Libretto by David Cote
Aria Featuring Cree Carrico, soprano
Full Duration: ca. 24'/ Aria Duration: ca. 5'
Full Instrumentation: soprano, baritone, bass-baritone, flute, piano, 2 violins, viola, cello
Commissioned by Triphammer Arts Inc. with The Arts at Grace and Society for New Music
World Premiere Recording (Live Performance): American Modern Ensemble, featuring Cree Carrico, soprano; Steven Stull, baritone; David Neal, bass-baritone; Universal Preservation Hall (UPH), Saratoga Springs, NY, June 18-19, 2021
Publisher: Bill Holab Music: www.billholabmusic.com
For more information: robertpaterson.com/cocoa-cantata/
Full Video: TBA
View Online Perusal Score: https://issuu.com/robertpaterson/docs/paterson_cocoa_cantata__score-perusal_
Buy Full Score: TBA

ABOUT COCOA CANTATA
Cocoa Cantata is a 21st-century response to J.S. Bach’s Coffee Cantata, one of his secular cantatas, c. 1734. A mini-drama with colorful, comical roles for soprano, baritone, and bass-baritone, this work imitates Bach's instrumentation and explores politics and optics in the multibillion-dollar chocolate industry.

Two chocolate executives, one from a global brand, the other a boutique chocolatier, square off over a corporate takeover, when a food scientist introduces a scientifically engineered "Total Cacao." One bite of it, and each chocolate executive is transformed.

Cocoa Cantata runs approximately 22 minutes, incorporating arias for each character, duets, and a final trio. The tone is lightly satirical, with contemporary allusions to fair-trade practices, the chemistry and symbolism of chocolate, and the marketing of pleasure. Cocoa Cantata will be delicious to anyone who loves chocolate—or tries to control their craving for it!

PROGRAM NOTE
Cocoa Cantata is a 21st-century response to J.S. Bach’s Coffee Cantata. Written for soprano, baritone, and bass-baritone, the work explores politics in the multibillion-dollar chocolate industry. Musically, the piece imitates Bach’s instrumentation, but not his Baroque style. The paternalism of Bach’s secular cantata is replaced by a more evolved (yet humorous) attitude toward issues of patriarchy, fair-trade practices, and the marketing of pleasure.

Cocoa Cantata - Ambrosia (Soprano Aria)

Music: J.S. Bach (Schweigt stille, plaudert nicht, BWV 211); Arranged by Robert Paterson
Libretto: Christian Friedrich Henrici (a.k.a. Picander); English Translation by David Cote
Duration: ca. 25'
Instrumentation: soprano, baritone, bass-baritone, flute, piano, 2 violins, viola, cello
Commissioned by Triphammer Arts Inc. with The Arts at Grace and Society for New Music
World Premiere Recording (Live Performance): American Modern Ensemble, featuring Cree Carrico, soprano; Steven Stull, baritone; David Neal, bass-baritone; Universal Preservation Hall (UPH), Saratoga Springs, NY, June 18-19, 2021
Publisher: Bill Holab Music: www.billholabmusic.com
For more information: robertpaterson.com/coffee-cantata/
Full Video: TBA
View Online Perusal Score: TBA
Buy Full Score: TBA

PROGRAM NOTE
More than just an English version of the German libretto by Christian Friedrich Henrici, this contemporary adaptation of J.S. Bach’s Coffee Cantata aims for a “fresh-brewed” vision of the father-daughter conflict over java. Despite references to SUVs, smartphones, and throuples, Cote’s new libretto retains the essential plot: a frustrated father tries to convince his coffee-chugging daughter to forsake the bean. When the father dangles marriage as a bargaining tool, they reach a decaffeinated détente. Paterson’s arrangement updates Bach's original Baroque ensemble to a similar, yet more contemporary classical instrumentation, consisting of flute, string quartet, and piano, and with the tenor and baritone roles switched to baritone and bass baritone, respectively. This instrumentation is also used for Cocoa Cantata.

Coffee Cantata - J.S. Bach (Arrangement) (For Three Singers and Chamber Ensemble) (World Premiere)

The Winds of Time for Wind Ensemble
Duration: 14'
Performers: Eastman Wind Ensemble, Mark Davis Scatterday, Conductor, Eastman School of Music, Kodak Theater, April 15, 2022
Publisher: https://www.billholabmusic.com/composers/robert-paterson/
Buy Score/Rent Parts: https://billholabmusic.com/product/the-winds-of-time/
For More Information: https://robertpaterson.com/
Watch Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q4CRnLcpvBY
Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q4CRnLcpvBY

Commissioned by the Eastman Wind Ensemble, Mark Davis Scatterday, Conductor, and a consortium of wind ensembles in honor of the Eastman School of Music’s Centennial Anniversary. Consortium members include Carthage Wind Orchestra (Carthage College), CCM Wind Ensemble (University of Cincinnati), Eastman Wind Ensemble (Eastman School of Music), Nevada Wind Ensemble (University of Nevada, Reno), Symphonic Wind Ensemble (Northwestern University), TCNJ Wind Ensemble (The College of New Jersey), Wind Symphony (Ohio University), and the UNC Wind Ensemble (The University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill)

PROGRAM NOTE
The Winds of Time was inspired by the title and content of the poem of the same name by Tanzanian poet and novelist Euphrase Kezilahabi. I created musical elements from the various words, phrases and metaphors in his poem, especially those related to wind and water: watching the waves rising, falling, swelling, surging, and waves being driven by winds. The passage of time, inevitability, darkness, and the poem’s overall despair are represented throughout the ensemble with various bells, drums, winds, exotic instruments, and a few non-standard playing techniques.

Although this work is divided into three connected movements, Waves rising, falling, swelling, surging, Bending space/time, and Colossal chimes, fading light, it is more a rhapsody than narrative in structure. Various themes and motives gradually come into the foreground and recede into the background throughout the entire work, similar to how shells wash up on a shore and then become lost to the sand.

The Winds of Time was commissioned by the Eastman School of Music Wind Ensemble, Mark Davis Scatterday, Conductor, and a consortium of wind ensembles in honor of Eastman’s 100th anniversary.

The Winds Of Time for Wind Ensemble (World Premiere)

The Book of Goddesses
For Flute, Harp, Percussion, and Optional Choreography
Commissioned by MAYA with funding from the  New York State Council on the Arts
Duration: 36'

Publisher: Bill Holab Music: http://www.billholabmusic.com/store/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=1011

For more information: https://robertpaterson.com/the-book-of-goddesses

PROGRAM NOTES
My initial inspiration for The Book of Goddesses, and the source of the title, is the beautiful, lavishly illustrated book of the same name by Kris Waldherr, a Brooklyn based author, illustrator, designer and cellist. Waldherr’s book contains descriptions and images of hundreds of female deities from around the world, some featured more prominently than others. Rather than focus on goddesses in one particular culture, I highlight a few that seem to evoke something musical, dance-related or sensual. The cultures, countries and continents I draw on for musical material and styles are India, China, Greece, Ireland, North America, Nigeria and Cuba.

