Five Vignettes for Cello and Piano

Instrumentation: Cello and Piano

World Premiere: April 2013; Helix! Contemporary Music Ensemble; Nicholas Music Center, Rutgers University

Duration: 10.5 minutes

Program Notes:

As a singer who frequently performs with piano, I have noticed that while some songs may hardly feature the piano, in other songs, the pianist nearly performs a piano concerto. While composing this piece, I began to question the relationship between accompanying versus playing a duet.

The first movement features the cello almost exclusively with a few notes played by the piano. The second movement is the reverse concept with the piano playing the majority of the time and the cello playing only a few notes.

The third movement again features the cello as the main instrument, however the piano has a more prominent role. The fourth movement again reverses the relationship with the piano playing the majority of time and the cello playing the accompaniment. Finally, in the fifth movement, the cello and piano are both equals.