The joy of the quiet in the transcendence of time for alto saxophone and piano by Michael Rene Torres was premiered by the composer at the 2018 North American Saxophone Alliance Biennial Conference held at the University of Cincinnati College Conservatory of Music with pianist, Maria Staeblein.

"The work is dedicated to my teacher, Dr. Frederick L. Hemke. The title refers to a line from an introspective poem written by Hemke (titled “ An Apology ”) which he shared with his audience at his performance during the 2012 Biennial Conference of the North American Saxophone Alliance held at Arizona State University. The poem, written the same year that he retired from 50 years of teaching at Northwestern University, explores his journey as a champion of the concert saxophone as a contemporary force, yet ends with his understanding that, “ There’s joy in the beauty of even the simplest tunes .” He writes, “ There exists yet the bliss and beauty of tones …,” later referencing his teacher, Marcel Mule’s thought that, “ Our instrument was created for the singing of lines .” My piece is directly inspired by these wise words in Hemke’s poem but is also influenced by his profound impact on my personal musicianship and life."

Rehearsal recording with Michael Rene Torres, saxophone and Maria Staeblein, piano from March 2018 at Weigel Hall in Columbus, Ohio.

The joy of the quiet in the transcendence of time by Torres

for Oboe and Fixed Media

Composed with the words and voice of Jason W. Clark
David Kulma, oboe

A Series of Allusions and Implications: In memoriam Jason Clark (2009)

This piece was inspired by the craft of needlepoint, in which different-colored yarns are stitched onto a stiff canvas to produce a pattern or image. What inspires me about this art form are the contrasts it contains: between the flexible strands of yarn and the rigid canvas and between the small complex patterns that combine to form larger shapes and images. Throughout the work, small melodic threads are stitched onto a slowly-evolving harmonic grid. Dynamic swells produce rapid changes between the foreground and background, while stark tempo changes create a sense of ebb and flow as the music sometimes surges forward and sometimes seems to be held back against its will.  Essentially, this piece stems from my love for orchestral performance and from the sonic complexity that emerges when a multitude of small sounds come together to form a coherent musical whole.

Recorded by the Civic Orchestra of Chicago. Cliff Colnot, conductor.

Needlepoint--for orchestra

Fantasy

Channels was commissioned by Margaret Brouwer and the Blue Streak Ensemble and received its first performance at the Bop Stop in Cleveland, Ohio on January 17, 2019 by the Blue Streak Ensemble. It depicts the course of the Cuyahoga River shipping channel at a rate of about one minute of music per mile of river, representing the various industries that eventually led to the infamous 1969 fire on the river that gave life to the environmental movement in the United States. Note that this live recording contains background noise from the HVAC and refrigeration systems at the Bop Stop.

Channels

Matthew C. Saunders

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