​Grade 3 Difficulty

c. 5 minutes (2 movements)

I. Bloom

II. Borders​

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I. Bloom

(ca. 2:30)

Green Whispers brings focus to the often-overlooked beauty of nature in our urban settings. Reminding us that a solitary tree, a small garden, or a small tuft of grass can hold great beauty. The first movement portrays the gentle, patient, beautiful changes that occur when a delicate flower comes into bloom.​

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II. Borders

(ca. 2:45)

This movement represents the influence of manmade structures on nature’s growth. While naturally more curved, asymmetric, and “imperfect”, plants can often shape within the synthetic frames of these structures, but often grow outside of them, overwhelming the original “border” and becoming something completely organic. The steady and “square” pulse of the music (starting with the marimba) represents our border, with small, less predictable pockets of “growth” interacting with and often overtaking these borders and each other.

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I found this sentiment to be well summarized in H. Ernest Hunt’s Spirit and Music:

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… there are curves and sweeps in the swing of trees and grasses, in the flight of birds, and in the grace of the human form. It is significant that Nature‘s handiwork so abounds in curves, whilst that of man is fashioned so much upon straight lines with consequent sharp points and angles. Is it not obvious that Art has but scanty share in designing our towns and manufactories? Right angles, no doubt, stand for utility in a commercial age, but Nature with her longer purview has little use for them and prefers a more rounded way of progress. Nature inspires, but not in square-cut periods.

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Note from the Composer:

This movement prioritizes soft, light performance with a strong, cohesive pulse from the ensemble. I have found that this style of music (much like the “Intermezzo” from Holst’s First Suite in Eb) is drastically outnumbered by “epic/ loud” band pieces and is much needed in the repertoire.