Jody Rockmaker

Two Clarinets (or Bass Clarinets)

Composer's Note:

Crossing Paths is another composition in a series that experiments with counterpoint in an aleatoric work. My own compositional training always stressed that the composer needed to specify the exact action necessary to perform a work: the precise pitch, rhythm, articulation, etc. needed at any point of the piece. As I grew older and wiser, I found I was attracted to many works that used chance elements. Why (and how) did these pieces work? Why, despite the many variations these aleatoric options may create, did the piece always maintain a common character? I set out to explore this interesting world by combining it with my own love for contrapuntal textures.Crossing Paths is in several sections. Each contains a set of musical gestures that can be played in any order. The gestures all contain common pitch and rhythmic elements that help to unite the work. As the players move from section to section, an overall form is created giving the piece a sense of progression, moving between calmer and more active music.