Thy Morn Shall Rise

Last semester I had my first opportunity to write incidental music for a live performance, and this month the play for which I wrote it will be premiered. Thy Morn Shall Rise by Diana Smith will be performed April 8-10 on the campus of Northland International University. Diana and I began collaborating on the music for this play this past fall and I was able to get the music handed off to Northland by January.

The music consists of four live performers in a small chamber group – piano, cello, violin, and clarinet. I used the same basic 5-note motif (C,E,D,B,C) as the basis for each theme/character. It is played in several different moods and styles – some major, some minor, some modal, one is a modal mixture, and one is even in 10/8 time (hopefully the performers don’t have a hard time with that one). Most of the snippets of music are for scene changes and such and are only 30 seconds long or shorter. I did write a few bits of music that were longer, notably a prelude and music to accompany the recitation of a poem. All in all, it came to about 10-15 minutes of music. I had fun writing it and seeing how much “mileage” I could get out of one 5-note theme.

Not having actually heard the music performed live (Finale playback is only so satisfying…), I look forward to hearing what they do with the music. Maybe they’ll send me a recording of some sort (hint, hint). If you happen to be in/go to the play, I’d love to hear your thoughts on the music.

P.S. Northland has set up a Facebook event for the performance with more information.