Render Uncertain (2017)

for alto saxophone and bassoon.

8.5 min.

This piece was commissioned by the Xelana Duo, with saxophonist Ana Garcia and bassoonist Alex Davis. When I first heard that this group existed, I never believed that this instrumentation would work. After I heard the first piece they played in their concert at the Imani Winds Chamber Music Festival 2016, I was blown away. They performed Guy Mintus' Trapatikadoo- Sounds of Creation, and what an amazing piece and performance. After the festival was over, they commissioned me to write a piece for them for their next summer concert tours. 

Render Uncertain is meant to keep the audience guessing at what will happen next. Which instrument is playing higher, which one has the melody, what will the time signature be, what will the next pattern be, what scale are they playing; as I kept writing the piece, I tried to keep myself guessing by playing rhythmic games with myself, putting measures backwards, always flipping the orchestration, having two scales at once, and other techniques. This piece was premiered at Connecticut Summerfest 2017 in Hartford, Connecticut.

Purchasing Options: