Variations on an English Round for woodwind quintet (1977)
8 minutes
The English round subjected to variations is "Hey-ho, Nobody Home". The premise of this piece, written during the year I was completing my masters degree, was that the horn is not a woodwind and does not belong in a woodwind quintet. (Most of the horn players I knew preferred to play in brass quintets, although I've since increased my sample size enough to invalidate that observation!) For much of the piece, the horn is aggressive, often not even playing the same kind of music as the other instruments. The next-to-last variation finally presents the theme as an actual round, although that soon breaks down rhythmically and the horn must intervene to restore the meter.
8 minutes
The English round subjected to variations is "Hey-ho, Nobody Home". The premise of this piece, written during the year I was completing my masters degree, was that the horn is not a woodwind and does not belong in a woodwind quintet. (Most of the horn players I knew preferred to play in brass quintets, although I've since increased my sample size enough to invalidate that observation!) For much of the piece, the horn is aggressive, often not even playing the same kind of music as the other instruments. The next-to-last variation finally presents the theme as an actual round, although that soon breaks down rhythmically and the horn must intervene to restore the meter.