Conundrums (1997) for unaccompanied clarinet, in one movement

Published by Roncorp, Northeastern Publications; Dur. 7:11

Conundrums was written for a colleague at Rutgers University, clarinetist Anthony Pasquale. I asked Tony what pieces he particularly liked for unaccompanied clarinet, and he mentioned two works, Stravinsky Three Pieces and Osborne Rhapsody, originally a bassoon piece, but often played on the clarinet. I knew these pieces well and tried, in my piece, to tap into their characters without entering into conscious quotation or parody.

The result was a piece with the frenetic, angular writing of the Stravinsky, with much use of changing asymmetrical meters and the measured lyricism of the Osborne. A recurring tremolo figure is used throughout to help define structural points in the form. The work was premiered in Fall of 1997 by Mr. Pasquale, and has since received numerous performances nationally.

It is available through Northeastern Publications, Roncorp division.
http://www.nemusicpub.com/