work:
click title for pdf of the score
Here Down on Dark Earth
ensemble: orchestra, 2 fl (picc), 2 ob, 2 cl, 2 bsn, 2 hn, 2 tpt, 2 trb, tba, timp, 2 perc, strings
duration:
c. 6 minutes
date composed: March-April 2002
additional info:
composed as a final project for Advanced Arranging
program notes:
     This piece was written as an experiment in orchestration techniques for a large orchestra.  Though the assignment did not stipulate that the piece must be a complete composition, I strove to make it as cohesive as I could in the short amount of time I had to write it. Generally, I wanted to apply techniques that I have used in my mixed chamber ensemble pieces and see what results I could gain from the orchestra. 
      For the period of a month I worked at all times on this project.  This influenced many of the musical and timbral products.  At one time I was watching a special on television that had documentary film makers who were inside the World Trade Center on September 11th so the raw emotion and feelings made its way into the harsh and disjunct tones and melodies in the beginning of the piece.  Another portion of the piece was composed in Quebec City while I was on spring break in Canada.  The calm section towards the middle was composed while sitting in my hostel room overlooking the winding streets of the European-esque city. These and several other influences combined produced this, my first foray into the realm of large scale orchestration. 
      Many thanks to my Professor, Dr. William Kleinsasser, and Maestro Mark McCoy for organizing a reading of the piece.
performance history:

  • May 3, 2002; Towson University Harold J. Kaplan Concert Hall, Read by the Towson University Orchestra, Mark McCoy, conductor

Home - Compositions