Where Spirits & Demons Dance

From the composer: “Where Spirits & Demons Dance” was originally written for Saxophonia, a saxophone choir which evolved out of the National Youth Wind Orchestra, and was premiered at their debut concert in April 1995, at the Purcell Room. It was a luxury to have such a large group of accomplished saxophonists at my disposal so I made few compromises over scoring or technical demands, which are relatively evenly spread throughout the ensemble. The Dallas Wind Symphony is one of the leading professional wind bands in the United States, so when it approached me for a clarinet version of the work, I had, if anything, even fewer technical constraints. The relatively few modifications I have introduced have been for purely musical reasons in order to take into account the special qualities of the clarinet, particularly the deep contras. The clarinet version was premiered by the Dallas Wind Symphony in New Orleans on 19th August at the ClarinetFest 2001, organized by the International Clarinet Association. It has been recorded by the British Clarinet Ensemble on their latest CD.

The inspiration came from the haunting and sinister sounds of an old barrel-organ I heard in the Bohemian heart of Amsterdam. The picture I’ve portrayed of Amsterdam’s street life is one of conflict between it’s superficial charm and the sleazier undertones of the environment.

The E-Edition PDF bundle comes with the following parts:

Standard parts
Clarinet in Bb 1
Clarinet in Bb 2
Clarinet in Bb 3
Clarinet in Bb 4
Clarinet in Bb 5
Clarinet in Bb 6
Clarinet in Bb 7
Clarinet in Bb 8
Clarinet in Bb 9
Alto Clarinet in Eb (alternative to Clarinet in Bb 10)
Bass Clarinet in Bb 1
Bass Clarinet in Bb 2
Contrabass Clarinet in Eb (alternative to Contrabass Clarinet in Bb)

Alternative & optional parts
Clarinet in Eb (optional)
Clarinet in Bb 10 (alternative to Alto Clarinet in Eb)
Contrabass Clarinet in Bb (alternative to Contrabass Clarinet in Eb)
Percussion 1: suspended cymbal, tambourine, woodblock (optional)
Percussion 2: celesta (or glockenspiel), bass drum, castanets (optional)

“Where Spirits & Demons Dance” is also available in hard-copy from June Emerson Wind Music.