SMALL CHAMBER ENSEMBLE - Twin Trio (2005) Program Notes
Program Notes:
I got my first inkling of inspiration for the piece upon visiting Jonah and Delphine, newborn twins of my friends Evelyne Luest and Aaron Kernis. Shortly after birth the two, though bound by identical genetic code, were already asserting themselves in different directions and showing their uniqueness. The flute and clarinet, while different in sound production, are similarly bound by their common "woodwind"-ness and by their similar range. The trio movements each focus on a specific interval and its corresponding octave "twin"; major 2nd and minor 7th in the first movement, "Mirror"; perfect 4th and 5ths in the second movement, "Converse"; major 3rds and minor 6ths in the final movement, "Follow". The third movement, "Share," is a flute/clarinet duo in which I explored the gravitational pulls of minor and major 2nds.
Special thanks to Leone Buyse and Michael Webster, who were instrumental (no pun intended) in organizing the commission, and to the members of the duo consortium, notably Jill Felber and Paul Bambach, who prepared the premiere of the work for performance at the National Flute Association Convention in San Diego in August 2005.