The flute and harp parts in each movement are often inspired by similar instruments found in each culture. For example, the harp part in Xi Wang Mu is inspired by the Konghou, and ancient Chinese harp, and the solo bass flute movement, Estanatlehi, is inspired by the sound of a Native American flute. Percussion instruments provide an earthiness, at least with regard to timbre, and each of the trio movements uses instruments that are not common in Western music, including an Indian Gatam, a Middle-Eastern Dumbek, an Afro-Cuban Cajón and the Udu drum, an instrument traditionally played by Nigerian women.

In order to achieve the right feel for each movement, I use non-Western scales, rhythms and other elements, and I occasionally appropriate patterns and other material from pre-existing music. My goal is to merge some of the qualities of traditional music with my own sensibility, and then filter it through flute, harp and percussion.

Many goddesses are associated with dance, certain colors or creativity in general, and with that in mind, I imagine The Book of Goddesses being performed live with choreographed dance. It may be presented in its entirety, although subsets—such as all of the movements for flute and harp—or single movements may also be extracted and performed.

The Book of Goddesses was commissioned by MAYA with funding provided by the New York State Council on The Arts.

The Book of Goddesses

The Book Of Goddesses - I. Saraswati

Looney Tunes
Duration: 16'
For More Information: https://robertpaterson.com/looney-tunes
Publisher: Bill Holab Music: http://www.billholabmusic.com/store/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=103_137&products_id=1428
Perusal Score: https://issuu.com/robertpaterson/docs/looney_tunes_-_fs_bound_perusal

Instrumentation: flute (doubling piccolo), alto saxophone (doubling baritone sax), violin, cello, electric guitar, electric bass guitar (not acoustic contrabass), percussion (drumset, bongos, xylophone, amplified Udu drum and misc. small instruments) and piano (doubling synthesizer). All players doubling misc. small percussion instruments, bird whistles and sound effects.

PROGRAM NOTES (SHORT VERSION FOR PROGRAMS)
(Long version: http://robertpaterson.com/looney-tunes)
In Looney Tunes, each movement uses a specific well-known cartoon character as a musical influence and point of departure. The first movement, Taz, is inspired by the Tasmanian Devil character and plays upon all of Taz’s traits with loud, dissonant outbursts, gyrating transitions, quiet, reflective sections and a few references to his attraction to music. The second movement, Foghorn Leghorn, is inspired by this character’s loud, vocal disposition. The ‘Foghorn’ part of his name makes me think of real foghorns, and a foghorn-like interval begins this low-sounding, baritone sax-heavy movement. The third movement, Tweety Bird, provides contrast with a somewhat high tessitura and includes prominent parts for piccolo, violin, xylophone and alto sax. Although the entire movement only abstractly references the animated Tweety, I try to make all of the high instruments sound bird-like from beginning to end. Two of my favorite cartoon characters of all time are the Road Runner and Wile E. Coyote, so it seemed appropriate to end the work with a fastRoad Runner movement. I have always been fascinated by the seemingly infinite array of ACME inventions the Coyote uses to try and capture the Road Runner, and the last movement reflects this and incorporates a number of exotic, gizmo-like sounds and instruments.

Guerilla New Music

Looney Tunes - III. Tweety Bird

Looney Tunes - I. Taz

Duration: ca. 7'
World Premiere: Mostly Modern Orchestra, Mostly Modern Festival, Peter Bay, Conductor, Skidmore College, Arthur Zankel Music Center, Helen Filene Ladd Concert Hall, Saratoga Springs, NY, June 12, 2022.
Publisher - Bill Holab Music: https://www.billholabmusic.com/composers/robert-paterson/robert-paterson-works/
Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PZTC5McqtQk

PROGRAM NOTE
Overtures often come before operas or other large works. In this case, Slightly Comic Overture is a stand-alone piece—in the spirit of an overture—but more a free agent and not attached to anything else. It is my first orchestral work, and was inspired by the music of Leonard Bernstein and animated film composers such as Carl Stalling, and to a lesser extent, music by Aaron Copland, Béla Bartók, and Alfred Schnittke. Since I composed it when I was fairly young, I decided to revise it, with the hope that anything that I updated would only enhance or clarify everything and not change the nature of what I originally composed, or cause it to lose its youthful spirit. In this sense, Slightly Comic Overture is really a sort of hybrid: an intermingling of youthful exuberance with maturity, and a few colorful, more serious moments with others that are more humorous and playful. Slightly Comic Overture is dedicated to Peter Bay and the Mostly Modern Festival.

Slightly Comic Overture (for Orchestra)

Written: 2021-22
Duration: 20'
Video: https://youtu.be/X107ODtr54s
for SATB choir (3 choir members each playing a single crotale or Tingshas) and instrumental sextet (flute [doubling alto flute], clarinet, violin, cello, percussion [vibraphone, concert bass drum, four concert tom-toms, large tam-tam, medium suspended cymbal, medium and small triangles, Mark tree, medium and large wood blocks], and piano).
Publisher: Bill Holab Music: https://billholabmusic.com/store/index.php?cPath=103_137&main_page=product_info&products_id=4349
For More Information, Text, and Perusal Score: https://robertpaterson.com/listen

PROGRAM NOTE
Most people want to be heard and want to be loved, and we are usually better at talking than listening. We are often so immersed in ourselves that we not only forget to listen to others in a meaningful, effective way but also to the world around us. With that in mind, Listen is about listening to each other and the world around us more deeply, especially concerning our environment. In that sense, this piece could have been titled “Deep Listening,” but since this work is meant to be more a call to action than an alliteration of a musical concept, I felt that Listen was a more appropriate title. Listen uses a tapestry of quotes from various well-known sources, both ancient and contemporary, that are about or related to the environment. My main goal through this piece is to create a musical call to action, encourage listening, and help to raise awareness about our environment and the natural world around us.

Listen is scored for choir (3 members playing Tingshas or crotales) and chamber ensemble, consisting of a flute, clarinet, violin, cello, percussion, and piano, and was commissioned by and is dedicated to Ember, Deborah Simpkin King, music director, and conductor, in honor of their 25th anniversary.

Listen (for SATB Choir and Chamber Ensemble)

Written: 2016
Duration: 6'
Instrumentation: solo five-octave marimba (four mallets)
Commissioned by Micheal Barnes
Performed by Michael Barnes
Performance: Temple University Klein Recital Hall
North 13th Street, Philadelphia, PA, April, 224
Publisher: Bill Holab Music: 
For More Info: https://robertpaterson.com/binary-hearts
Buy Sheet Music: http://www.billholabmusic.com/store/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=103_137&products_id=1343

PROGRAM NOTE
Couples who are in love often share the same interests, finish each other sentences, and laugh at the same jokes. In fact, Scientists at the University of California, Davis discovered that a couple’s breathing patterns and heart rates match up if they sit close to each other or look into each other’s eyes. They don’t even have to hold hands or talk for this to happen. However, a similar effect apparently does not occur among strangers, only couples in love. Coupled with this idea, I have always been fascinated by binary stars, which are two stars that rotate together, on the same axis. Binary Hearts for solo marimba is inspired by these phenomena. In this piece, I use heartbeat-like motives and ostinati, fast moto-perpetuo rhythmic sections and choral-like episodes, creating a joyous, gently shifting tapestry that is meant to reflect how two people feel when they are in love. Binary Hearts was commissioned by Micheal Barnes in honor of his marriage to Carly Prince.

Binary Hearts for Solo Marimba

Written: 2021
Duration: ca. 5'
Instrumentation: solo five-octave marimba (four mallets)
Commissioned by Micheal Barnes
Performed by Michael Barnes (World Premiere)
Upcoming World Premiere: Recital, Michael Barnes, marimba, Southwestern Oklahoma State University, April 4, 2024.
Publisher: Bill Holab Music: https://billholabmusic.com/product/pyro/

PROGRAM NOTES
The word ‘pyro' has a few different meanings. It can denote fire, heat, or temperature, but the meaning that most inspired this piece comes from the word 'pyromaniac', which is used to describe someone who has a compulsion to set things on fire. In particular, I was most influenced by a by a surreal, somewhat grotesque artwork by David Lynch called Boy Lights Fire (2010), in which a boy holds a book of matches in his left hand and a lit match in his right hand, while someone (perhaps his mother) appears in the distance, arms stretched out, seemingly in shock. I imagined the boy lighting their house on fire, and the house gradually burning to the ground. Pyro was commissioned by Michael Barnes.

Pyro for Solo Marimba

Written: 2022-23
Duration: 30'
for piano trio (violin, cello, and piano) and orchestra (2-2-2-2 / 4-2-3-1 / 3 percussion, timpani, strings)
Commissioned by Neave Trio
World Premiere: Mostly Modern Orchestra with Neave Trio, JoAnn Falletta, conductor, Mostly Modern Festival, Arthur Zankel Music Center, Helen Filene Ladd Concert Hall, Skidmore College, Saratoga Springs, NY, June 17, 2023.
Publisher: Bill Holab Music

As we live through a sixth mass extinction, it is not difficult to question whether we can act as good stewards of our earth. While I often feel a sense of despair — how could we have messed this up so badly? — my thoughts are often, perhaps irrationally, tempered by a sense of optimism. Maybe we can fix this, or at least that’s what I tell myself. Triple Concerto is essentially an exploration of these emotions. As a scenic point of departure, the entire work also uses three types of geographical regions as inspiration.

Triple Concerto is structured a bit differently than a traditional concerto. An introduction and three larger movements are interspersed with three small trio-centric movements that loosely function as either a prelude, interlude, or cadenza. These three smaller movements also exist as a stand-alone version for the piano trio that may be performed as a sort of “teaser” for the concerto on a chamber music concert.

The first movement, Introduction, loosely evokes a sunrise. Toward the end of the movement, bird song melodies from around the world are incorporated and performed by the winds. This leads to a movement entitled Chorale Prelude, focusing on the piano trio, leading to a joyful third movement, Bright Pastorale, filled with bright, sunlit bell-like chords and sounds reminiscent of birdsong. Moments of despair begin to appear as the movement progresses. The movement ends darkly, like an overcast sky before a storm. The fourth movement, Interlude, echoes the beginning, focusing on the trio once again and evoking a sense of longing, the sound of a more innocent time. Tundra, the fifth movement, is cold, dark, and bleak but with swaths of color. A sense of sadness and loneliness permeates this movement, at times represented by various mournful effects such as bent notes created by dipping tubular bells in water and glissandi in the strings and brass.

After the fifth movement, the trio performs a virtuosic Cadenza, full of grief and rage but with signs of hope. This leads to the final movement, entitled Summit. Ascending lines suggest climbing a mountain, both literally and figuratively. After a brief climax, eleven bell-like chords sound one after the other, symbolizing the chimes of the Doomsday Clock. The winds perform birdsong once again, perhaps of songbirds that may soon become endangered or even extinct. In a nod to Haydn’s Symphony No. 45 (his “Farewell Symphony”), the players leave the stage one by one until all that is left are the trio and conductor.

Triple Concerto was commissioned by the Neave Trio and premiered by the trio and Mostly Modern Orchestra, JoAnn Falletta, conductor, at Mostly Modern Festival in Saratoga Springs, NY.

– RP

Movements:
I. Introduction
II. Chorale Prelude
III. Bright Pastorale
IV. Interlude
V. Tundra
VI. Cadenza
VII. Summit

Triple Concerto, "Summit" for Piano Trio and Orchestra (World Premiere)

Soar for C Trumpet and Piano (2022)
Duration: ca. 9'
Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IcZNDWBRidI
For more information: https://robertpaterson.com/soar
To Purchase Sheet Music: https://billholabmusic.com/product/soar/

Recording: David Puchkoff, trumpet; Geoffrey Burleson, piano
Recording Producer/Engineer, Silas Brown
Additional Audio Editing: Ian Striedter

Commissioned by Lexie Signor
World Premiere:  Mostly Modern Festival, Lexie Signor, trumpet; Geoffrey Burleson, piano; Helen Filene Ladd Concert Hall, Arthur Zankel Performing Arts Center, Saratoga Springs, NY, June 2023
Publisher: Bill Holab Music: https://billholabmusic.com/composers/robert-paterson/
For more information: https://robertpaterson.com/soar
Buy Sheet Music: https://billholabmusic.com/product/soar/

PROGRAM NOTE
Many composers associate orchestral instruments with animals to great effect, such as Prokofiev with Peter and the Wolf, Rimsky-Korsakov with Flight of the Bumblebee, Saint-Saëns with Carnival of the Animals, and perhaps most obsessively, Messiaen with birds from all over the world. In Soar, I associate the trumpet with an eagle, a bird that can fly as high as ten thousand feet and as fast as two hundred miles per hour. Like an eagle soaring above mountains, Soar requires the trumpet player to play fast and high, and both the trumpet and piano parts are, at times, quite virtuosic. In this sense, Soar is really meant as a show-off piece for expert trumpet players.

Soar for Trumpet and Piano

Written: 2005-06/2023-25
Duration: ca. 33'
for orchestra (3 (dbl Pic.), 3 (dbl Eng. Hn.), 3 (dbl Bass Cl.), 3 (dbl C-bsn.); 4,3,3,1; timp +3; hp; kybd; strings)
Written for JoAnn Falletta and Mostly Modern Orchestra in honor of Mostly Modern Festival’s fifth season
For more information: https://robertpaterson.com/journey-of-a-dragonfly
Video: https://youtu.be/hZOVmC9R82M

PROGRAM NOTE
As a child, my parents vacationed at a summer cottage in Maine by a small lake. Often by myself, I would sit on a giant boulder and watch the lake and the wildlife for hours.

