Sea Creatures
(wind octet with narrator) 28'00"
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Treat your young audiences to a spellbinding tour of the underwater world.
Composer's Notes:
I was commissioned to compose this piece by the Halama Wind Octet of the Twin Cities, a superb group of professional musicians founded and conducted by Marlene Pauley. Our original plan was to premiere it for a children’s audience at the Minnesota Zoo's Discovery Bay. In fact, I spent a fun day there getting ideas for the work by observing the aquatic life. There are six movements, each preceded by a narration that I wrote myself (with a bit of helpful " tweaking" from Mindy Ratner who narrated the premiere). The movement titles are: I. The Depths: The Second Frontier; II. Dolphin; III. Puffer Fish; IV. Moray Eel; V. Shark; VI. Epilogue: The Future. The exact instrumentation is: 2 oboes [II doubles English horn], 2 clarinets in A [I doubles E-flat clarinet, II doubles bass clarinet], 2 bassoons and 2 horns. Sea Creatures is quite challenging both rhythmically and technically and definitely requires a competent conductor in addition to fine instrumentalists. It is perfect for young people's concerts but appeals to all ages. The work has had several performances in Europe, Canada and the U.S.