Do You Hear the Sky?

About

Completed January 2024. Written for Yuki Erbes.

Instrumentation

alto saxophone and piano; ~4:30

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Program Note

I was enamored with the beauty of the altissimo range of the alto saxophone that was heavily featured in a soundtrack that came out in 2023, and I wanted to write something that would utilize that timbre extensively. In the opening bars the saxophone evokes a floating, weightless mood that encounters turbulence in the middle sections before drifting off out of orbit into space at the end of the piece. In the piano part I utilized additive rhythms and isorhythmic techniques to create a sense of temporal stasis, while in the saxophone part I implemented virtuosic runs and arpeggios to highlight Yuki’s skill as well as to create a sense of vertical propulsion.

Perusal Score