Clarinet choir, 2003
Duration: 5 minutes
Instrumentation:
2 Clarinets in Eb
3 Clarinets in Bb 1
2 Clarinets in Bb 2
2 Clarinets in Bb 3
2 Basset Horns in F
2 Bass Clarinets in Bb
1 Contralto Clarinet in Eb
1 Contrabass Clarinet in Bb
1 Contrabass
Numbers are a minimum, additional players may be used if desired, and
are recommended for Clarinets in Bb 2 and 3. Alto Clarinets in Eb may
be substituted for Basset Horns if necessary. Contrabass is optional,
but highly desired.
Program Note:
A butterfly coughs in Africa, flaps its wing ever so slightly, rustling
a nearby leaf which falls gently to the ground, adding its tiny
momentum to a passing breeze, lending it just enough force to cross a
stream into the open tundra where the wind now picks up and heads out
over the Atlantic, ever gaining strength as it gradually whips into a
frenzy, sending torrential rain down upon Bermuda, and turning
inexorably toward the coast of South Carolina. Or something like that.
A Butterfly Coughs in Africa was composed for Mitchell Estrin and the
University of Florida Clarinet Choir.
Recorded by The University of Florida Clarinet Choir, David Waybright, conductor on “Fables, Forms, and Fears”, Meyer Media, MM07008 (2007) and on “Wind in the Reeds”, Mark Records, 6720-MCD (2006)
Published by Jeanné, Inc., 2008.