On Discourse (2021) - Daniel Zlatkin - Performed Live by Ensemble du Bout du Monde

On Discourse (2021)
Daniel Zlatkin

I. Sighs - 0:00
II. Exclamations - 2:58
III. Questions - 6:58

Performed Live by Ensemble du Bout du Monde
Noa Mick, soprano saxophone
Simona Castria, alto saxophone
Salvatore Castellano, tenor saxophone
Don-Paul Kahl, baritone saxophone

Performed Live in the Sprengel Museum
Hannover, Germany
28 April 2023

https://www.ensembleduboutdumonde.com
https://www.danielzlatkin.com

Programme Note (written by Daniel Zlatkin):
"In Charles Ives' String Quartet No. 2, four men, represented by the violins, viola, and cello, engage in rather humorous, sometimes bizarre, at other times profound discussion and argument. The work culminates with a mystical journey up a mountain. The work is a snapshot of the New England spirit, at least from a particular group of people, in the early Twentieth Century.
My composition, inspired by Ives, is a musical essay on the state of modern American discourse. Each saxophone takes on various character roles. There is dismissal, combativeness, accusation, taking of sides, all around noise and messiness. Dark and surreal underlying forces are sometimes felt. But there are also the increasingly rare, though nonetheless present, expressions of peacefulness, nuance, and empathy. Personal reflections about the current state of affairs are also mixed in.
My deepest thanks to the Ensemble du Bout du Monde for commissioning this work. I am especially grateful to Don-Paul Kahl for his friendship, his musicianship, and his belief in my work."