Score and Parts
"This is a beautiful work - reminds me of something Sibelius would have written were he living in our time!"- Henry Mollicone
This work was inspired by the relatively large, wading bird, commonly found in North and Central America. The name of this bird has always conjured an image of something of such immense size and, yet, unbelievable beauty and wonder. It can be both terrifying and awe-inspiring.
Musically speaking, this work is an arabesque, a short, single movement containing ornamentation. This term is also used in art to describe works that contain two flowing, decorative motifs in the shape of "S" and "U". In ballet it is used to describe the shape and movement of a spiral. The gestures of this work follow the contour of these shapes and movements and embody the Arabesque in all of these forms.