SKU: SU.91580100
A Grateful Tail - Movement by Movement Siriusly, Dog Star Sirius, the brightest star in the night sky, has been used by travelers and navigators for thousands of years as a guiding star and so it is here as the opening movement for the symphony. Sirius, the cornerstone to the constellation Canis Maggiore or Big Dog sits at the foot of Orion, the hunter, leading the way. Highly cinematic, the movement evokes both a musical and visual sense of the mythological and mysterious elements of Sirius and its Dog Godstar secrets. From the clarion call of the opening, Sirius theme, the sound is buoyant and frisky emulating the nature of doggy playtime. Puppy pleasures abound as a doggy four-step, my turn on the traditional American two-step dance, is introduced. The movement transforms into an actual orchestrated frolic of small, large and medium dog barks beginning with the winds (smaller dogs) and ultimately, the big dog, brass. The movement climaxes with the coda or, Dog Park, where the winds and the brass bark and play together over the, doggy ostinato four-step rhythm, culminating with the final call of the Sirius theme. Let Sleeping Dogs Lie, Peacefully It's all in a dog's day and life. Tranquility presides over this supremely gentle, intermezzo-like movement. After a day of play, every dog needs rest. Let Sleeping Dogs Lie, is a lyrical andante inspired by the profound serenity and beauty of a dog at rest. The Last Will and Testament of Silverdene Emblem O'Neill Based on a powerful piece of prose written by the American playwright, Eugene O'Neill this text was intended as a consolation piece for Carlotta, his wife, who had become grief-stricken over the loss of their beloved dog, the Dalmatian known as Blemie.Written for a singing actor who personifies the role of Blemie, a dog at the end of his life, the movement plays like a one act, musical drama as we follow Blemie through a wonderfully three-dimensional, emotional and psychological journey writing his Last Will and Testament, for those who have loved him. Wagging the Tail: Ossia Fido's Lament A life-affirming rumba/samba using Blemie's final words from O'Neill's text, this final movement employs the most unique American musical invention, the gospel choir. In order to make the dances come alive, this movement also calls upon the colors of a rhythm section. Creating the spirit of an Irish Funeral, the movement is a joyful and revival-like celebration of a dog's life as its spirit lives on forever in the hearts and minds of dog lovers everywhere. Remember Me, remember me! My spirit is wagging a grateful tail. Published by: Subito Music Publishing Release Date: July 9, 2013.
SKU: SU.91510280
Instrumentation: Soloist, Gospel Choir; 3(1) 2,1 3(1) 3; ssax; 4331; timp, perc, 2hp, cel/kbd, ebass, conga, traps; stgs Duration: 42' Composed: 2013 Published by: Subito Music Publishing Performance materials available on rental only: Subito Music Rental Library.
SKU: PR.342402070
ISBN 9781491111253. UPC: 680160643226. Octavo inches. Text: Archibald R. Ammons. Archibald Ammons. Text by A.R. Ammons.
To benefit Chorus America, Stucky allowed himself to be auctioned off as a prize - the high bidder would receive a new work from the composer. After a few years and not really hearing anything, Stucky suddenly found himself up against a deadline. He reached back to a favorite poem by A.R. Ammons, Eyesight, which, he says, Won't let...his reader rest till the very last word...one of those sudden insights that leave us breathless..This piece has an odd history. A few years ago, I agreed to be one of the“prizes†in an auction to benefit Chorus America: the highest bidder wouldget a new piece from me, while their money went to the organization. Thewinning bid came from a collection of several professional choruses anddirectors. But I was always a little vague about the details, and, hearingnothing more about it for a few years, forgot the whole thing.One day I received a message from Thomas Edward Morgan, directorof the Ars Nova Chamber Singers in Boulder: they had scheduled thepremiere of my new piece for a few weeks later, and could they have themusic, please? I needed a text, quickly, and (as usual) I was in a Los Angeleshotel room, not at home with my books. So I turned to the internet andsoon tracked down my favorite poet, A.R. Ammons (1926-2001).Once I stumbled on “Eyesight,†I remembered having loved the poemyears before. Archie must have loved it, too, because he included it bothin his Collected Poems 1951-1971 and in the later Selected Poems. It haseverything you want in an Archie Ammons poem: what Edward Hirschcalled his “offbeat, sideways, unpredictable radiance,†his “homespunglory.†It has one of his trademark conversations with a mountain (perhapsfrom his native North Carolina), it has the fluid motion from one line tothe next (enjambment, if you want to get technical) that won’t let him orhis reader rest till the very last word of the very last line, and it has in thatlast line one of those sudden insights that leave us breathless: “some thingsthat go are gone.â€I miss Archie, but he’s not gone. I’m grateful for the wonderful poems heleft us, and I’m grateful that he was always generous and kind when I hadthe chutzpah to add my music to his.
SKU: PE.EP73717
ISBN 9790577023854.
Almost 30 years before I received this wonderful co-commission, from Presteigne and Oxford Festivals, my friend and librettist Jessica Duchen sent me some of her poems. I've been waiting all this time for an opportunity to set them and Oxford Lieder Festivals 2023 theme of the Visual Arts provided the perfect context, especially as I could see and hear so much colour when reading them.Jessica has cleverly created a highly evocative narrative. This song cycles story is about preserving something thats otherwise gone forever, which paintings, poetry and music can all achieve. Our heroine, touring an art gallery, leaves the official itinerary to explore a long-ago relationship through four paintings she encounters, imagining that she is stepping into a different time and place. Raindrop Prelude evokes the awakening of love, which soon proves dangerous (Playing with Fire); one or both of them ran away (Tarantella), but even now she treasures a transfigured, idealized image (Neptune). Each poem is prefaced with an introduction as she walks between the pictures.Im hugely grateful to George Vass (Presteigne) and Sholto Kynoch (Oxford Lieder) for commissioning this and to Jessica for her continuing inspiration.Roxanna Panufnik, 5 April 2023This product is Printed on Demand and may take several weeks to fulfill. Please order from your favorite retailer.
SKU: PE.EP73642
ISBN 9790577022901.
When I started work on this clarinet quintet, in October 2021, the 3-month-old Taliban takeover of Afghanistan was very fresh in everyones mind and there seemed to be a collective feeling of utter helplessness as the country descended into chaos and fear, once more. The idea for this piece came in a conversation with my Afghan friend, Gulwali Passarlay, in which he was expressing the hope that people would continue to think about Afghanistan and to remember, violent political upheaval aside, what an incredibly rich, beautiful and ancient culture this country has.Part of this wonderful culture are the centuries-old, mythical tales, often with a moral message, that have been passed down through many generations. The Faithful Gazelle tells of a Beggar raised to riches by a magical Gazelle, only to lose everything again when she becomes sick and he ignores her pleas for help. The clarinet with its enormous scope of timbre and pitch seemed the perfect vehicle for the Gazelle and the cello a gruff, then majestic, then gruff again Beggar! I am deeply grateful to West Cork Chamber Festival for commissioning this work and to clarinettist Matt Hunt and the Signum Quartet for working so patiently on it, with me. Also to Gulwali Passarlay and specialist Afghan musicologists John Baily, Katherine St John and Dr Lloyd Miller for sharing their immense knowledge and love of Afghan music and culture.Roxanna Panufnik, 31 January 2022 This product is Printed on Demand and may take several weeks to fulfill. Please order from your favorite retailer.
SKU: HL.373570
ISBN 9781705149799. UPC: 196288016441.
This book attempts to give an overview of the works of Per Norgard and examines the relationship between his musical thought and the corresponding completed compositions. Some works are examined in detail while others are only briefly mentioned - and always with the question in mind: Where can an educated listener find written information on the available recorded works? To this purpose, much of the written material about Norgard's music and many CD recordings to this date have been researched. Many grateful thanks to all authors who contributed in one way or another to this book.
SKU: C4.9790-902250429
ISBN 9790902250429.
This charming little work was written for the funeral of a Dupre family friend and our edition includes a detailed history of the work. We are grateful for permission granted from Marcel Dupre's descendents for permission to make this work available to the general public.
