Verve Music was commissioned by the Charleston Chamber Players in 2004 for a performance at Piccolo Spoleto. The piece is organized into three movements that address rhythmic movement in different ways. “intro” begins with motion initiated by percussive gestures in the cello. Most of the music represents the stillness of the late night/early morning hours. The music is an attempt to represent my innermost introverted thoughts with the calm of the quiet night in the background. “Pulses” in contrast to “into”, is organized with continuous perceptible pulses that change subtly throughout the piece. The piece is also influenced by memories of love songs in the 1970’s. The harmonic and rhythmic vocabulary contributes to generally genial attitude of this movement. The last movement, “bop” is an homage to Bebop and the birth of Modern Jazz. Formally, the piece uses a loose Head Arrangement like many Bebop works beginning with a melodic idea played by all, solo passages for each instrument, and then the melody is performed by all at the end. The music emphasizes syncopated rhythms, and continual rhythmic energy and motion. “bop” is most obviously the most enthusiastic movement of the three, but Verve Music as a whole represents youthful enthusiasm.
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