Wind ensemble, 2018
4 Movements:
I. Custom‘s Sword
II. Tranquil Blossom ... Tortured Stem
III. The Roiling
IV. The Towers of Babylon
Duration: 27 minutes
Instrumentation:
Piccolo
2 Flutes
2 Oboes
2 Bassoons
Contra-Bassoon
Clarinet in Eb
3 Clarinets in Bb
Bass Clarinet
Contra-Bass Clarinet
Soprano Saxophone
Alto Saxophone
Tenor Saxophone
Baritone Saxophone
4 Trumpets in Bb
4 Horns in F
2 Trombones
Bass Trombone
Euphonium
Tuba
Piano
Timpani
5 Percussion
1: Xylophone, Medium Suspended Cymbal, Piccolo Snare Drum, Slapstick
2: Marimba, Triangle, Small Suspended Cymbal, Tambourine, 2 Tom-toms
3: Bongos, Tambourine, Temple Blocks, Snare Drum, Brake Drum
4: Glockenspiel, Vibraphone, Tambourine, Large Suspended Cymbal, Field Drum
5: Large Suspended Cymbal, Field Drum, Vibraslap, Small Bass Drum, Tam-tam
Double-Bass
Performance Notes:
Percussionists should be positioned in an arch at the back of the ensemble, with player 1
on the far left, player 3 in the center, and player 5 on the far right. Some instruments are
shared between adjacent players, and this spatial arrangement is important for the snare
drum trio in movement 3.
Though conceived of as a unified work, the movements may also be performed
separately.
Duration of movements:
Custom’s Sword (8 ˝‘)
Tranquil Blossom … Tortured Stem (6 ˝‘)
The Roiling (4‘)
The Towers of Babylon (8‘)
Program Note:
Composed in celebration of Beethoven‘s 250th year, each of the four movements of
Symphony #2 (”Refractions“) is a response to Beethoven‘s music, refracted
through the lens of time.
I. Custom’s Sword (Adagio – Allegro)
”Deine Zauber binden wieder / Was der Mode Schwert geteilt“
(”Thy magic powers re-unite / What custom‘s sword has divided“)
- Friedrich Schiller, ”Ode to Joy“ (original 1785 version)
The opening movement takes musical ideas that comport with early 19th-century
norms and filters them through rhythmic, harmonic, melodic, and textural
procedures informed by changes in musical styles that have happened since. Some
parts veer quite close to the music of Beethoven, nearly quoting his work in a few
select passages, while other portions depart rather drastically.
II. Tranquil Blossom … Tortured Stem (Adagio, molto sostenuto)
”This moment is the best the world can give: / The tranquil blossom on the tortured
stem.“
- Edna St. Vincent Millay, ”On Hearing a Symphony of Beethoven“
All of the harmonic material in the second movement comes from slow movements
of piano sonatas and symphonies of Beethoven, sewn together and stretched such
that extra notes suspend across sonorities, like the refraction of light through a
prism.
III. The Roiling (Scherzo)
” … Then music raged in me, / rising so swiftly I could not write quickly enough / to
ease the roiling.“
- Rita Dove, ”Ludwig van Beethoven’s Return to Vienna“
Beginning as quiet as possible and growing until the full ensemble is engaged, the
third movement is a response to the atmosphere and energy of a Beethovenian
scherzo. In some movements of symphonic works, Beethoven appears to link the
subdivision of beats to the formal design of the piece, and in response, this
movement is built upon frequent metric modulations, where the speed of material is
linked to the phrase structure of the work. The trio is a brief fugue for three snare
drums.
IV. The Towers of Babylon (Allegro)
”… trying to calculate / the distance between madness and genius / realizing that
Beethoven’s musical measurements / could take you to distances / reaching past
the towers of Babylon …“
- Shane Koyczan ”Beethoven“
After a brief introduction, the final movement is a set of variations on a theme from
the third movement of Beethoven‘s Sextet in Eb Major, Op. 71, first presented in its
original orchestration for six wind instruments. As in movement one, some
variations stay close to Beethovenian norms, while others go far afield.
Commissioned by the wind programs of
Auburn University, Rick Good, conductor
Kennesaw State University, Debra Traficante, conductor
Lebanon Valley College, Christopher Heffner, conductor
McNeese State University, Jay Jacobs, conductor
Oregon State University, Christopher Chapman, conductor
Purdue University, Jay Gephart, conductor
Syracuse University, Bradley Ethington, conductor
Texas A&M University, Timothy Rhea, conductor
The University of Florida, David Waybright, conductor
The University of Nevada at Las Vegas, Thomas Leslie, conductor
The University of Texas at Austin, Jerry Junkin, conductor
The University of Wisconsin at Stevens Point, Michael Butler, conductor