One day, a beautiful bright-winged dragonfly flew across the lake and hovered before me. I was startled and intrigued: its long, slender blue body glistened in the sunlight. Finally, it began to fly around the perimeter of the lake. It stopped every few minutes and hovered in place, almost as if waiting for me to follow it. I followed the dragonfly until sunset, imagining a world in which only the dragonfly existed, on its own terms, within its own world.

Years later, I hiked around the Niagara Gorge near Niagara Falls and explored Devil’s Hole Park. There is an opening on the side of a cliff called Devil’s Hole Cave. Interestingly, early Native Americans called it the Cave of the Evil Spirit and foretold subsequent disaster to anyone who dared enter the cave. The combination of the lake, the dragonfly, and Devil’s Hole Cave all came together and helped crystalize the idea for this work.

Journey of a Dragonfly begins as the sun rises; a foreboding darkness looms in the background, contrasting the Dragonfly’s graceful entrance into a world filled with the excitement of being alive. A gust of wind carries dandelion seeds skyward alongside butterflies and rainbow-colored wildflowers. Butterflies land on flowers before the Dragonfly ventures through a dark forest and emerges, only to be chased by five blackbirds. Weaving back and forth to try and escape, the Dragonfly flies into a narrow crevice as two of the blackbirds collide with trees. While still being chased, the three remaining birds retreat as the Dragonfly discovers a dark hole leading to a tunnel. The dragonfly speeds down the ghoulish tunnel and emerges at the end of the tunnel at the side of a cliff, hovering in place. It looks around in horror and sees a gigantic cavern and then Devil Town. After flying through Devil Town and witnessing tortured souls, a bomb factory, Attorney Alley, and the Devil’s Saloon, off in the distance, the Dragonfly sees Satan’s House on a hill and decides to explore. The Dragonfly enters the house and sees the Devil Child, the Devil Mother, and the Devil himself. Suddenly, the Devil Child catches the Dragonfly in a glass jar as the parents prepare dinner in the kitchen. The Dragonfly eventually manages to escape, only to be chased by the Devil Child and then by a group of hellish bats. After a chaotic chase, the Dragonfly finds the tunnel and speeds back toward the world above. Finally free, the Dragonfly finds a flat rock to rest. The tale concludes as the Dragonfly falls asleep, the sun sets by the lake, and the evening fades to black.

Journey of a Dragonfly was written for JoAnn Falletta and Mostly Modern Orchestra in honor of Mostly Modern Festival’s fifth season.

– RP

Movements:
1. The Lake: Sunrise
2. Dragonfly’s Entrance
3. Chase: Blackbirds
4. Descent Into The Underworld
5. Devil Town
6. Satan’s House
7. Trapped
8. Kitchen
9. Escape
10. Chase: Bats
11. Ascent To The World Above
12. The Lake: Sunset

Journey of a Dragonfly for Orchestra

New York Stories (Chamber Version) (2024)
Music by Robert Paterson | Libretto by Margot Connolly
New York Stories Duration: ca. 60'
Instrumentation: soprano, baritone, and chamber ensemble (flute, oboe, clarinet, percussion, piano, violin, viola, cello), or  soprano, baritone, and piano
Percussion Instruments Needed for Chamber Ensemble Version: small drum set (snare drum, bass drum, hi-hat, crash cymbal, ride cymbal) vibraphone, glockenspiel, bar chimes, temple blocks, medium wood block, high wood block, medium triangle, small triangle
Librettos for five scenes commissioned by Robert Paterson. Crossing The Hudson (lyrics and piano/vocal score) commissioned by the Five Boroughs Music Festival
World Premiere (Chamber Version): Mostly Modern Festival, Modern Vocal Projects, Skidmore College, Arthur Zankel Music Center, Saratoga Springs, NY, June 16, 2024.
Video Playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLbmEubaaDPFTmiymAlaPLl69TU_ffF2cd
For More Information: https://robertpaterson.com/new-york-stories

New York Stories - Original And Only

New York Stories (Piano/vocal)
Music by Robert Paterson | Libretto by Sokunthary Svay
Written: 2024
New York Stories Duration: ca. 60'
Chamber Ensemble Version Instrumentation: soprano, baritone, and chamber ensemble (flute, oboe, clarinet, percussion, piano, violin, viola, cello), or soprano, baritone, and piano
Percussion Instruments Needed for Chamber Ensemble Version: small drum set (snare drum, bass drum, hi-hat, crash cymbal, ride cymbal) vibraphone, glockenspiel, bar chimes, temple blocks, medium wood block, high wood block, medium triangle, small triangle
Librettos for five scenes commissioned by Robert Paterson. Crossing The Hudson (lyrics and piano/vocal score) commissioned by the Five Boroughs Music Festival
World Premiere (Piano/vocal Version): 
World Premiere (Chamber Version): Mostly Modern Festival, Modern Vocal Projects, Skidmore College, Arthur Zankel Music Center, Saratoga Springs, NY, June 16, 2024.
World Premiere (Piano/vocal Version): American Modern Ensemble, Opera America, Marc A. Scorca Hall, New York, NY, May 24, 2024.
Publisher: Bill Holab Music
Piano/vocal Version Video Playlist: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLUOHtooUK6OjL8UP6SAsfZhKWhxYS3mKO&si=0c5BaBXoShH1zVvY
Chamber Version Video Playlist: www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLb…AlaPLl69TU_ffF2cd
For More Information: robertpaterson.com/new-york-stories

New York Stories - River Park (Piano/vocal)

New York Stories (Piano/vocal)
Music by Robert Paterson | Libretto by John de Los Santos
Written: 2024
New York Stories Duration: ca. 60'
Chamber Ensemble Version Instrumentation: soprano, baritone, and chamber ensemble (flute, oboe, clarinet, percussion, piano, violin, viola, cello), or soprano, baritone, and piano
Percussion Instruments Needed for Chamber Ensemble Version: small drum set (snare drum, bass drum, hi-hat, crash cymbal, ride cymbal) vibraphone, glockenspiel, bar chimes, temple blocks, medium wood block, high wood block, medium triangle, small triangle
Librettos for five scenes commissioned by Robert Paterson. Crossing The Hudson (lyrics and piano/vocal score) commissioned by the Five Boroughs Music Festival
World Premiere (Piano/vocal Version): 
World Premiere (Chamber Version): Mostly Modern Festival, Modern Vocal Projects, Skidmore College, Arthur Zankel Music Center, Saratoga Springs, NY, June 16, 2024.
World Premiere (Piano/vocal Version): American Modern Ensemble, Opera America, Marc A. Scorca Hall, New York, NY, May 24, 2024.
Publisher: Bill Holab Music
Piano/vocal Version Video Playlist: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLUOHtooUK6OjL8UP6SAsfZhKWhxYS3mKO&si=0c5BaBXoShH1zVvY
Chamber Version Video Playlist: www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLb…AlaPLl69TU_ffF2cd
For More Information: robertpaterson.com/new-york-stories

New York Stories - Shallow Wishes (Piano/vocal)

New York Stories (Piano/vocal)
Music by Robert Paterson | Libretto by Margot Connolly
Written: 2024
New York Stories Duration: ca. 60'
Chamber Ensemble Version Instrumentation: soprano, baritone, and chamber ensemble (flute, oboe, clarinet, percussion, piano, violin, viola, cello), or soprano, baritone, and piano
Percussion Instruments Needed for Chamber Ensemble Version: small drum set (snare drum, bass drum, hi-hat, crash cymbal, ride cymbal) vibraphone, glockenspiel, bar chimes, temple blocks, medium wood block, high wood block, medium triangle, small triangle
Librettos for five scenes commissioned by Robert Paterson. Crossing The Hudson (lyrics and piano/vocal score) commissioned by the Five Boroughs Music Festival
World Premiere (Piano/vocal Version): 
World Premiere (Chamber Version): Mostly Modern Festival, Modern Vocal Projects, Skidmore College, Arthur Zankel Music Center, Saratoga Springs, NY, June 16, 2024.
World Premiere (Piano/vocal Version): American Modern Ensemble, Opera America, Marc A. Scorca Hall, New York, NY, May 24, 2024.
Publisher: Bill Holab Music
Piano/vocal Version Video Playlist: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLUOHtooUK6OjL8UP6SAsfZhKWhxYS3mKO&si=0c5BaBXoShH1zVvY
Chamber Version Video Playlist: www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLb…AlaPLl69TU_ffF2cd
For More Information: robertpaterson.com/new-york-stories

New York Stories - Original And Only (Piano/vocal)

That's Amore (World Premiere)
Introduction by John Beck
Composed by Harry Warren; Arranged by Robert Paterson, 1992
Duration: 6'
Instrumentation: keyboard percussion ensemble
Written For John Beck and the Eastman Percussion Ensemble
Premiere: Eastman Percussion Ensemble, John Beck, conductor; Robert Paterson, marimba soloist; Eastman School of Music, Kilbourn Hall, Rochester, NY, 1992

PROGRAM NOTE
I’ve always been a fan of Dean Martin’s songs. During my first few years of college, a disc that was always in my CD player was a CD of Dean Martin's Greatest Hits. It was interesting to me that some of his songs were orchestrated with marimbas and other non-standard percussion instruments. It seemed like a perfect fit to arrange That’s Amore for keyboard percussion ensemble. This work was originally written for and premiered by the Eastman Percussion Ensemble directed by John Beck.

That's Amore (Arrangement)

The Biographies of Solitude
Text by Irving Feldman
Written: 1990
Duration: 8'
Instrumentation: soprano, viola and cello
Text by Irving Feldman
Premiere: Composer’s Forum, Eastman School of Music, Kilbourn Hall, Rochester, NY, July 1, 1992.
For more information: https://robertpaterson.com/the-biographies-of-solitude

PROGRAM NOTE
When I was growing up in Buffalo, NY, my parents had a great collection poetry books. My father taught at the same university as Irving Feldman, and my parents had a few of his books of his poetry—some of them given as gifts from Feldman. The poem The Biographies of Solitude struck me as being a very good poem to set to music.

The Biographies of Solitude

Written: 1991-93
Duration: ca. 3'
Instrumentation: 4 1/3 octave marimba (six-mallets)
Premiere: various locations, Robert Paterson, marimba.
More Information: https://robertpaterson.com/three-postludes

PROGRAM NOTE
Postlude No. 1 was written at the Hambidge Center for the Creative Arts & Sciences where I was in residence during the summer of 1991. I stayed in a cabin in the middle of the woods, approximately one mile away from any people. There was a cool, clear, spring-water brook running near my cabin, and a smooth, falling-water creek named Patterson Creek about a half mile away; I would visit these small streams every day. These calm memories, the beautiful mountains (this center is located in the Appalachian Mountains), the beautiful scenery and the generally friendly aura of Georgia I experienced are what influenced me to start writing these Postludes, specifically Postlude No. 1.

Postlude No. 1

Written: 1989
Duration: 15'
Instrumentation: alto sax (doubling Bar Chimes [Mark Tree] in Perc. 1 setup) and three percussionists (Percussion 1: 4 1/3 octave marimba, bar chimes (Mark Tree), log drum [A5], two brake drums [G5, A5], small Almglocken cowbell [G5], small Rosewood claves [E5], two computer floppy diskettes / Percussion 2: 4-octave bass marimba, two Goblet drums [Darbuka] [A4, C5], log drum [E5], two brake drums [E5, F5], medium Almglocken cowbell [E5], claves, two computer floppy diskettes / Percussion 3: concert bass drum, crotales [high octave], log drum, typing paper, brake drums [C5, D5], bell tree, cowbell, large African claves,  two computer floppy diskettes)
Premiere: Student Recital, Richard Wyman, saxophone, with David Carlisle, Robert Paterson, and Joseph Tompkins, percussion; Eastman School of Music, Rochester, NY, April 15, 1989.
Publisher: Robert Paterson Music (ASCAP)
 
This work is currently unavailable.

PROGRAM NOTE
Machines are slowly overtaking mankind; they are beginning to possess a life of their own. Androids, humanoids, computers, four-wheel vehicles, and other machines are weaving their way into our lives in both obvious and subtle ways. People in developed societies depend on them for their lives. As hypothesized in many science fiction books and films, our massive expansion of technology will eventually create machines with free will: they will be able to think and feel and will have the power to ultimately destroy us. If too many are given the power of reasoning, they may decide that we need to be terminated; we are creatures with many flaws.

Humanus Ex Machina is a work about the hypothesized, eventual downfall and deterioration of humankind resulting from being overthrown by machines. The three percussionists represent the machines and play traditional percussion instruments and “found objects” such as computer floppy disks and brake drums. Humankind, represented by an alto saxophonist, senses that mankind is about to be wiped out by its creations and triumphs over them with the greatest weapon of all, the human mind.

Humanus Ex Machina

Duration: 7'
Instrumentation: mixed SATB choir
Commissioned by Musica Sacra, Kent Tritle, director and conductor
Publisher: Bill Holab Music: https://www.sheetmusicplus.com/ensembles/satb/robert-paterson/500040+1823727
For more information: https://robertpaterson.com/lux-aeterna
View Score: https://issuu.com/robertpaterson/docs/paterson_lux_aeterna__vocal_score__

Eternal Reflections

Lux Aeterna

Suite of choral movements from A New Eaarth for orchestra, chorus and narrator. This version for chorus and piano.

Publisher: Bill Holab Music:
http://www.billholabmusic.com/store/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=103_137&products_id=1837

View Score:
https://issuu.com/robertpaterson/docs/paterson_choral_suite_from_a_new_ea

For more information:
https://robertpaterson.com/choral-suite-from-a-new-eaarthh
http://robertpaterson.com/a-new-eaarth

PROGRAM NOTE
Although I have lived in cities most of my life, I do not think of myself as a city person and have always felt more connected to the outdoors rather than to asphalt and tall buildings. Many of my works are inspired by nature, and I am deeply concerned about environmental issues, particularly climate change.

