The strategy for this work was to uncover the similarities and relationships among these different characters--and to guide their evolution still further into materials which are mine alone. The listener can identify three bell-theme quotations from Wagner's Parsifal, Schoenberg's Sechs Kleine Klavierstucke, and Mussorgsky's Boris Godunov. These unify the three movements. The piece is recorded on a Leonarda compact disc by Nanette Kaplan Solomon. (Notes by the composer.)
Brockman, Jane Website
of Santa Monica, CaliforniaCharacter Sketches for piano
16' $8.00 #040067 AP-105
Recording: Leonarda CD 334"most accomplished...fascinating... an aural Rorschach, with side trips " (Los Angeles Times)
Stylistic 'characters' from the music of Debussy, Schoenberg, Wagner and Mussorgsky serve as a point of departure in these three movements. Sometimes the references appear in the form of quotations, other references are simply evocative.
Tell-Tale Fantasy for piano
4'43" $6.50 #040068 AP-106
Recording: Capstone CD (CPS-8714)"Her Tell-Tale Fantasy is a piece with subtle musical quotations-paraphrased allusions to Scriabin, Schoenberg, Ives and Debussy--intended to invoke the impression of a pianist, performing a highly contemporary piece of music, who daydreams and drifts occasionally into wistful thoughts about masterworks of the early twentieth century. . . impressive." (Fanfare)
Although the notation is precise, this short piece is designed to create an illusion of improvisation. At each digression, there are brief paraphrases of works by Scriabin (Prometheus Symphony), Schönberg (Opus 19 and Opus 16), Ives (Concord Sonata) and Debussy (Dr. Gradus Ad Parnassum).
Shadows: Duo for Flute and Clarinet
6' $7.00 #040106 AP-716The tradition of imitation which has historically inspired two-voice music can be likened to an object and its shadow, continually evident in this composition. At times, the instrumental identities become obscured, and one is not certain which instrument is playing which line.
Also, the musical language of Richard Wagner still has much relevance for this composer. It is his shadow which is 'felt' throughout the work as the leitmotiv of Kundry (from Parsifal) is employed melodically, but without its characteristic rhythm--and in a new context. (Notes by the composer.)
"With creative chops on the order of Brockman's, you might even keep the old ghosts of Mozart's time happy." (Keyboard Magazine)
Brockman's work is distinguished by its diversity in music for concerts, dance, film, and television. Her concert music is recorded on the Leonarda, Opus One, Coronet and Capstone labels, and has been in the touring repertoires of NY-based ensembles Continuum, the New Music Consort, William Powell, and F. Gerard Errante.
Brockman was the first woman to earn a Doctorate in Music Composition at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, and studied in Paris with Max Deutsch on a Fulbright/Alliance Française fellowship. Her mentors and teachers include Leslie Bassett, George Balch Wilson, Ross Lee Finney, and Eugene Kurtz.
She has been awarded honors and fellowships from The MacDowell Colony, the State of Connecticut, and the Rackham Foundation, and has been on the Theory-Composition faculties of the Hartt School of Music and the University of Rhode Island. After a composer-fellowship at Robert Redford's Sundance Institute, Brockman left her tenured professorship of music composition at the University of Connecticut to score films in Los Angeles. Today, her work is solely for the concert stage and incorporates the dramatic power of both film and dance.
Arsis Press has published her piano pieces Character Sketches and Tell-Tale Fantasy, as well as her Shadows for flute and clarinet.
Quotes by Women of Note |