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At the Edge by David Homan [Email]
Genre: Classical

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SONG STATS:
Hits: 1851
Comments: 8
Votes: 17
Plays: 251
Last Played: Jun 12, 2008 - 12:33:19 PM
Downloads: 74
Fans: 4
Uploaded: Mar 04, 2005 - 08:48:48 AM
Last Updated: Mar 04, 2005 - 07:48:57 AM
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Description:
This piece is the first movement is a suite (5 parts) that took nearly 2 years of my life. It's a live recording from Merkin Hall, and the piece is about Alzheimer's Disease, from the caretaker's perspective. The whole work is titled "All Our Yesterdays" and is 43 minutes in length.

I. At the Edge: Flute, String Quartet, and Piano.
This movement deals with that moment when one realizes he or she must now become the caretaker in that tragic and yet ironic situation where the child becomes “parent” to the parent. The image I have is plunging off a cliff into freezing water, then pulling oneself up to come right back to where you started--but with a new perspective. There are moments of agitation, instability, and raw expression that are inseparable from organic thought and growth.
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Powerful and masterful &mdash 03/04/05 - 09:02:58 AM
This is wonderful. The lines are emotive and powerful,
with a sense of folk and romance, and wonderful quartet
interplay, hints at fugues that never quite develop, great
counterpoint that stops too soon, all evoking a sense of
life too short. The way you move the main voice from
instrument to instrument is marvelous. Reminds me a bit
of Ravel's string quartet. I love the inhales between
phrases, too. Very nice balance between all the voices.
The flute ending solo surprised me, made me think again
about meaning and passion and the last days.

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It does bring to mind &mdash 03/04/05 - 10:47:44 AM
the staccato, 2nd movement of Ravel's String Quartet in F
Major. Portions of it anyway.

Thanks for the suite description. This does have the feel
of falling off a cliff, and yet, climbing back up again. What
else is there to do in this case?

I hope you post the remaining movements of this
energetic, flowing piece.

[ Reply to This ]
moving &mdash 03/04/05 - 04:00:05 PM
Another stirring piece. What a worthy subject matter to
make music like this about. I could imagine this one
being performed by a large symphony, though this
smaller arrangent of players does a fantastic job.

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What a talent &mdash 03/04/05 - 11:18:10 PM
You are an incredibly talented composer. Thank you so
much for posting your work here.

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beautiful work &mdash 03/05/05 - 11:36:10 AM
and follows your description of emotions &
circumstances very well

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patchwork quilt &mdash 03/06/05 - 10:10:22 AM
This is a very nice combination of instruments, and the
interplay between them is often imaginative and creates
interesting sound colors.

The musical content is quite evocative of your subject
matter. The series of fragments, little snippets of melody
and rhythm, vividly reflects the vagaries of the mind --
especially one which is beginning to struggle with the
onset of Alzheimer's.

I liked the Beethoven ending. It's over....NO, it's not. Yes,
it is. No....YES!

It is nice to have such a talented composer on this site,
especially one who writes for orchestral instruments. Who
did you study composition with?

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patchwork quilt-Composition Studies &mdash 03/07/05 - 09:18:09 AM
I studed with Joan Tower, Kyle Gann, Dinu Ghezzo, Joseph Church, and ask
for advice off and on from Justin Dello Joio and Daniel Goode.

Thanks for the comments!

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Two Years Well Spent &mdash 03/27/05 - 07:47:42 AM
Very stirring work here. Absolutely beautiful. I am a
compete fan of posting "live" works. The essence of the
song is much captured so much more effectively.

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