Program Notes

I am definitely a child of the media age, by which I mean this:  my life, like many of yours, is completely immersed in entertainment.  Movies, Books, TV Shows, Comic Books…and now streaming movies, streaming tv shows, video games, digital books, podcasts…we are drowning in entertainment.  And I love every minute of it.

Because of this constant overstimulation, I have a pretty active imagination.  I have always loved telling stories and giving voice to the mini-movies that go on in my head.  Being a composer, it is perfectly natural to want to give these movies a soundtrack.  And here we are.

Shadow Cove March is a concert march that paints a portrait of pirates at sea, sailing across the dark waters in search of land, adventure, and treasure.  Our unlikely heroes find themselves on the mysterious “Shadow Cove” from whence no pirate has ever returned.  Here is just a snippet of the story that I was telling myself as I was writing the piece:

The sound of the wind blowing through the palm trees as it, too, came ashore sounded like a dead man’s song.  Captain Fang held his lantern aloft, casting an eerie, orange glow that sent the dark shapes dancing through the foliage.  Thunder rumbled and it, combined with the pounding of the waves, shook the very foundations of the island.

“Captain,” Mr. Donaghey started.

“Shhh,” Fang whispered, drawing a curt finger into the air.  “D’ya hear that, lovey?”

Mr. Donaghey leaned forward. “No sir.”

“Exactly,” Fang said, smiling.  “Ever’thin’ here is watchin’…waitin’…wondering what we’ll do.”

“And what are we going to do, Sir?”

“Exactly what we came here to do, of course…” he said, raising his voice to the men standing behind him, gesturing to the towering figure of shadow mountain that stood at the heart of the island.  “C’mon, you lot…let’s go.”

He lowered his lantern and led his men into the treeline, where the darkness swallowed them, leaving nothing but the pounding of the ocean, and the wind running ashore.

Peace, Love, and Music.

Rehearsal suggestions

-The tempo of this work is critical to its character.  When planning your preparation, make sure to allow time for proper technical development to achieve the written tempos, lest the work come off as “boring.”

-Dynamics should be noticeable and taken to extremes.

-Performances of the work should have a dramatic, cinematic quality.

-Many portions of the work are polyphonic.  Careful attention balance should be given at all times so that each line is clearly heard.