four poems

for soprano, flute, clarinet/bass clarinet, violin, cello, and piano.

moderately difficult.

Jodi Marchowsky is a fellow Nashuan, a friend, a former housemate, and a poet. The poems are selected from her collection, Mudseason. I was the flutist in an ensemble performing Arnold Schoenberg's seminal work Pierrot Lunaire (1912), and decided that it would be a wonderful opportunity to write something for the same instrumentation. Each poem is a vivid character sketch: a snapshot of someone in a particular moment. I found the various combinations of personality and situation inherently musical. I sketched the vocal line for the last poem, "Quiet," first, while waiting in the laundromat. That melody became the material for all four movements.

ca. 12'

1998.

performance history:

13 March 2002. Elebash Recital Hall, The Graduate Center CUNY. Heather Feldman, soprano; Andrea La Rose, flute; James Corwin, clarinets; Chung-Yong Hong, violin; Patrick Muchmore, cello; Marc Thorman, piano; Scott Jackson Wiley, conductor.

14 April 2000. Seully Hall, The Boston Conservatory. Jennifer Hazel, soprano; Michael Royal, flute; Laura Harrison, clarinets; Claire Smith, violin; Stacey Benben, cello; Eric Foinquinos, piano; Kelly Corcoran, conductor.

13 December 1998. Seully Hall, The Boston Conservatory. Kelly Corcoran, soprano; Andrea La Rose, flute; Edna Huang, clarinets; Ambrose Lui, violin; Andrea Jensen, cello; Maurice Gordon, piano; Dr. Larry Thomas Bell, conductor.