Hello —

The village of Bellville, Ohio sleeps upon a slope above the little valley of the Clear Fork River, one of the five forks of the Mohican River. The slope rises westward, ending abruptly at what are called “the cliffs above the Clear Fork.” Rural graveyards are often on hilltops; Bellville’s founders reserved the adjacent acres for the village cemetery.

During the twelve happy years when we lived in Bellville, the cemetery was my favorite place to go for a walk. Back then, from atop the cliffs there was a splendid view to the west of rich farm land, distant forests and the serpentine windings of the Clear Fork.

Now and forever more the scene is marred by a huge gravel pit. Zoning would have prevented this eyesore but the township trustees and the voters who elect them “don’t hold with” the government telling people what they are allowed and not allowed to do with their land. There is no zoning in Jefferson Township. There are a lot of gravel pits.

The view from the cliffs was best seen on a bleak November day. The leafy cushions of summer were stripped away, the shapeliness of the hills made plain. A touch of weather -- a smear of fog, a scarf of mist, a dash of drizzle — enhanced and intensified the sombre mood of the moment and the place.

I liked to imagine that I shared the view with the spirits of the early settlers buried nearby, a host of ghostly pioneers, peering westward from their final resting places, perhaps still itching to know what’s further out there, further "out West."

The place prompted such thoughts ... reflections on the pioneers, the natives that were here before them, the Moundbuilders further back, the mastodon-hunters further yet, and, before any of us, the glaciers (which deposited the gravel) and, before the whole shebang, the changeless starry sky.

I tried to catch some of the above in the piece for cello and piano I want to share with you today.

I dedicated The Cliffs Above the Clear Fork to cellist Terry King and pianist John Jensen. To hear them play the piece superbly well, click on the link above.

To see a PDF of the score, click on the link above.

Rick Sowash
Cincinnati, OH
Oct. 30, 2016

🎶 🎶 🎶 🎶 🎶

The village of Bellville, in north central Ohio, drowses upon a slope above the little valley of the Clear Fork River, one of the five forks of the Mohican River which gives the area its moniker: the Mohican Country. The slope rises westward, ending abruptly at what are called “the cliffs above the Clear Fork.” Graveyards are often located on hilltops; Bellville’s founders located theirs on the acres adjacent to the cliffs.

During the twelve happy years when Jo and I lived in Bellville, the cemetery was my favorite place to go for a walk. Back then, one could enjoy a splendid view to the west of rich farm land, distant forests and the serpentine windings of the Clear Fork.

Now the scene has been marred by a huge gravel pit. Zoning would have prevented this eyesore, but the township trustees and the voters who elect them “don’t hold with no bee-yur-a-crats” telling people what they can and cannot do with their land. There is no zoning in Jefferson Township, and there are a lot of gravel pits.

Forty years ago, the view from the cliffs was best seen on a bleak March day: stripped of leafy drapery, the shapeliness of the hills was revealed. A touch of weather -- a smear of fog, a scarf of mist, a daub of drizzle — enhanced and intensified the sombre mood of the place.

When I walked in the cemetery, I liked to imagine that I shared the view with the spirits of the early settlers buried nearby, a host of ghostly pioneers, peering westward from their final resting places, perhaps still itching to know what was further out there, further "out West."

A Spoon River sort of place, it is notable among Richland County’s cemeteries because it holds the remains of the highest ranking veteran of the Revolution to be buried there, Major William Gillespie, who departed this life at the age of 104. The celebrated tale-spinner Cy Gatton is buried there, too; you’ll know about Cy if you’ve read my latest book, The Blue Rock, or my first book, Ripsnorting Whoppers, in which Cy is the main character.

The Bellville cemetery prompted reflection. It seemed to bring forth “memories” of people and scenes I could never actually have known. It made me “remember” the pioneers, the Shawnee who were here before them, the Moundbuilders further back, the mastodon-hunters further yet, and, before any of us, the glaciers that had deposited the gravel where the quarries are now—and, before the whole shebang, the changeless starry sky.

I tried to catch some of those “memories” and the feelings they engendered in a piece for cello and piano I hope you will let me share with you today.

It opens and closes in the misty, mystic and improbable key of G flat minor. At first there is no tune, only a fog. The tune takes shape very gradually. It is as if we are present at the birth of a tune.

At first, only half notes and quarter notes are heard. Then at 1:55 eighth notes come into play, an evocation of the rippling river at the foot of the cliffs. Soon after, the tune matures into its full form, a modal pioneer-sounding theme reminiscent of old ‘shape note’ tunes.

At 2:40 a second modal tune grows out of the first. It is repeated three more times, each a little more expanded into a wider range. These are not variations but rather re-imaginings, expanded ‘variants’ that become ever more noble and tender. At 4:06 the cello sounds the flatted sevenths of the chords, giving the music a touch of the ‘Blues,’ a very American sound.

At 4:30, the Golden Mean of the piece, comes the climax -- not a loud and crashing climax but instead the apotheosis of the modal tune as it blossoms into the bright and shining key of B flat major.

From there the music pushes to a high note and then comes a dénouement, returning at last to G flat minor and the misty, mystic sounds heard at the beginning.

I wrote The Cliffs Above the Clear Fork in 1980 when I was thirty years old. In those days I thought I would live my whole life in Bellville and then be buried in the cemetery. The piece is dedicated to cellist Terry King and pianist John Jensen who play the piece superbly well in the recording you can hear by clicking on the link above.

To see a PDF of the score, click on the link above.