Of the many excellent books on the environment, one of the best and the one that moves me most is Eaarth by Bill McKibben, a famed author, educator and environmentalist. McKibben’s assertion is that we have waited too long, and that massive climate change is not only unavoidable, but already underway. He states that we may as well call this new planet Eaarth, because it is still recognizable, but fundamentally different. I feel strongly that he is correct, and wanted to express this in a musical way. A work for orchestra, chorus and narrator seemed like the ideal vehicle for reflecting on this critical issue.

Choral Suite from A New Eaarth consists of the four choral movements from A New Eaarth for orchestra, but with piano rather than orchestra. I designed these movements so they could be performed as a stand-alone suite, and in fact, for the purpose of rehearsals, I composed the choir and piano versions first, and then orchestrated them so they could be integrated into the whole orchestral work.

The suite includes texts by Wendell Berry, James Joyce, Percy Bysshe Shelley and William Wordsworth. The poems, at least as part of the entire orchestral version, allude to the four ancient classical elements—earth, air, fire and water—a theme that permeates many of my other works.

A New Eaarth was commissioned by the Vermont Youth Orchestra Association through a Music Alive! residency grant from New Music USA and the League of American Orchestras.

Choral Suite from A New Eaarth - IV. There Was A Time (William Wordsworth)

Written: 2024
Duration: 8'
for SATB choir (with occasional divisis, SSAATTBB) and handpan (D Kurd 10: D) A, B-flat, C, D, E, F, G, A, C)
Commissioned by Ember Choral Arts, Dr. Deborah Simpkin King, Founding Artistic Director, as Ember's first Composer in Residence
Premiere: Ember, Dr. Deborah Simpkin King, Founding Artistic Director, May 17, 2024, Actors’ Chapel, NYC; May 19, 2024, Unitarian Universalist Congregation at Montclair, Montclair, NJ
Publisher: Bill Holab Music
For more information: https://robertpaterson.com/kama

PROGRAM NOTE
In contemporary literature, ‘kama’ is often used to connote erotic desire and emotional longing, but in ancient Hinduism, Buddhism, and Jainism, this concept is more expansive and broadly refers to any desire, wish, passion, or pleasure, the enjoyment of art and beauty, and even more broadly, love and connection. Kama focuses on this ancient concept and these feelings, which are so essential to being human, while reflecting on how machines, no matter how complex, will ever truly feel and love the way we do and will never truly be able to feel what it is to be human. Kama is a musical call to action in a world where we are in danger of machines replacing us or pulling us further apart, but in which we will ultimately prevail.

Kama was commissioned by Ember Choral Arts, Dr. Deborah Simpkin King, Founding Artistic Director, as Ember's first Composer in Residence.

Kama for Choir and Handpan (World Premiere)

Wound Up/Unwind - Unwind for String Quartet and Hand Pan
Written: 2025
Total Duration: 10'
for string quartet and percussion (cajón with pedal and handpan—D Kurd 10: D) A, B-flat, C, D, E, F, G, A, C )
Commissioned by FAB5 quintet with support from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs
World Premiere: FAB5, Mostly Modern Festival | The Netherlands, Oostkerk, Middelburg, Middelburg, Zeeland, The Netherlands, May 2, 2025
US Premiere: Mostly Modern Festival. FAB5, Mostly Modern Festival, Arthur Zankel Music Center, Helen Filene Ladd Concert Hall, Skidmore College, Saratoga Springs, NY, June 18, 2026
Publisher: Bill Holab Music
For More Information: https://robertpaterson.com/wound-up-unwind
VIdeo: https://youtu.be/RPyXPYx-nuo


PROGRAM NOTE
For many years, my wife Victoria and her FAB5 quintet (string quartet and percussion), have entertained thousands of people at numerous performance spaces and travel hubs in New York City, including Moynihan Train Hall, Oculus World Trade Center, Javits Center, and Chelsea Market. Having seen many of their shows, especially those at travel hubs, there's a certain tension and release you experience watching people wait anxiously for their trains, and then the release they feel when they are finally on their way. I've had these experiences myself, so I wanted to create two pieces that emulate these feelings.

Wound Up/Unwind consists of two contrasting pieces for string quartet and percussion. The first, Wound Up, for string quartet and cajón, imitates the feeling of being worried, anxious, and frustrated, especially while waiting to board a train. The second, Unwind, for string quartet and handpan, is calm and soothing, perhaps emulating the satisfying feeling of relaxing in a quiet seat as the train leaves the station. Both pieces can be performed independently and in any order.

Wound Up/Unwind is written for and commissioned by the FAB5 quintet with support from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs.

Unwind for String Quartet and Hand Pan

Wound Up/Unwind - Wound Up for String Quartet and Cajón
Written: 2025
Total Duration: 10'
for string quartet and percussion (cajón with pedal and handpan—D Kurd 10: D) A, B-flat, C, D, E, F, G, A, C )
Commissioned by FAB5 quintet with support from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs
World Premiere: FAB5, Mostly Modern Festival | The Netherlands, Oostkerk, Middelburg, Middelburg, Zeeland, The Netherlands, May 2, 2025
US Premiere: Mostly Modern Festival. FAB5, Mostly Modern Festival, Arthur Zankel Music Center, Helen Filene Ladd Concert Hall, Skidmore College, Saratoga Springs, NY, June 18, 2026
Publisher: Bill Holab Music
For More Information: https://robertpaterson.com/wound-up-unwind
VIdeo: https://youtu.be/RPyXPYx-nuo


PROGRAM NOTE
For many years, my wife Victoria and her FAB5 quintet (string quartet and percussion), have entertained thousands of people at numerous performance spaces and travel hubs in New York City, including Moynihan Train Hall, Oculus World Trade Center, Javits Center, and Chelsea Market. Having seen many of their shows, especially those at travel hubs, there's a certain tension and release you experience watching people wait anxiously for their trains, and then the release they feel when they are finally on their way. I've had these experiences myself, so I wanted to create two pieces that emulate these feelings.

Wound Up/Unwind consists of two contrasting pieces for string quartet and percussion. The first, Wound Up, for string quartet and cajón, imitates the feeling of being worried, anxious, and frustrated, especially while waiting to board a train. The second, Unwind, for string quartet and handpan, is calm and soothing, perhaps emulating the satisfying feeling of relaxing in a quiet seat as the train leaves the station. Both pieces can be performed independently and in any order.

Wound Up/Unwind is written for and commissioned by the FAB5 quintet with support from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs.

