Art stirs us by reconciling opposites into a pleasing alignment.

... [E]ven if you don’t read music, you’ll see [a theme in the score above that] RISES a lot and falls a little, an expression of expansion, yearning and hope...

[A bit later, a] ‘loss theme’ FALLS a lot and rises a little, an expression of retraction, regret and sadness...

Those opposing first and second themes are propounded and developed in “The View from Carew,” my Romance for Clarinet & Orchestra.

This work was written for my friend, clarinetist Angelo Santoro, a passionately expressive musician. When a conductor asked him to choose a work for solo clarinet and orchestra that he could perform with the Cincinnati Community Orchestra, Angelo asked me to write something, specifying only that he wanted the music to be 'romantic,' even 'operatic.'

The title -- “The View from Carew” -- refers to the majestic prospect of Cincinnati, Covington, Newport and our stretch of the Ohio River valley that is to be seen from atop Carew Tower, the tallest building in Cincinnati.

The piece has a ‘program,’ i.e., a fictional framework. The clarinet represents a solitary figure mourning the recent end of a love affair, looking out over the city, remembering romantic occasions that transpired in the many places that can be seen from the distance of that lofty vantage point and reflected upon with the passing of time.

I tried to make the music express the sublimity that we feel when we look down from a high place. It’s inspiring, but with an underlying remoteness and wistfulness.

The piece begins with an introduction, music that returns as a conclusion at the end, framing the work. The two romantic themes I displayed above -- an ascending "love theme" (sounded by the solo clarinet at 1:03) and a descending "loss theme" introduced by the strings at 2:47) -- are developed and recapitulated, employing the familiar sonata-allegro form known to classical composers for two-and-a-half centuries. Exposition, Development, Recapitulation -- remember? A tried and true musical structure.

Clarinetists, note: “The View from Carew” is also available in a transcription for clarinet & piano. And as a transcription for clarinet, cello & piano.

Just ask and I’ll send you, for free, PDFs of the full score and parts of those versions as well as a link to an mp3 recording.

Nowadays I give away my music to anybody who is interested in discovering it, a policy that brings me immense satisfaction.

In the past six months, I’ve also given away about 500 copies of my new book, “The Blue Rock.” Hearing from folks who have found delight in reading it has been a great pleasure. Have you read it yet? Let me hear from you.

Sending out PDFs and links to my music via email can done at no cost. By contrast, printing and mailing hundreds of copies of a book is expensive, something I can afford to do only once in a while. Talk about ‘reconciling opposites!’

Why give away my life’s work? To avoid the smirch of commerce. I want my work to be among the good things that come to us for free, things like a little more sunshine each day that gifts us this time of year and the concomitant greening of foliage I’m reminded Walt Whitman, speaking on behalf of grass:

“Sprouting alike in broad zones and narrow zones,
Growing among black folks as among white,
Canuck, Tuckahoe, Congressman, Cuff, I give them the same,
I receive them the same.”

Oh, there’s no one says such stuff so well as Whitman, our greatest American poet.

But I digress …

To hear The View from Carew beautifully performed by Baltimore clarinetist David Drosinos and the St. Petersburg Symphony under the direction of Vladimir Landes, click on the link above.

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

To see a PDF of the score in the reduction for clarinet, cello and piano, click on the link above.