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Sweeping and Weeping

(2021)
  • For chamber orchestra (1121, 1110, 2 perc, piano, strings)
  • Duration: 8 minutes
  • Commissioned by the International Mizzou Composer's Festival for Alarm Will Sound Ensemble

Sweeping and Weeping was written in April 2020, when the pandemic hit and everything was canceled, postponed, or shut down. In an effort to find something positive, I initially thought of "sweeping" as a representation of the virus storm that took over our lives in the most unexpected ways. "Weeping" represents my reaction to the devastating loss that so many experienced. Like most of my pieces, Sweeping and Weeping began from these initial impressions, but the music itself navigated a way out with its own logic. The work explores rhythmic drive, lyrical tension, and release, with different timbres and colors. The music alternates between fast and slow passages that ultimately mingle into one.

Performances

Sweeping and Weeping

7:30 PM EDT |

Friday, October 22, 2021

Foot in the Door Ensemble
Edward Cumming, conductor
Lincoln Theater, The Hartt School, University of Hartford
West Hartford, CT

Sweeping and Weeping (world premiere)

7:30 PM CDT |

Tuesday, July 27, 2021

Alarm Will Sound
Alan Pierson, conductor
World Premieres I, Mizzou International Composers Festival
Missouri Theatre, University of Missouri
Columbia, MO

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