Wound Up for String Quartet and Cajón

Written: 2012
Duration: 38'
Instrumentation: orchestra, SATB chorus and narrator
Performed by the American Modern Orchestra and Albany Pro Musica, Mostly Modern Festival, Kent Tritle, conductor, Larry Pine, Narrator. Special thanks to Jose Daniel Flores Caraballo for preparing the choir for this performance.
Publisher: Bill Holab Music: http://www.billholabmusic.com/composers/robert-paterson/

Also Available: Choral Suite from A New Eaarth consisting of the choral movements from the orchestral work re-scored for SATB choir and piano. The choral suite may be performed as a stand-alone work.
For more information on this work: http://robertpaterson.com/a-new-eaarth. http://robertpaterson.com/choral-suite-from-a-new-eaarth

A New Eaarth for Orchestra, Chorus and Narrator

Written: 2018-19
Duration: ca. 25'
Instrumentation: string quartet
Commissioned by J.K. Billman and written for and dedicated to the Euclid Quartet
Premiere: Euclid Quartet, Mostly Modern Festival, Skidmore College, Arthur Zankel Music Center, Helen Filene Ladd Concert Hall, June 25, 2019.
Publisher: Bill Holab Music

BUY SHEET MUSIC
http://www.billholabmusic.com

FOR MORE INFO. AND PROGRAM NOTES:
https://robertpaterson.com/string-quartet-no-2

The Indianapolis Quartet: Robert Paterson - String Quartets 1-3

String Quartet No. 2 - I. Colored Fields

Suite for String Orchestra
Duration: 15'
For More Information: https://robertpaterson.com/suite-for-string-orchestra
Publisher: Bill Holab Music: http://www.billholabmusic.com/composers/robert-paterson/
Purchase Sheet Music: http://billholabmusic.com/store/index.php?main_page=advanced_search_result&search_in_description=1&keyword=%22suite+for+string+orchestra%22

PROGRAM NOTE
Unlike some of my previous works, Suite for String Orchestra is not inspired by an over-arching programmatic theme. Although there are some technical and motivic relationships between some of the movements—particularly the first and fifth—the movements are generally unrelated and are meant to be noticeably distinct. It is in five short movements and is intentionally written in an “old-fashioned,” somewhat archaic style. I initially played around with the idea of titling this work Old-fashioned Suite or Old Time Suite, but there seems to be a sufficient sprinkling of “new fangled ideas” in this work to make these alternative titles seem inadequate.

The first movement, Allegro vivace, is written in a “mid-20th century American” style. My model for a few of the sections in this movement is the evocative, German phrase Sturm und Drang, which literally translated means “storm and stress.”

In the second movement, Trapped waltz, I imagine an ethereal, yet cognizant waltz floating above the stratosphere, looking for a place to rest, but hobbled and shackled by a pounding rock and roll drumset. I see this as a metaphor for the various dances throughout history that have come and gone but are continually vying for attention in contemporary culture. The movement fades out at the end, as if the waltz is eternally looking for a place to settle down. Admittedly, I was somewhat inspired by the collage works of Charles Ives.

The third movement, Nocturne, begins slowly and sadly, and I imagine the pulse in the beginning as similar to the gentle breathing of someone who is asleep. The middle of the movement is much more intense and violent, and the end is as soft and calm as the beginning. The first chair violin and the first chair violoncello have brief solos in this movement.

Although material from the middle of the fourth movement, Balinese scherzo, is derived from a Balinese scale, the beginning is somewhat chromatic and the ending is essentially based on the E-major scale. This movement is distinctive in that the orchestra is asked to play pizzicato almost the entire time.

The fifth movement, Finale: allegro moderato, is the movement that is most reminiscent of the first movement. The ending combines material from the beginning of both the first and fifth movements.

Suite For String Orchestra - IV. Balinese scherzo

Dark Mountains for orchestra
Commissioned by the Vermont Symphony Orchestra, Jaime Laredo, conductor
Publisher: Bill Holab Music: http://www.billholabmusic.com/store/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=994
For More Information: https://robertpaterson.com/dark-mountains
View Score: https://issuu.com/robertpaterson/docs/dark_mountains_for_orchestra_fs-bou

PROGRAM NOTES
Vermont is famous for its green mountains, but I often find myself taking long drives through the mountains on overcast days or even at night, when the mountains lose color and become gray silhouettes. Many roads in Vermont are so dark, particularly in the Northeast Kingdom, that you need to use headlights, even during the day. Dark Mountains is meant to portray the beauty and grandeur of the mountains and the peacefulness of the open roads, but also the darkness and occasional treacherous passes one may encounter during the evening hours. The piece is in three connected sections. The first section portrays the calmness and austerity of a quiet evening. The second is inspired by a fast drive down winding country roads, with twists and turns, frequent tempo changes and shifting gears. The final section evokes the feeling of looking at the nighttime sky with moonlight shining through the trees and the sounds of nature in the distance.

This piece is commissioned by and dedicated to the Vermont Symphony Orchestra and Jaime Laredo, and was originally written for the Made in Vermont Music Festival.

Dark Mountains (for Orchestra)

Komodo for Solo Marimba (Six-Mallets). Duration: ca. 7'.
Publisher: Bill Holab Music: http://www.billholabmusic.com/store/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=103_137&products_id=900

For more information: https://robertpaterson.com/komodo

PROGRAM NOTES
Komodo is not only inspired by Komodo Dragons, the famous monster lizards that live on the island of Komodo, but also by the surrounding ocean which contains one of the world’s richest marine environments. Komodo begins and ends with sections that evoke the magnitude and ferocity of the Komodo Dragon while the middle section is calm and a little wavy, reminiscent of the placid ocean and colorful marine life found in these waters.

Sometimes I am inspired to write a new work by something as simple as a title, a phrase or even a single word. In this case, the word ‘Komodo’ made me think of the Italian word ‘modo’ which means mode. In its most common sense, a mode is a type of scale. Sections of this piece are made up of Westernized Balinese scale patterns and arpeggios that are transposed up or down in a somewhat "modal" fashion.

Aside from any sort of programmatic or technical inspiration, I wrote this flashy, six-mallet piece to show off the bottom end of my five-octave marimba and to have something fun to play.

Six Mallet Marimba

Komodo (Solo Six-Mallet Marimba)

Symphony in Three Movements for Orchestra
Duration: 19’
Mostly Modern Festival, American Modern Orchestra, Chris Rountree, 2018 Faculty Conductor
Skidmore College, Arthur Zankel Music Hall, Saratoga Springs, New York (USA), 6/10/2018
Commissioned by the Cayuga Chamber Orchestra for their 25th Anniversary Concert, Kimbo Ishii-Eto, conductor
Publisher: Bill Holab Music: http://www.billholabmusic.com/store/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=103_137&products_id=1339
For More Information: https://robertpaterson.com/symphony-in-three-movements

PROGRAM NOTES
The first movement, Bright and jubilant, is generally cheerful and upbeat, but occasional clouds of gray cast shadows over the musical surface. I associate this movement with traveling to a lover, and particularly over great distances. The brightness of this movement also subtly reflects the "silver anniversary" occasion for which this work was originally commissioned.

