The Stretch
Oboe, Bassoon, and Voice
(2022)

Text: Dr. Kendra Preston Leonard
Language: English
Duration: 12-14 minutes

Double Reed Dish Consortium

Premiere September 2022
Dr. Jacqueline Wilson and Dr. Galit Kaunitz
Washington State University
Pullman WA

Composer’s Note

This piece was written for the Double Reed Dish Consortium. It was commissioned by ROCO for Alecia Lawyer, oboe, and Kristin Wolfe Jensen, bassoon, dedicated to their teachers, Cathy and Eric Barr and Louis A. Lazzerini.

Dr. Kendra Preston Leonard’s poem was originally written with the commissioners, Drs. Kunitz and Wilson, in mind as the first performers, but when the consortium was announced, I knew I had to dip into new territory with my treatment of the text. It was important to me that the words as I set them were accessible to the wide-ranging body (and bodies!) of musicians that had invested in the consortium. Leonard’s text is vivid and specific, and I wanted to capture the originating kernel of the project in a way that also made space for the unique individuals who would take on the first performances of the work.  

The challenging part of writing for this ensemble was to create as even and equitable a musical space as I could amongst the three musicians. I wanted the singer to be treated as an equal member of the ensemble, rather than a foregrounded or featured soloist with the oboe and bassoon playing an accompaniment. As much as this piece was sparked by “The Stretch” and its invocation of a relationship between two people, Vibrations leans into and depends upon the dynamic ecosystem of three.

All consortium participants have exclusive performance rights until the summer of 2023. Scores will be available for purchase at that time.

Three movements
1. The Fulcrum
2. Mettle
3. Rising Roads