Wind Walks

SKU: CF.YPS200F

ISBN 9781491152881. UPC: 680160910380.

Step right up, ladies and gentleman, boys and girls, step right up! See the exotic, the strange, and the magical at the Cirque de L’étrange, or “Circus of the Strange.” This piece evokes a bygone era when circuses and carnivals provided people from all walks of life a chance to see human and animal oddities. Cirque de L'étrange is an original concert march written in standard march form, but its sound is anything but standard. This piece is playable by younger groups and is a great way to expose students to the march form and style without sounding like your typical march.
Step right up ladies and gentleman, boys and girls, step right up! See the exotic, the strange, and the magical at the Cirque de L’étrange. Welcome to the Cirque de L’étrange, known in English as the “Circus of the Strange.” This piece evokes a time of a bygone era, a time when circuses and carnivals provided people from all walks of life a chance to see human and animal oddities that were sources of both delight and horror. While many of these sideshow attractions were deemed fraudulent, it did not deter the crowds from flocking to be shocked and awed. I have always held a special place in my heart for the showmanship of carnivals, because my grandfather dearly loved them. For much of his life, he worked at fairs and carnivals selling cotton candy and candy apples. A large portion of my days when growing up were spent running around fairgrounds and helping my grandfather with his stand. He imparted in me a love for the cunning, magic, and sheer joy that only carnivals and circuses can bring. In Cirque de L’étrange, I sought to capture the the mirthful, yet uncanny mood of the carnivals that I grew up exploring, thus transporting you to a different time.Cirque de L'étrange is an original concert march written in standard march form, but its sound is anything but standard. This piece is playable by younger groups, as it is a great way to expose students to the march form and style while not sounding like your typical march.Opening in D minor, the piece combines the playful feel of a march and a macabre tango. The second time through the First Strain (mm. 5-23), the upper woodwinds and bells add a second counter melody based in D harmonic minor, which heightens the peculiar nature of the piece. The Second Strain (mm. 24-43) by contrast, is a little more upbeat, thus evoking the magical ebullience of a circus, which is further highlighted by the xylophone part. The Second Strain ends in the key of F major and sets up the transition to the Trio in the key of G minor. The Trio (m. 44) begins with the G harmonic minor melody in the clarinets and a counter melody in the bassoon and tenor saxophone. The rest of the woodwinds and bells join in at m. 60 while the percussion adds a Gypsy-like feel with tambourine and triangle. At m. 76 the full band joins in the macabre parade with the trombones and baritones harmonizing the counter melody. The conclusion of the march has the upper woodwinds, adding a second counter melody complete with trills to bring the march to an exciting and dramatic finish.As the World’s Greatest Showman, P.T. Barnum, a man my grandfather greatly admired, once said “The noblest art is that of making others happy.” It is my hope that through this piece you will experience the thrill, delight, and fright that only carnivals can bring as you visit the Circus of the Strange!

SKU: HL.49018091

ISBN 9790001170338. UPC: 884088520069. 9.0x12.0x0.115 inches.

The title hidden tracks is ambiguous. First of all, the piece is almost throughout imagined as 'multi-track', with layers (in the sense of sound tracks) that partly overlay each other, partly suddenly appear from the background. The composition deals with 'hidden' lines, sounds at the perception threshold, with side effects of the accordion sound which -observed, so to speak, under a compositional 'microscope' - develop a special allure: that is the vertical component. The title has also a horizontal meaning: a 'hidden track' is a piece on a record without a track number that is not mentioned on the cover either. In most cases, a 'hidden track' follows after a longer break after the (presumably) last piece on the record; often this track contains strange sounds, noise or other surprising elements. 'Hidden tracks' are surrounded by a nimbus of the mysterious and subversive. This effect is being used rather often throughout the piece: again and again, it seems to have ended but continues after a pause. The expectation of the listener and the attentiveness also for the tiniest events rises; the performance receives an almost scenic character. hidden tracks was partly composed in August 2008 during a stay at the Kunstlerhaus Lukas in Ahrenshoop at the shores of the Baltic Sea. The work was accompanied by many walks on the beach - again and again, I caught a sight on tracks in the sand that became overlaid by other tracks, wiped out by the wind and the waves... Benjamin Schweitzer.