Tempest Elegy

PLEASE NOTE: As of now, all purchases are for a downloadable PDF copy of combined score and parts which you can print out. You will not receive a hard copy shipped to your address.

Listen to the MIDI recording here! - https://soundcloud.com/noahlathrop/tempest-elegy

Tempest Elegy is a work for AATB saxophone quartet that's based around two styles. A tempest is defined as "a violent windy storm". This represents the loud, fast-paced sections of the piece. An elegy is "a poem of serious reflection", representing the slower, more chorale-like sections. This combination makes for an exciting thrill of a piece all around!

The piece opens with a slow, dramatic chorale that showcases a call-and-response between both alto saxophones. This continues until we reach a loud, staccato section that splits rhythms between the higher and lower saxophones. We then hear short downbeats with polyrhythmic interjections in the lower voices before we fall down into a waltz. The waltz slowly starts becoming more elongated until it becomes another elegy section and slows down significantly. The score slowly thins out until we're completely lost, perhaps after a violent storm. We then start to find ourselves again, as we hear the familiar ostinato with all the instruments, leading to the slap tongue section. This section picks up pace quickly leading to a more stressed and angry sound. The piece slowly builds and builds, speeding up all the way to the end in a furious finish!