Museum Pieces (2012) 

These youth-friendly songs grew out of the larger initiative to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the Emrys Foundation, a support group launched in 1982 by writers, for writers, in Greenville, South Carolina. Helen Dupré Moseley (1887-1984) had earned a Masters' degree in History and had been a mother, widow, insurance businesswoman, and postmaster when, without training of any sort, she took up painting at the age of 60. Her style shows some influence from Salvador Dali, Henri Matisse and Hieronymus Bosch, but ultimately her whimsical and largely untitled works are the products of her fertile and uninhibited imagination. Moseley's family made a generous donation of a large number of her works to the Greenville County (SC) Museum of Art in 2000. In the summer of 2012 sixteen Emrys poets were invited to compose brief poems on selected works of Moseley's from the GCMA collection. These songs set six of those poems; as the paintings in question are untitled, the song titles are my own, derived from the poetry. In addition to the score and parts, a is provided. Given the subject matter, the pictures, and the gestures in the music, these pieces are definitely youth-friendly. A live performance in which the paintings serve as a backdrop can be viewed here. Complete program notes are here. Overall voice range is Range C4-E5; the part could be sung an octave lower by a tenor or baritone.

• $40 for score, parts, CD for projection of the images, and demo in this original instrumentation for female voice, alto saxophone or clarinet, and string quartet; order here.

• a transcription for 4 flutes, clarinet, bass clarinet, 2 bassoons, two trumpets, and 3 trombones exists, and this in turn could be modified yet again (with reduced forces, if desired). If you’d like a transcription of this transcription, write to me at newertunes@hotmail.com before ordering and list your instrumentation; I will quote a very moderate charge for your transcription. Order here.

I. No Point to Miss (poem by Bill Rogers) - As the title suggests, this off-kilter waltz celebrates the joys of creativity and sheer silliness. About 2:15; range D4-Eb5.

II. Mrs. Snoot’s Composure (poem by Marian Willard Blackwell) - This song in frenetic 6/8 imagine Mrs. Snoot as an uptight and demanding English nanny. About 1:15; range C4-Eb5.

III. The Magic Serpent (poem by Jan Bailey) - In a moderate reggae beat, this song emphasizes the benevolence and mystery of the serpent. About 3:15; range C4-D5.

IV. Quiver & Cringe (poem by Philip Whitley) - Totally unhinged mock-horror music. Some modest improvisation required. About 3:00; range C4-Db5.

V. Who Did This to My Hair??? (poem by Gil Allen) - Frantic 1960’s TV pop-rock, á la Batman, with several interruptions. About 1:55; range D4-E5.

VI. Where the Wondering Grows (poem by Claire Bateman) - This concludes the set with a quiet meditation on the wonder of creativity. About 3:30; range C4-D5.