
to the dirt to grow from
the grass I
love…â€My hope
in writing this oratorio
is to invite audience
members to consider how
we interact with our
planet, and what we can
each personally do to
keep the planet going for
future generations. We
are the only stewards
Earth has; what can we
each do to leave her in
better shape than we
found her?
From Terra Nostra.
Composed by Stacy Garrop.
Set of Score and Parts.
Duration 3:15. Theodore
Presser Company
#312-41902A. Published by
Theodore Presser Company
(PR.31241902A).
UPC:
680160690510.
English.
Commission
ed by the San Francisco
Choral Society and the
Piedmont East Bay
Children’s Choir,
Terra Nostra is a
70-minute oratorio on the
relationship between our
planet and humankind, how
this relationship has
shifted over time, and
how we can re-establish a
harmonious balance. Part
I: Creation of the World
explores various creation
myths from different
cultures, culminating in
a joyous celebration of
the beauty of our planet.
Part II: The Rise of
Humanity examines human
achievements,
particularly since the
dawn of our Industrial
Age, and how these
achievements have
impacted the planet. Part
III: Searching for
Balance questions how to
create more awareness for
our planet’s
plight, re-establish a
deeper connection to it,
and find a balance for
living within our
planet’s
resources. In addition to
the complete oratorio,
stand-alone movements for
mixed chorus, and for
solo voice with piano,
are also available
separately. Terra
Nostra focuses on the
relationship between our
planet and mankind, how
this relationship has
shifted over time, and
how we can re-establish a
harmonious balance. The
oratorio is divided into
three parts:Part I:
Creation of the World
celebrates the birth and
beauty of our planet. The
oratorio begins with
creation myths from
India, North America, and
Egypt that are integrated
into the opening lines of
Genesis from the Old
Testament. The music
surges forth from these
creation stories into
“God’s
World†by Edna St.
Vincent Millay, which
describes the world in
exuberant and vivid
detail. Percy Bysshe
Shelley’s
“On thine own
child†praises
Mother Earth for her role
bringing forth all life,
while Walt Whitman sings
a love song to the planet
in “Smile O
voluptuous cool-breathed
earth!†Part I ends
with “A Blade of
Grass†in which
Whitman muses how our
planet has been spinning
in the heavens for a very
long time.Part II: The
Rise of Humanity examines
the achievements of
mankind, particularly
since the dawn of the
Industrial Age. Lord
Alfred Tennyson’s
“Locksley
Hall†sets an
auspicious tone that
mankind is on the verge
of great discoveries.
This is followed in short
order by Charles
Mackay’s
“Railways
1846,†William
Ernest Henley’s
“A Song of
Speed,†and John
Gillespie Magee,
Jr.’s “High
Flight,†each of
which celebrates a new
milestone in
technological
achievement. In
“Binsey
Poplars,†Gerard
Manley Hopkins takes note
of the effect that these
advances are having on
the planet, with trees
being brought down and
landscapes forever
changed. Percy Bysshe
Shelley’s “A
Dirge†concludes
Part II with a warning
that the planet is
beginning to sound a
grave alarm.Part III:
Searching for Balance
questions how we can
create more awareness for
our planet’s
plight, re-establish a
deeper connection to it,
and find a balance for
living within our
planet’s
resources. Three texts
continue the
earth’s plea that
ended the previous
section: Lord
Byron’s
“Darknessâ€
speaks of a natural
disaster (a volcano) that
has blotted out the sun
from humanity and the
panic that ensues;
contemporary poet Esther
Iverem’s
“Earth
Screaming†gives
voice to the modern
issues of our changing
climate; and William
Wordsworth’s
“The World Is Too
Much With Us†warns
us that we are almost out
of time to change our
course.
Contemporary/agrarian
poet Wendell
Berry’s “The
Want of Peaceâ€
speaks to us at the
climax of the oratorio,
reminding us that we can
find harmony with the
planet if we choose to
live more simply, and to
recall that we ourselves
came from the earth. Two
Walt Whitman texts
(“A Child said,
What is the grass?â€
and “There was a
child went forth every
dayâ€) echo
Berry’s thoughts,
reminding us that we are
of the earth, as is
everything that we see on
our planet. The oratorio
concludes with a reprise
of Whitman’s
“A Blade of
Grass†from Part I,
this time interspersed
with an additional
Whitman text that
sublimely states,
“I bequeath myself
to the dirt to grow from
the grass I
love…â€My hope
in writing this oratorio
is to invite audience
members to consider how
we interact with our
planet, and what we can
each personally do to
keep the planet going for
future generations. We
are the only stewards
Earth has; what can we
each do to leave her in
better shape than we
found her?
