flute (dbl picc)

While considering possibilities for fulfilling the VCME’s woodwind commission I happened upon reproductions of two famous paintings: The Mountain (Summertime), by Balthus, and Melancholy and Mystery of a Street, by De Chirico. The haunting treatment of shadows in these paintings was suggestive, leading me to a general musical conception of this piece. Ultimately, literary as well as visual shadow-symbol phantasmagoria inspired musical content, even encouraging my choice of instrumentation: two flutesdoubling piccolo and bass flute, two clarinets-doubling bass clarinet, and two bassoons.

Specify violin or viola ensemble score/parts; A version exists with VLN instead of VLA.

The Other Side of Time was written for the New England Conservatory Wind Ensemble at the request of its director, Charles Peltz. It is scored for 25 wind instruments, timpani, and 4 percussionists. After a brooding beginning, each of its contiguous sections develops at a different but related tempo, often moving within from lyrical lines to dramatic outbursts. The final section, at the original tempo, recalls the material of the opening and its anxious percussion activity. While the piece is meant to reflect some kind of spiritual journey, the title is actually taken from a book by paleontologist/geologist Robert Titus on the origins of the Catskill Mountains in New York State.