Autumn (for Soprano and Chamber Ensemble)
Daniel Burwasser
About this work:
Autumn was originally a poem written in Russian by the composer's grandmother shortly before her death in 1967. An anonymous translation of the poem was discovered in the early summer of 1986 by the composer's father, who immediately asked that the poem be set to music. The work was completed in early October of 1986.
The composition, which is in one continuous movement, evokes the eternal transition of nature during the autumn season, and thus the transition between life and death. The poem symbolizes the writer's own affliction while facing the bleakness of her final days. In the end, she accepted her fate, and the work, in its final bars, suggests a sense of that calm acceptance.
Year composed: 1986
Duration: 00:08:00
Ensemble type: Voice, Solo or With Chamber or Jazz Ensemble:Voice with Chamber/Jazz Ensemble, 6-9 Players
Instrumentation: 1 Flute, 1 Bass Clarinet, 1 Horn in F, 1 Percussion (General), 1 Violin, 1 Cello, 1 Mezzo-Soprano
Instrumentation notes: Mz, fl, bs cl, hn, perc (1 player), vln, vc