I Sought the Lord Chorale SATB SATB divisi, A Cappella - Intermédiaire MorningStar Music Publishers
SATB choir divisi (a cappella) - Late Intermediate SKU: MN.50-6055 Compos...(+)
SATB choir divisi (a
cappella) - Late
Intermediate
SKU:
MN.50-6055
Composed
by Kenneth T. Kosche.
Catholic Year A
Ordinary12; Catholic Year
C Ordinary30; Catholic
Year C Ordinary31;
Catholic Year C Easter3;
Catholic Year C Lent2;
Catholic Year C Lent3;
Year C Easter3; Year C
Lent3; Year C Lent2; Year
C Pentecost4; Catholic
Year C Ordinary11; Year C
Pe. Easter Season, 21st
Century,
Confession/Forgiveness,
Trust/Guidance. Octavo.
MorningStar Music
Publishers #50-6055.
Published by MorningStar
Music Publishers
(MN.50-6055).
UPC:
688670560552.
A
beautiful, anonymous text
from the 1904 Pilgrim
Hymnal that expresses the
writer's deep experience
of searching for God and
finding that God is
reaching back in
surprising ways. A deep
expression of faith both
musically and
textually.
Piano Solo SKU: YM.GTP01101942 Game Music. Score. Yamaha Music Media #GTP...(+)
Piano Solo
SKU:
YM.GTP01101942
Game
Music. Score. Yamaha
Music Media #GTP01101942.
Published by Yamaha Music
Media (YM.GTP01101942).
ISBN 9784636115994. 12
x 9 inches.
This is
a collection of easy
piano solo arrangements
featuring memorable
masterpieces FINAL
FANTASY series of games I
to XIII, which have fans
all over the world. The
best album includes
iconic tracks such as
Chocobo Theme and
Aerith's Theme from the
early games, as well as
classic pieces like Eyes
On Me and Because You're
Here..
Meet the Great Jazz Legends. (Short Sessions on the Lives, Times and Music of th...(+)
Meet the Great Jazz
Legends. (Short Sessions
on the Lives, Times and
Music of the Great Jazz
Legends). By Ronald C.
McCurdy.
Classroom/Pre-School;
General Music and
Classroom Publications;
Reproducible. Jazz. Book.
72 pages. Published by
Alfred Music Publishing
(Short Sessions on the Lives, Times & Music of the Great Jazz Legends (Deluxe Cl...(+)
(Short Sessions on the
Lives, Times & Music of
the Great Jazz Legends
(Deluxe Classroom Kit)).
By Ronald C. McCurdy.
Classroom/Pre-School;
General Music and
Classroom Publications;
Reproducible.
Contemporary; Jazz. Book,
CD & Reproducible
Activity Sheets. 72
pages. Published by
Alfred Music Publishing
Sanctuary Piano Trio: piano, violon, violoncelle Theodore Presser Co.
Chamber Music Violin, cello, Piano SKU: PR.114418250 Composed by Stacy Ga...(+)
Chamber Music Violin,
cello, Piano
SKU:
PR.114418250
Composed
by Stacy Garrop.
Contemporary. Set of
Score and Parts. With
Standard notation.
Composed 2013. 40+16+16
pages. Duration 23
minutes. Theodore Presser
Company #114-41825.
Published by Theodore
Presser Company
(PR.114418250).
UPC:
680160640959. 9 x 12
inches.
In 2011,
Barbara Garrop, my
mother, commissioned me
to write a piano trio in
memory of Norman Garrop,
my father, who passed
away about thirty years
ago. When I started
brainstorming about
topics for the piece, I
found it difficult to
recall many moments of my
early life involving my
father. Too many years
had passed, and the
memories that I could
summon were of achild
looking up to her father,
not an adult relating to
an equal. However, while
collecting stories of my
father from various
family members, along
with discovering a number
of objects that had once
belonged to him and that
I had stored away in
boxes decades ago, I
began to realize that
this piece wasn't so much
about my father as it was
about my re-discovering
the man that he was: a
loving husband and dad
who cared deeply about
his family and his
passions (which included
bike riding, collecting
coins, strumming our
guitar, playing baseball,
watching football games,
entertaining people,
helping to run local
theater and puppet
productions, and carving
objects out of wook); an
accountant who dreamed of
a better future: a
treasurer of our local
synagogue; an early
advocate for computers
(we owned an Apple II+);
and a pranster with a
great sense of humor.
Ultimately, I decided to
musically tell the story
of my search for these
memories. In the first
movement (Without), a
child calls out in a
sing-song voice,
searching for her lost
parent. This search
intesifies over the
course of the movement
through a series of
themes, including a
stepping motif in which a
two-note progression
steadily climbs higher, a
pseudo-jewish folksong,
and a passionate longing
theme. The child's search
becomes increasingly
intense throughout the
movement, calling out
fervently and repeatedly
to the parent; the
movement ends in a moment
of great tnesion and
uncertainty. The second
movment (Within) quietly
opens with the lost
parent finally answering,
represented by a solo
cello; the child (now
personified by the
violin) has found the
parent within the
sanctuary of her own
heart. This movement
highlights the joy and
solemnity of this
beautiful discovery.
