Bryan’s Blog

for horn and piano

Notes

The Pond represents a look at the simple life, as espoused by Henry David Thoreau in his work Walden. Essentially, while not strictly programatic, the two performers play siblings on a stroll through the woods on the edge of a pond. The horn is the younger and at various times tries to receive the attention of the elder sibling and sulk when such attentions are ignored.

Some techniques used in the piece include pitch-bending on the horn, stopped notes and playing the horn into the piano to activate the piano’s resonance. The lowest notes on the piano are held down throughout (by means of a weight on the keys, or an assistant) and provide haunting, ringing overtones throughout the work. The piece lasts just over four minutes.

Performances

Premiere—Thursday 13 April 2006
Student Composers’ Forum
Bryan Recital Hall, Bowling Green State University
Bowling Green, Ohio
Jennifer Daigle, horn
Allison Ringold, piano
Hear the premiere performance.