For orchestra, 10′
Commissioned by the Napa Valley Symphony Youth Orchestra
Excerpt 1:
Excerpt 2:
UC Berkeley Symphony Orchestra
David Milnes, Conductor
About the Music
In una voce grave e pericolosa (meaning “In a low and dangerous voice”) has four sections that follow a narrative trajectory of two successive crises followed by anguish and finally release. The harmonic material flows between the tonal and atonal, the consonant and the dissonant, reflecting my interest in writing music that evokes ambiguity and conflict as well as certainty and peace.
In una voce… was composed for Ming Luke, Rachel Epley, and the Napa Valley Symphony Youth Orchestra, and it is gratefully dedicated to them.
Sand in the Machine (2007)For wind ensemble, 9.5′
Commissioned by the University of California at Berkeley Wind Ensemble
Excerpt:
UC Berkeley Wind Ensemble
Bob Calonico, Director
Instrumentation
2 Piccolos
4 Flutes
2 Oboes (2nd doubles English Horn)
3 Clarinets in B-flat
2 Bass Clarinets in B-flat
2 Bassoons
4 Horns in F
6 Trumpets in B-flat
4 Trombones
1 Bass Trombone
2 Euphoniums
2 Tubas
Percussion: 4 Timpani, Bass Drum, Suspended Cymbal, Crash Cymbals, Tam-tam, Triangle (large), 5 Tom-toms (high to low), Crotales, Tubular Bells, Glockenspiel, Xylophone, Marimba, Vibraphone
About the Music
I wrote Sand in the Machine “In memoriam György Ligeti” to honor the great composer’s memory. His Lontano inspired some of the textures in my piece, as did his notion that composition could be like building a machine and then throwing sand into it. In this case, the “machine” is a slow-motion textural fugue.
For orchestra, 10′
Orchestration and arrangement of original by Erik Satie
Commissioned by the Sacramento Youth Symphony Chamber Music Workshop
I. Unappetizing Chorale:
II. Yachting
III. Ocean Bathing
IV. Puss in the Corner
V. Golf
VI. Racing
VII. The Swing
Sacramento Youth Symphony Chamber Music Workshop Orchestras of 2006
Ming Luke, Director
Instrumentation
4 Flutes (1st doubling piccolo, if available)
2 Oboes
1 Clarinet in B-flat
1 Male Speaker, amplified (ad lib)
1 Female Speaker, amplified (ad lib)
2 Percussionists, playing Side Drum, Crash Cymbals, Triangle, Bass Drum, Low Siren (foghorn sound), Suspended Cymbal, Snare Drum, Typewriter (old-fashioned, with noisy keys), Glass (large piece to break), Pistol
2 Pianos
Strings, divided into three sections:
Violin 1A
Violin 2A
Viola A
Violoncello A
Contrabass A
Violin 1B
Violin 2B
Viola B
Violoncello B
Violin 1C
Violin 2C
Viola C
Violoncello C
About the Music
Erik Satie’s Sports and Diversions (Sports et Divertissements) is a set of 21 short piano pieces composed in 1914 as musical accompaniments to illustrations by Charles Martin. Each of them, with one exception, is a droll musical depiction of some refined Parisian pastime. The exception is the first movement in the volume, the Unappetizing Chorale, which was dedicated, in Satie’s words, to “those who don’t like me.” I have chosen to arrange and orchestrate this chorale, plus six of my favorite movements from the piece, and have placed them in order according to their tempo variations and themes. The chorale, naturally, comes first, though it is preceded by my original music underscoring Satie’s ironic preface to the volume. Next come the two outdoor water-based pastimes, Yachting and Ocean Bathing, followed by the indoor game Puss-in-the-Corner. Following this are two outdoor sports, Golf and Racing, and finally we have the rather metaphysical Swing, whose accompanying text suggests that it is really “my heart that is swinging.” My arrangement, while staying true to the spirit of the original (and paying homage to Satie’s own orchestration from his grand ballet Parade from the same decade), takes some artistic license. In addition to the introductory material, I have repeated some movements, and I composed a coda for the end of The Swing. The live narration is also my invention, though all the words are Satie’s (translated here from French), having been originally penned beneath specific moments in the music.