-S.G.
Sanctuary Piano Trio: piano, violon, violoncelle [Conducteur] Theodore Presser Co.
Chamber Music Violin, cello, Piano SKU: PR.11441825S Composed by Stacy Ga...(+)
Chamber Music Violin,
cello, Piano
SKU:
PR.11441825S
Composed
by Stacy Garrop.
Contemporary. Score. With
Standard notation.
Composed 2013. 40 pages.
Duration 23 minutes.
Theodore Presser Company
#114-41825S. Published by
Theodore Presser Company
(PR.11441825S).
UPC:
680160643745. 9 x 12
inches.
In 2011,
Barbara Garrop, my
mother, commissioned me
to write a piano trio in
memory of Norman Garrop,
my father, who passed
away about thirty years
ago. When I started
brainstorming about
topics for the piece, I
found it difficult to
recall many moments of my
early life involving my
father. Too many years
had passed, and the
memories that I could
summon were of achild
looking up to her father,
not an adult relating to
an equal. However, while
collecting stories of my
father from various
family members, along
with discovering a number
of objects that had once
belonged to him and that
I had stored away in
boxes decades ago, I
began to realize that
this piece wasn't so much
about my father as it was
about my re-discovering
the man that he was: a
loving husband and dad
who cared deeply about
his family and his
passions (which included
bike riding, collecting
coins, strumming our
guitar, playing baseball,
watching football games,
entertaining people,
helping to run local
theater and puppet
productions, and carving
objects out of wook); an
accountant who dreamed of
a better future: a
treasurer of our local
synagogue; an early
advocate for computers
(we owned an Apple II+);
and a pranster with a
great sense of humor.
Ultimately, I decided to
musically tell the story
of my search for these
memories. In the first
movement (Without), a
child calls out in a
sing-song voice,
searching for her lost
parent. This search
intesifies over the
course of the movement
through a series of
themes, including a
stepping motif in which a
two-note progression
steadily climbs higher, a
pseudo-jewish folksong,
and a passionate longing
theme. The child's search
becomes increasingly
intense throughout the
movement, calling out
fervently and repeatedly
to the parent; the
movement ends in a moment
of great tnesion and
uncertainty. The second
movment (Within) quietly
opens with the lost
parent finally answering,
represented by a solo
cello; the child (now
personified by the
violin) has found the
parent within the
sanctuary of her own
heart. This movement
highlights the joy and
solemnity of this
beautiful discovery.
-S.G.
By Dianne Goolkasian Rahbee. Edited by Rebecca Raffaelli And Helen Marlais. For ...(+)
By Dianne Goolkasian
Rahbee. Edited by Rebecca
Raffaelli And Helen
Marlais. For Piano. The
FJH Contemporary Keyboard
Editions. Contemporary.
Level: Early Intermediate
through Late
Intermediate. Book.
Published by The FJH
Music Company Inc.
Duo Flûte traversière et Piano Theodore Presser Co.
Chamber Music flute, piano SKU: PR.114422710 Composed by Charles Gibb. Se...(+)
Chamber Music flute,
piano
SKU:
PR.114422710
Composed
by Charles Gibb. Set of
Score and Parts. 44+8
pages. Duration 24
minutes. Theodore Presser
Company #114-42271.
Published by Theodore
Presser Company
(PR.114422710).
ISBN
9781491136072. UPC:
680160688227.
DUOâ
€™s succinct movement
titles (I. Here, II.
Open, III. Stark, IV.
Ardent) tease at
revealing the grand and
heartfelt inspiration for
exuberant romanticism in
this sonata-like work of
symphonic proportions and
depth. Charles Gibb is
both an accomplished
pianist and an
award-winning flutist,
who has written of this
compelling major addition
to the literature:
“This work is a
journey. What journey and
whose journey does not
matter. It is my journey,
it is your journey. It is
the journey of those who
came before us, and of
those who will come after
us. I wrote this hoping
that we can find each
other along the road, so
we can realize that we
don’t need to go
on the journey
alone.â€
Gibb’s DUO is sure
to become a favorite
major work for flute
recitalists. This work
is a journey. What
journey and whose journey
does not matter. It is my
journey, it is your
journey. It is the
journey of those who came
before us, and of those
who will come after us. I
wrote this hoping that we
can find each other along
the road, so we can
realize that we
don’t need to go
on the journey
alone.“Hereâ€
begins with three notes
that shape the rhythmic
and harmonic content of
the entire work. Melodies
and harmonies including
the tonic, dominant, and
leading tone can be found
in each of the four
movements. The first
moments of this movement
introduce the melody,
offering itself
unencumbered and
uninhibited. It shows
itself as it is. The
melodies soar, the
harmonies become voiced
more intricately, and the
opening theme repeats in
full grandeur. The
momentum slows down, and
the movement ends with a
sense of completion, yet
remains unbalanced.A
striking piano gesture
launches
“Open,†the
idea of instability
reflected with the
flowing flute trills and
unclear meter patterns in
the piano. The sensation
of an unsteady grace in
5/8 time arrives with a
piano ostinato. The
melody is expressive, yet
insecure and unbalanced
due to changing meters.
