Peck, Russell - compositions Chamber Music: (published works and those in active repertoire) Don't Tread on Me or on My String Quartet (string quartet), 1986 Five-Ring Circus (woodwind quintet), 1986 A "Minor Monster-Piece" (brass quintet), 1986 Drastic Measures (sax quartet), 1976 Time Being (violin "solo-trio": violin w/tape & opt. mime/dance), 1969 Lift-Off (three drummers), 1968 1 db (double bass "solo-trio": double bass w/tape), 1968 Automobile (soprano, flute, double bass, & percussion), 1966 Lion's Breath (double bass & percussion), 1966 Unsafe at Any Speed (string quartet & percussion quartet), 1966 Six Pak (violin, cello, double bass, flute, clarinet, horn), 1965 Seven-fold Amen (cello, percussion, & celesta), 1964 Keyboard: Romance (piano), 1980 In the Garden (organ w/opt. percussion), 1976 Suspended Sentence (piano), 1972 The Cat's Meow (piano four-hands), 1969 Vocal: Quotations from the Electric Chairman (mixed chorus and tape or doublebass), 1969 The Manner of the World Nowadays (male chorus and brass ensemble), 1970 Upon a Dead Man's Head (tenor and small ensemble, w/slides), 1970 Two Songs on Poems of William Carlos Williams (soprano, four celli, four flutes), 1963 Winds: Cave (wind ensemble or band), 1976 American Epic (band), 1972 The New Cat's Meow (jazz band), 1972 Funky Boogie (young band), 1976 Star Machine (young band), 1977 Gothic Music (band), 1965 Orchestral Compositions: (Published by Pecktackular Music_ Signs of Life 12 ' - a composition in two movements for string orchestra The Upward Stream 22' - concerto for tenor saxophone and orchestra The Phoenix 19' concerto for trumpet and orchestra Peace Overture 10' for orchestra The Glory and the Grandeur 17' concerto for percussion trio and orchestra Amber Waves 12' for brass quartet and orchestra The Thrill of the Orchestra 13' a demonstration piece for narrator and orchestra. Jack and Jill at Bunker Hill 12' for narrator and orchestra Who Killed Cock Robin 17' for narrator and orchestra Signs of Life performance record: Milwaukee Symphony, Utah Syphony, Alabama Symphony, Savannah Symphony, Norwegian Radio Orchestra, Hartford Chamber Orchestra, Columbus (OH) Symphony, Omaha Symphony, Phoenix Symphony, South Carolina Chamber Orchestra, Spokane Symphony, Grand Rapids Symphony, Philharmonic Orchestra of Florida, Perugia (Italy) Symphony, Owensboro Symphony, Nebraska Chamber Orchestra, New American Chamber Orchestra, Pro Musica of Columbus (OH), Peninsula Music Festival (WI), Ann Arbor Chamber Orchestra, Chamber Orchestra of Oklahoma City, Chicago Chamber Orchestra, Jacksonville Symphony, San Diego Chamber Orchestra. Signs of Life program note: Russell Peck's Signs of Life is a two movement work for string orchestra which represents a peripeteia in the composer's own personal life. A kind of coming out party for his creative spirit which had been of late hovering under a cloud, Signs is a joyous work written in a language and style which assert the continuing power of such traditional devices as tonality and meter to express beautiful and scintillating musical thought. The first movement is a soaring and tender statement leavened by rhythmic and melodic references which presage the second movement. The scherzo moves full force into a blues harmonic environment made of derivative dance rhythms and syncopated tunes nestled between jazz and Bartok. Mostly this is music to celebrate. Signs of Life program note: Signs of Life evolved over a long span of time. Germinal fragments existed in my sketches for years; and I worked with the music in other media before concluding that string orchestra could reveal its utmost character. Music itself is a "sign of life", and one can imagine many programmatic images relating the title to evocative sounds in the piece. Yet I think of my music as primarily devoted to beauty and a sense of spirit, not realistic depiction. Further, while I strive for idiomatic expression that seems to spring directly from the inspiration of the instruments, I'm not especially concerned with composing sound effects or textures. Rather I use instrumental color as a means to express myself in melody, rhythm, and harmony. For those interested in technical details, one may mention that the two movements of the piece are united by a three-note motif. Heard immediately in the first movement (arioso) as an accompaniment figure, this motif also serves prominently in the second movement (scherzo) and indeed permeates both movements in many guises. In the scherzo one may also hear many colorful string techniques, including one exotic moment toward the end of the movement where the fingering action of the left hand alone is used to produce the sound. In the coda of the first movement a subtle innovation in tempo may be observed: an accelerando occurs in conjunction with lengthening note values, creating not only a drive to the final cadence but a relaxation into it. Dedicated to my wife Cameron, I hope Signs of Life fulfills the goal of being not only an authentic personal expression, but an enjoyable experience for musicians and listeners, as well. Written especially for Paul Polivnick and the Milwaukee Symphony, the work was premiered at the Performing Arts Center in Milwaukee, June 16/17, 1984. The Upward Stream program note: The Upward Stream is divided into three movements, but the piece is really a single entity, with melodic and harmonic ideas recurring and developing from movement to movement. The second and third, both fast, are played without pause: after the climax of movement II there is a cadenza, followed by a slow "postlude" which alludes to movement I; this in turn dissolves into the finale (Allegro molto). Though often misunderstood as a strictly jazz instrument, I realized in composing this piece that the tenor saxophone is one of the greatest of orchestral concerto instruments. In sheer volume, it can project like a brass instrument against the full orchestra, while retaining all the technical virtuosity of a woodwind. Also, more perfectly than any other concerto instrument, it blends with each of the instrument families (brass, woodwinds, and strings). Finally, like the cello, the range of the tenor saxophone corresponds almost exactly with the human voice (from low baritone to highest soprano), and so has a uniquely persuasive power of expression. The Upward Stream was commissioned by the Winston-Salem Symphony, Peter Perret, Music Director, with funding assistance provided by the North Carolina Arts Council. The work is dedicated to Tenor Saxophonist, James Houlik. The Upward Stream performance record: Winston-Salem Symphony, Cedar Rapids, Charlotte Symphony, Memphis Symphony, European tour: Berlin, Warsaw, Arnhem and Aachen, Greensboro Symphony, London Symphony Orchestra (U.K.), North Carolina Symphony, Grant Park Symphony Orchestra, Spokane Symphony, Boise Philharmonic.