Continuo

1996
/
Chamber and Ensemble

Details

Category

Chamber and Ensemble

instrumentation

for brass ensemble and organ

duration

3'

commissioned by

National Symphony Orchestra

premiered by

Kennedy Center, Washington, DC, 1996 National Symphony Orchestra, Christoph Perick, conductor

Continuo was one of twenty-five fanfares commissioned by the National Symphony Orchestra in 1995 and marked my first professional commission. Scored for orchestral brass and organ, this three-minute work evolves from a simple pulse and the use of chromatically-related triads pitted against one another in various ways. The Washington Post wrote of the premiere, "I was taken by the opening fanfare, and fascinating work by a composer barely into his twenties. Continuo reminded me of some spiritual meeting between the Renaissance composer Gabrieli and the contemporary composer Steve Reich, and a happy meeting at that."

−Kevin Puts