After a grand pause, the
movement transitions to
4/4 time with the flute
switching between duplet
and triplet flourishes.
After a rapid descent in
the flute, the opening
gesture returns, changed
and abruptly
interrupted.The third
movement,
“Stark,†is
very static, beginning
plainly but markedly. The
falling fifth calls out
continually throughout
the movement, searching,
lost. Melodies appear in
pieces, some smooth and
flowing, others rather
disjunct. The piece
climaxes with a line of
mournfulness, yet
revealing a deeper
strength through intense
projection of tone in the
high register. However,
the static harmonies
return, this time
unsteady all the way to
its foundation. This
destabilization repeats,
and then quietly
recedes.“Ardentâ
is the longest of the
movements and spans a
wide range of musical
emotion. Part of the
movement is fast paced,
energetic, and balances
order and disarray.
However, once the chaos
dies down, a gentle,
expressive theme comes
in. The theme itself is
very resolute; it is
order appearing from the
pandemonium. Conflict
returns, and order and
chaos become less
distinguishable from one
another, and soon fuse
together. However, order
returns with new meaning,
synthesized with previous
musical content, creating
a truer, deeper sense of
awareness or
understanding. A moment
of ambiguity arises, but
the flute persists,
supported by the
sensitive but firm
figuration in the piano,
and resoundingly comes to
a close, unburdened and
at ease.
For 5 Percussionists
and Orchestra.
Composed by Ellen Taaffe
Zwilich. Contemporary.
Large Score. With
Standard notation.
Composed 2003. 72 pages.
Duration 30 minutes.
Theodore Presser Company
#446-41192L. Published by
Theodore Presser Company
(PR.44641192L).
UPC:
680160610860. 11 x 14
inches.
One of my
greatest pleasures in
writing a concerto is
exploring the new world
that opens for me each
time I enter the
sometimes alien, but
always fascinating, world
of a solo instrument or
instruments. For me, the
challenge is to discover
the deepest nature of the
solo instrument (its
karma, if you will) and
to allow that essential
character to guide the
shape and form of the
work and the nature of
the interaction between
soloists and orchestra.
In recent years, many of
us have become more aware
of the musical world
outside the Western
tradition of musics that
follow different
procedures and spring
from other aesthetics.
And contemporary
percussionists have
opened many of these
worlds to us, as they
have ventured around the
globe, participating in
Brazilian Samba schools,
studying Gamelan and
African drumming with
local experts, collecting
instruments from Asia and
Africa and South America
and the South Pacific,
widening our horizons in
the process. I will never
forget our first meeting
in Toronto when Nexus
invited me into their
world of hundreds of
exciting percussion
instruments. The vast
array of instruments in
the collection of the
Nexus ensemble is truly
global in scope as well
as offering a thrilling
sound-universe. I was
inspired by the
incredible range of sound
and moved by the fact
that so many of these
instruments were musical
reflections of a
spiritual dimension.
After long consideration,
I decided that it would
not only be impossible,
but even undesirable for
this
Western-tradition-steeped
composer to attempt to
use these instruments in
a culturally authentic
way. My goal was an
existential kind of
authenticity: searching
instead for universal
ideas that would be true
to both myself and the
performers while
acknowledging the
traditional uses of the
instruments. Since many
percussion instruments
are associated with
various kinds of ritual,
I decided that I would
allow that concept to
shape my piece. Rituals
is in four movements,
each issuing from a
ritual associated with
percussion, but with the
orchestral interaction
providing an essential
element in the musical
form. I. Invocation
alludes to the traditions
of invoking the spirit of
the instruments, or the
gods, or the ancestors
before performing. II.
Ambulation moves from a
processional, through
march and dance to
fantasy based on all
three. III. Remembrances
alludes to traditions of
memorializing. IV.
Contests progresses from
friendly competition
games, contests to a
suggestion of a battle of
big band drummers, to
warlike exchanges. In the
2nd and 4th movements,
another percussion
tradition, improvisation,
is employed. Written into
these movements are a
number of seeds for
improvisation.
Indications in the score
call for the soloists to
improvise in three
different ways, marked A
for percussion alone;
marked B for percussion
with and in response to
the orchestra; and C
where the percussionists
are free to add and
embellish the written
parts. These
improvisations should
grow out of and embellish
previous motives and
gestures in the
movement.