Views for Piano

Duration: 18 minutes
Recording Available: Yes
Performed: Yes
Catalog ID: RE1019
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Views for Piano consists of three movements and two short intermedii. The intermedio developed in the Renaissance and continued throughout the Baroque era. They were generally very short, and their character was lighthearted in nature. Similar to the English Masque, they were inserted between the acts of plays, and they consisted of short events from presentations of purely instrumental music to elaborate staged productions . The spirit of the brief episodes in Views for Piano is consistent with intermedii found in Renaissance plays and Baroque opera. That is, they provide the listener with relief from the intensity of the drama. Except for some of the harmonic language, they are not related to the larger movements.

Views for Piano explores the compositional approach of "conservation of means," and it further investigates my interest in finding a median between the compositional processes of working "outside-in" and working "inside-out." Although this work is not monothematic, each of the movements can be traced backto four pitches. In the first movement, Introspection, material is presented indiffering environments. Tempo in this movement changes often through rhythmic modulation, and the sense of a steady beat does not last very long. Loss of Innocence best represents the idea of "conservation of means." Through the use of a few sonorities and a pedal point, a musical shape is sculpted. In the final movement, Through an Interstice, material from Introspection and Loss of Innocence coalesce, and is the clearest demonstration of the compositional processes used in the work.

Without the generous support of The MacDowell Colony, this composition would not have been possible.