Product Description
Named after the concept of how the universe manifests our intentions in a synchronous fashion, this piece was commissioned by the Pugest Sound Symphony Orchestra in 2003 after conductor Alan Shen had listened in on a read-through of the first couple movements of my String Quintet, just months after I had joined the orchestra secretly hoping for chance to compose and premier an orceshtral work.
The first movement, "Pace of a Saturday Morning", evokes scenes of a distant future where humankind lives in close harmony with nature. The opening chords build from bottom-up and sustain well into the next chord (a la the "String Ens" instrument on an 80's casio keyboard), while a syncopated ostinato (a la New Order's "Temptation") takes you on a bird's eye view of a lively open-air market in a village nestled within a forest on the Cascadian mountainside (the village theme is recycled from "Anotherside" by Motoya). A bold rhythmic motif is then introducedto be well-developed in the next movementand is passed around the orchestra from low to high until it meets the countersubject of the village theme. This arrangement of themes is then repeated in a new key and a new combination of instruments; the movement closes with a cool-down F-minor melody in the horn section, ending on a cliff-hanging dominant C5-7 chord.
"Urban Fugue" uses a derivative of the syncopated ostinato from the first movement as its subject, with a downward 16th-note scale as its countersubject, in a 4-part fugue form. The bold rhythmic motif from the first movement is used as a separate fugue element, as is its rhythmic inversion, particularly at the climax of the fugue where the strings battle the winds. Motivic splicing and inversion continue on a sonic rollercoaster until the horns bring us home with the countersubject of the first movement's village theme.
"Old Skool Vibes" takes us on a tour through the evolution of dance music, from African-inspired tribal, to funk, to rhythm and blues (a la EWF), then disco, then world. Hihats are featured prominently, as are congo drums (represented by timpani and pizzicato strings), electric bass (represented by bassoon, cello, and double bass), electric guitar (represented by oboe and clarinet), and horns and flutes. The countersubject of the village theme brings the party to an end, and the villagers take a "Sunset Stroll" back to their huts. The village theme and its countersubject appear in different instrumentations, while a simplified, delicate version of the ostinato carries the candlelight, and the opening chords re-appear as a yawn of fulfillment to end the night.
Duration: 17:00
This recording is of a live performance by the Puget Sound Symphony Orchestra in 2015.
This product was created by a member of ArrangeMe, Hal Leonard's global self-publishing community of independent composers, arrangers, and songwriters. ArrangeMe allows for the publication of unique arrangements of both popular titles and original compositions from a wide variety of voices and backgrounds.