Performed and Recorded by James Nova, all trombones.

Terpsichore (terp-si-core-ay) comes to us from Greek Mythology. One of the nine classical Muses, her patronage was that of lyric poetry, dancing and playing the flute. In our contemporary lexicon, the derivative adjective terpsichorean means (n.) "a dancer" and (adj.) "pertaining to dancing."

In 1612, the German composer and music theorist Michael Praetorius (1571—1621) published a collection of over 300 dances in a collection he called Terpsichore, Musarum Aoniarum. Arranged by Praetorius for unspecified instrumental ensembles, the dances were derived from the stately French dance repertoire of the day, which includes forms such as bourrée, gavotte, la volta, galliard, etc.

This work draws from the Branles Simple (la, la, la, je ne l'ose dire), which is included in Praetorius' collection and attributed to French composer Pierre-Francisque Caroubel (1556—1615?). My treatment of the material takes inspiration from another modern work, the colossal and rarely heard ballet/opera, Tanz-Schul, completed in 1987 by Mauricio Kagel (1931—2008). Kagel similarly sourced material from a manual of dance music, Gregorio Lambranzi’s 1716 treatise New and Curious Theatrical School of Dancing, which featured bizarre illustrations, detailed descriptions and short, melodic examples. Kagel's preference to satirize the material made special use of the fabulous illustrations and countless notational errors found throughout the musical engravings in the treatise.

I prefer to think of my piece as an examination of Praetorius and Caroubel's work as seen through a kaleidoscope. The source material floats like an earworm melody that's been stuck in your head for as long as you can remember; mutated, interrupted, deconstructed and reassembled in the churning tides of thought and memory.

(Completed May 31, 2024)�

"Terpsichore" (for Trombone Choir)

Christian Kriegeskotte (BFA, MM) is a composer and performing arts professional with two decades of experience in film, television, video games, the recording industry and arts administration. He holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts and Master of Music in composition from Carnegie Mellon University School of Music. His primary teachers have been Leonardo Balada, Nancy Galbraith, Fabien Levy and conductor Robert Page. Christian started his formal education in 1998 as Carnegie Mellon’s only performance major in the Highland Bagpipe under the tutelage of Pipe Majors Alasdair Gillies and James McIntosh, MBE.

Christian's compositions and arrangements have been performed by the Houston Symphony, Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, Pittsburgh Opera, American Composers Orchestra, New York Pops, eighth blackbird, The Ethel Quartet, The Parker Quartet, Cuarteto Latinoamericano, The New York Miniaturist Ensemble, IonSound Project, Alia Musica and pianist Eric Clark. Upcoming performances include commissions by the Las Cruces Symphony (Ming Luke, conductor), Duquesne University Trombone Choir and Carnegie Mellon Jazz Choir. His music is also featured in the classic cabinet arcade game Nicktoons Nitro, developed by Raw Thrills Entertainment, a Chicago-based arcade game designer.

Christian's film and television credits include Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith, Stephen Spielberg’s War of the Worlds, Robert Rodruiguez’s Sin City, the animated feature film Robots, Idiocracy, Tim Burton's Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, The Skeleton Key, The Longest Yard, The World’s Fastest Indian, The Interpreter, Hide and Seek, Meet the Fockers, The Pacifier, Red Eye, XXX 2: State of the Union, Ice Princess, The Fantastic Four, Elektra and others. Christian additionally prepared music for two seasons of The Simpsons, Family Guy, King of the Hill and for the premiere season of American Dad. Additional credits include orchestral charts for Kanye West, medley scores for the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra and charts for Paul Anka's 2005 album Rock Swings (featuring Anka's cover of "Blackhole Sun" by Soundgarden).

"Terpsichore" (for Trombone Choir)

Christian Kriegeskotte, composer