Loons

Instrumentation soprano and flute

Vocal Range C4 to C6

Timing ca. 5′

Composed 2021

Poem by David Fraser

Commissioned by Turning Point Ensemble

World Premiere January 28, 2022, Orpheum Annex, Vancouver, British Columbia. Robyn Driedger-Klassen, soprano, and Brenda Fedoruk, flute.

Programme Notes

A traditional story from the Tsimshian First Nation (an Indigenous people of the Pacific Northwest Coast) tells how the loon gave sight to an old blind man, who in thanks gave the loon his necklace. Poet David Fraser’s sonnet Loons tells a new story, one that speaks to our modern-day disconnection from nature and the environment. We have lost sight of our way. The loons have stopped answering. But perhaps the next generation will forge a new and better relationship with the land. In a mere fourteen lines, Fraser evokes a dispirited present, a joyful past, and a hopeful future. In this setting for flute and soprano, the two instruments are two sides of the same voice: wordless and not, melding into one, separating, echoing each other.

Loons was commissioned by Turning Point Ensemble for flutist Brenda Fedoruk and soprano Robyn Driedger-Klassen as part of TPE’s “1+1+1…” collaboration project.

Audio

Live performance by soprano Robyn Driedger-Klassen and flutist Brenda Fedoruk, presented by Turning Point Ensemble

PDF perusal score

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Performers read from score. Prices are for two copies.
$12 print, $8 PDF (comes with licence to print two copies)
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