reflection

I have now had two weeks to think about how the premiere of THE SPACE BETWEEN turned out. I was impressed with the chorus’s energy and commitment to performing a new work. I was very happy with the fact that liked the piece so much, since they felt their hard work was worthwhile and memorable. I have decided to make very few revisions. There is the “murmuring” section of the first main movement (the piece is cast in an introit and postlude flanking three main movements) that I have simplified, although I may change it yet again and have the more difficult material handled by soloists. There is the possibility of removing the barlines from the third movement and having it structured along a “time line” with cues for entrances coming from the conductor. Next time it is performed I think I would want to amplify the two cellos. But the heart of the piece came through thoroughly, and I was moved by the response of the audience. I hope that I did the poetry justice; I feel that the proportions and pacing of the piece came off beautifully. Of course every composer holds an idealized performance of a piece, and reality is almost never equal to that. But I am grateful to have had the opportunity to write a large-scale piece that seems destined to have a life beyond the first two performances.