The slow second movement, Serenade, represents the unique intimacy that lovers share. Most string players in a chamber orchestra—even the first stands—never have a chance to play exposed material. This is interesting because although the string sections most often play as homogenous groups, the first stands of the string section are in an arc have an intimate view of each other. In this movement, the first stands of the violins, violas and cellos all have solo material whereas the rest of the strings often play gentle, long trills. My goal in to give all of the string players in the first stands an opportunity to shine.

The third movement, entitled Dancing games, is the most energetic of the three. It is has quirky, dance-like rhythms and a strong sense of pulse. In this movement, I imagine two lovers engaging in a bickering, yet friendly verbal dance match, their playful sentences bantered and volleyed back and forth like some sort of demented game of badminton in fast-forward mode. I suppose this would mean that the kind of dance I am imagining here is not one that you would necessarily move your feet to, but one meant for listening and that makes your insides want to move and shake.

Symphony in Three Movements - I. Bright and Jubilant

Variations and Fantasies on an Accordion Song. Duration: 9'.
Publisher: Bill Holab Music: http://www.billholabmusic.com/store/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=1114
Video: https://youtu.be/eBf1hpsSqiI?si=-fRUIUv518axAkff
For more information: https://robertpaterson.com/variations-and-fantasies-on-an-accordion-song

PROGRAM NOTE
In 1994–95 I wrote the soundtrack for a documentary entitled Journey Into Courage. This piece is a set of variations and fantasies on a theme in the “Accordion Song” played by Jenny and her husband in the documentary. I’ve been told by Jenny’s husband that this tune is an old, traditional song called John Tallis’ Canon.

My primary goal was to see how I could manipulate an extremely tonal theme through a theme and variations form. Originally, the piece was going to consist entirely of a theme and a few variations. However, when writing it, my mind wandered, and by the time I was done with some of the variations, they didn’t sound at all like the theme, and were only vaguely related to it. This is how some of the variations had a mid-life crisis and became fantasies.

The fantasies and variations in this piece are intentionally, stylistically eclectic. The jazz-style variations are inspired by Michael Arnowitt’s love of improvising.

Variations and Fantasies on an Accordion Song (Piano Solo)

Winter Songs (for Bass-Baritone and Chamber Ensemble)
Duration: ca. 20'

MOVEMENTS:
I. Icicles filled the long window (Wallace Stevens)
II. Dark Day, Warm and Windy (A. R. Ammons)
III. The Snow Man (Wallace Stevens)
IV. Boy at The Window (Richard Wilbur)
V. Old Story (Robert Creeley)
VI. Neither Snow (Billy Collins)

Performers: American Modern Ensemble; David Neal, Bass-Baritone
For More Information: https://robertpaterson.com/winter-songs
Publisher: Bill Holab Music: http://www.billholabmusic.com/store/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=103_137&products_id=1357
Online Perusal Score: https://issuu.com/robertpaterson/docs/winter_songs_perusal_score


PROGRAM NOTES
The idea for Winter Songs occurred to me after I wrote a short song based on the sixth poem from Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Blackbird by Wallace Stevens for a group composition project at Cornell University. The original idea was to have each student in the department set a different poem in this work, culminating in an evening long song cycle. There are many compelling settings ofThirteen Ways, so instead of trying to contribute yet another, I decided to compose a song cycle using winter-themed poems by a variety of poets. David Neal, the bass-baritone who sang my initial song, Icicles Filled the Long Window, liked the idea so much that he asked me for a complete cycle. I spent months collecting and reading as many poems about winter as I could find. Winter-themed poems seem to fall into two categories: those that are playful and fun, and those that are quite serious. I chose to set six serious poems, including another one by Wallace Stevens, and one each by Robert Creeley, Richard Wilbur, A.R. Ammons and Billy Collins.

Winter Songs was commissioned by David Neal and The Arts at Grace through the New York State Music Fund and was premiered by David Neal and the Society for New Music in April 2008.

ARTISTS:
Robert Paterson, Conductor
'David Neal, bass-baritone
Sato Moughalian, flute
Benjamin Fingland, clarinet
Matthew Ward, percussion
Blair McMillen, piano
Robin Zeh, violin
Robert Burkhart, cello

The Four Seasons

Winter Songs - IV. Boy at The Window (Text by Richard Wilbur)

Prison Cell for Two Percussionists
Duration: 10'
Publisher: Bill Holab Music: http://www.billholabmusic.com/store/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=103_137&products_id=1347
Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=beD4-L0qgpI
For More Information: https://robertpaterson.com/prison-cell

PROGRAM NOTES
Prison Cell is a ten-minute percussion duet that musically, theatrically and symbolically represents a prison cell. The work centers around variations of a traditional, tonal theme and an original, more dissonant theme. The original theme and its variations are taken from a tone row built on the scale degree one half step above the tonal theme. This tonal theme is continuously alluded to through modulations, variations, chromaticism and dense, slowly evolving rhythmic and chordal structures. When the central, tonal theme is finally introduced, it is never completed, creating tension that is prolonged through the second half of the piece. The tonal theme eventually becomes immersed in the tone row and gradually fused into the original theme. The mutated, skeletal rhythmic motive of the tonal theme is all that remains.

The percussionist inside the set-up represents a prisoner. The percussionist outside the set-up plays two roles: when walking behind, this player represents the oppression of the cell; when walking in front, the player represents influences on the cell by outside forces such as prison guards. The tubular chimes represent the bars of a cell.

Prison Cell

American composer Robert Paterson is a true New Yorker—born and bred in Buffalo, he lived in Rochester and Ithaca for over ten years, in New York City for over twenty years, and now lives in Saratoga Springs, near the Adirondacks. Paterson’s colorful music embraces a wide variety of themes, everything from goddesses and online dating to mathematics and the environment. His music is filled with emotion and fierce rhythmic energy, marked by elegance, wit, and meticulous craftsmanship. Named Composer of The Year by the Classical Recording Foundation at Carnegie Hall, Paterson is the winner of the Alfred I. DuPont Award, and his opera Three Way won the Grammy® under Best Classical Producer of the Year. His music is often a Best of the Year pick on National Public Radio. His orchestral tone poem, Dark Mountains, regularly airs on NPR’s Performance Today. Three Way premiered with Nashville Opera, then BAM (Brooklyn Academy of Music), and across the United States. Minnesota Orchestra, Louisville Orchestra, The Oratorio Society of New York, Buffalo Philharmonic, Albany Pro Musica, Albany Symphony, Musica Sacra, Austin Symphony, Vermont Symphony, and ensembles worldwide perform his works. Paterson gives masterclasses at the Curtis Institute of Music, New York University, the Aspen Music Festival, the Cleveland Institute of Music, and more. He is the Artistic Director and house composer for Mostly Modern Projects. Robert is a lifelong vegan and advocates for animals and the environment, celebrating the natural world with ground-breaking works such as his Triple Concerto, A New Eaarth, Listen, and I Go Among Trees.

Robert Paterson Composer

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