Compositions

This paper is a collection of five musical works written between the years 1998 and 2000. A variety of genres are represented which include large and small chamber groups, the orchestra, solo piano and an experimental interdisciplinary theatre piece. Nectar of the Gods is an abstractly programatic work about mental illness, primarily bipolar disorder. It contrasts both linear structures with vertical ones. Borealis is constructed from a single melodic line. It is slightly programatic as well in a depiction of the Northern Canadian boreal forests. Only certain forces of the orchestra are used such as the clarinets, flutes, vibraphone and the string section. Love Song is a small work for two sopranos and harp. Like with Borealis, it is constructed from two melodic lines, one for the harp and another for the voices. The lines here are used heterophonically and disguise the originals. The text is by Cathy Richards and the work is dedicated to my wife Trisha Unwin. Piano Piece uses a South Indian reductive form as its basis. While the length of the overall musical sections remain the same, the events within the sections become shorter resulting in a formal acceleration. Variations on Gestalt is a work for the theatre. The music is an integral part of the action and was written with an extremely loose form. This facilitates a fluid change that may be needed in different productions. The musicians are used as actors themselves along with the main character and the dancer.Arts, Faculty ofMusic, School ofAdditional material: 1 CD (Koerner Library).Graduat