Composition -
Recorder Haiku - MLE 77
By Charlotte Van Ryswyk 2012, 2013
 
S A T B, spoken voice
 
 
Traditional haiku incorporates a seasonal word or topic in its three lines to evoke an image. These pieces were originally created for the 2013 Haiku North American Conference. We decided to collaborate to create new pieces for the event to express the joy found in making music in harmony with nature; Marcyn wrote haiku, and I realized her words in sound. The Village Pipers have performed these in many outdoor venues.

In some of these pieces, the poem is read before the music is played. In others, the words are incorporated into the fabric of the music. The poems can be read by a guest reader or by the players themselves.

The joy in Mockingbird reflects the playful nature of the bird’s song with little repetitions throughout.

Nighthawk imagines a sunset fading. At the end, you hear the plaintive call of the bird in the grace notes.

One can imagine the ripples from various Lotus Flower Seeds as they spread and overlap with others as the white koi swims smoothly underneath.

Rainbows mentions early music. The independent lines of each voice recall the linear compositional style of medieval music.
-- Charlotte Van Ryswyk
 
This Members’ Library Edition is made possible by a generous donation from Dale Neiburg, a broadcast engineer and multi-instrumentalist from Washington, DC who has played recorder since the early 90’s. Dale wanted to sponsor a piece in hopes of encouraging composers to write for recorder, either alone or with other instruments (or poets!), to help expand the repertoire and range of musical styles available to recorder players and consorts.
 
Four delightful short pieces match the carefully crafted brevity of their accompanying poems while evoking the imagery suggested by them.
-- Glen Shannon

The playalongs were recorded by ARS member Chaz Warren at his studio in LA, and the verse is read by the poet.
Listen to all parts, including spoken verse
No soprano - you play soprano
No alto - you play alto
No tenor - you play tenor
No bass - you play bass
 
 
No. of Recorder Parts:
4
Difficulty:
Easy
Occasion:
Any
Libraries:
Members' Library Editions, Play-alongs
Date Added:
02/25/2023
Style:
Recorded Accompaniment