| African
Fanfare: A Call to Celebrate Music
for Brass and Percussion |
| As yet unknown
. . .
for Flute, Bassoon, and Piano with Djembe and Ankle Bells |
| Be Still
My Soul
for Soprano, Alto, Trumpet, and Trombone |
| dREAMSCAPES
for SATB Choir |
| Fantasy for Flute
for Flute and Piano |
| Highland Prayer
Battle of Bannockburn for Bassoon and Piano |
| The Land of
Nod
for High Voice and Piano |
| Nightingale
for Mezzo-Soprano, Baritone, Piano, and Percussion |
| Reconstructing
Music
for Musicians |
| Sacred Beauty,
Human Being for Piano |
| Seventh Sun
for solo Bass Clarinet |
"Highland Prayer" was performed at the Bands of America National Camp, Summer 1999.
Highland Prayer
Dr. Gene Griswold; Bassoon, Larissa Karp; PianoClick here to view an excerpt from the score!
(requires Adobe Acrobat Reader)
Edward Sanders III; Bassoon, Larissa Karp; Piano
| Highland Prayer:
In the spring of 1996, Eddie Sanders and I were in the same theory class together. At the end of the semester he told me he was giving a recital the following fall, and would perform a piece of mine on the program. All I had to do was write it. The summer went by, and I was taking some private composition lessons with Chris Forbes. And what we were working on together was perfect for bassoon. Not one to pass up on a great opportunity, I finished the piece over the summer and had a copy waiting for him when we got back. Eddie was a little surpirsed to see his suggestion had become a reality, and was thrilled to program the piece. After his premier, I immediately had another of the bassoonists at Towson ask for the piece to program on his recital. It continues to circulate through the Towson bassoon department having received another performanace on a student recital this past fall. Recently, Dennis Karp asked if I would transcribe the piece for flute, and the flute transcription is slated to be performed this coming spring. I also have a special affinity for this piece because it is the first piece of mine to be premiered nationally. After winning the Yamaha Young Soloists Competition, Eddie Sanders programmed my piece on the awards concert in Cincinatti. My thanks to Eddie. Now about the piece, the piece draws from several traditions. First, I had just received a book that my great-grandfather had written, and my grandfather had edited, about my family history. I discovered, in this book, some of my Scottish heritage, and drew from that for inspiration while writing this piece. I had also been studying contemporary American art songs by composers such as Richard Hundley and Roger Quilter. At the same time, in my piano lessons, I had been working diligently on some of Debussy's works. All these disparate elements combined into a unique sound of an American art song that reminisces about a distant Scottland in an impressionistic manner. Formally, the piece is structured into three sections. A slow melodic 'A' section begins the piece. the piece then gets a little brighter with a light hearted 'B' section with a jig feel to it. The last section takes the thematic material from the first two sections and interweaves them as the distant melodies of the earlier sections resound over rolling green hills. Battle of Bannockburn:
As for the title, the Battle of Bannockburn was a war fought between the Scottish and the English. The Scottish were led by Robert the Bruce who managed to defeat the English, despite having a much smaller army, using excellent tactical maneuvers. According to the geneology researched by my great-grandfather, and completed and edited by my grandfather, Robert the Bruce is an Ancestor of mine, and so in tribute to him and to all my ancestors, I offer this piece. |
Eddie and Larissa in last minute preparations.