Last spring, after writing some dense and thorny music, I wanted to write something that would be simple and straightforward. About that same time, D. F., a Swedish cellist who is a fan of my music, asked me to write something he could perform on his approaching birthday in a concert for his friends, alongside his girlfriend, flutist T.W. L. I happily complied.

If you would like me to write a piece for you, just ask. No promises, mind. But I’m looking for composing projects and I work for free.

The result of Daniel’s request was a piece I named “Morning and Evening,” cast in two movements, one for m. and one for e.

Both are scored in C major and use the same theme and nearly the same harmonic progressions. It’s morning and evening of the same day! However, the first movement is in 6 / 8 and is played at a fairly fast tempo. The second movement is in 4 / 4 and is played at a moderate tempo.

The style is somewhat Baroque but it wouldn’t be mistaken for something by Bach or Telemann. It sounds too American!

About two months ago I received an email from the cellist which included a link to a Youtube website he put up where, in his words, I could view …

“… a video of the world premiere of the piece you wrote for me and my girlfriend, as performed at my birthday concert last Saturday.”

He added ...

“The audience seemed to really like it, as you can hear from their reaction. One woman said that the composer should rename the Morning music to "Mornings as They Should Be", since her mornings are never that joyful and positive.”

To see and hear the performance, copy and paste this link:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JC0qk_0PiLQ

To see PDFs of the two movements, click on the corresponding links above.

I'd love to know what you think about this music; feel free to reply if you're inclined. But please don't feel that you are expected to reply. I'm just glad to share my work in this way.

As always, feel free to forward this message to friends who might enjoy it.
Anyone can be on my little list of recipients for these mpFrees (as I call these musical emails). To sign up, people can email me at rick@sowash.com, sending just one word: "Yes." I'll know what it means.

Rick Sowash
Cincinnati, OH
Nov. 12, 2023