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Late Autumn Moods and Images David S. Bernstein Joel Belgique, viola David Buck, flute Hamilton Cheifetz, cello Alexandre Dossin, piano Barbara Heilmair, clarinet Nancy Ives, cello Susan DeWitt Smith, piano Ines Voglar, violin Karen Wagner, oboe $14.95 Catalog Number: NPM LD 035
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Late Autumn Moods and Images Petite Suite Chromatique Quadralogues III Quadralogues II Sound Sculptures About the music Late Autumn Moods and Images  Come Ye Thankful ...Dances With ...Rhetorical Rhythms in FlightCommissioned by the Schubert Club of the Jerome Foundation in St. Paul, the three movements of LATE AUTUMN MOODSAND IMAGES were composed in 1990. The first movement includes several phrases from the Protestant hymn tune "Come Ye Thankful People Come." The melodic fragments of the theme should be obvious much of the time although there are a number of instances where their use is much more abstract. Movement II , sub-titled "Dances with ... " refers to the idea of attempting to fuse two entirely different dance melodies into a single movement. I came across these dances from an old collection of Hebrew and Jewish songs and dances arranged for accordion. The third movement sources no outside musical material. It does, however, attempt a synthesis of seemingly contradictory style elements. Enclosed within it are passages of contrapuntal pandiatonicism that "fuse" with dense chromaticism ... tonal, triadic elements integrated with gapped semitone clusters, etc. Petite Suite Chromatique This five movement work is exactly what the title suggests: a chromatic exploitation of the color and virtuosic possibilities of both instruments. The work is dedicated to a close friend, cellist Michael Haber, who had previously played a number of my other chamber compositions. In writing a piece of this nature, I wanted to show a kind of dialogue between and among two instrumentalists that are at times argumentative, playful, witty, and above all rhythmically dynamic for both players. The moods from one movement to another are varied and the differences between them are usually rhythmically differentiated from one another. The underlying harmonic aspect of its chromaticism unifies all aspects of the composition.
Quadralogues III The title "Quadralogues" as a series of musical compositions references the idea of conversations among four players. This particular quartet is structured in textural combinations: solos, duets, trios and full tutti ensemble. All three movements, with one exception, contain bits of pitch material, continually transformed as each movement grows and develops. In manipulating the material, the context in which the musical ideas are heard is perpetually altered. Rhythm is particularly important in this process. The exception is the treatment of pitch material in the third movement. This is one of the rare instances in which I adopt material from another composition; in this case, the "Brahms Lullaby." It seemed to come right out of the first bar. And so, approximately half of the Brahms tune is integrated throughout the entire final movement. It also undergoes various processes of transformation as the movement progresses. Quadralogues II for Flute, Oboe, Percussion and Piano As with many of my chamber works, this composition came into existence through friendships that I developed with faculty colleagues at the university where I worked. All excellent performers, it was my pleasure to write a work showing off the beauty of their individual instruments. With the piano as sort of the "glue" that holds the two movements together, I was fascinated to see what I could do with the flute, oboe and multiple percussion in this work. I believe the vibraphone adds a kind of special beauty to it when combined with the woodwinds and enhanced by the piano. The first movement is somewhat on the dark side, with much of the pitch material comprised of major/ minor thirds: three-note pitch cells that I use in much of my chamber music. Movement two is lighter and more melodic than the first. Similar to the previous quartet, the instrumentalists here are also combined in a variety of textural relationships. Six Sound Sculptures Enigmatic Wanderings: The OpenForte e PianoLight but HeavySoliloquy for ClarinetKeep it ShortTempest and Turnings: The CloseThis work was commissioned by The Fortnightly Musical Club of Cleveland and has had multiple performances across the nation. Before writing this challenging work, I knew the virtuosic levels of the performers I would be writing for. Thus, I felt free to exploit the virtuosic capabilities of both the clarinet and equally, of the piano. The work is a true duet: both performers work together, mostly in tightly controlled rhythmic combinations; at other times their associations are more improvisatory in nature. The six movements are relatively short, and except for perhaps the first and sixth movements, they generally explore a variety of characters and, if you like, musical images that are at times violent and gentle, within mood changes that occur often but seconds apart. SPACE SPACE SPACE |
Movement I