BRASS BAND

Duration: ca. 11 minutes
Composed: 2004

Programme Note: The poet Wallace Stevens was a lawyer at the Hartford Accident and Indemnity Company. Even after winning a Pulitzer Prize for his poetry, he remained behind his desk at the office and continued to write his poetry on his way to and from work, or in the evening.

For me, the inspiration was that Stevens snatched creative moments from the small gaps between his other obligations. The resulting piece is sometimes frantic, angry, and railing against the heedless march of time. Between those moments of tension, it breathes more easily and merges into timeʼs relentless flow.

Hartford Accident and Indemnity was commissioned by the Hannaford Street Silver Band with the generous support of the Ontario Arts Council.

Premiere: First performance by the Hannaford Street Silver Band, Toronto, Ontario, May 2004.

Recording(s): Recorded by the Hannaford Street Silver Band.

Sample: