Moments Half-Heard (2015)
for violin, cello, trombone, and tuba (10′)
The initial inspiration for Moments Half-Heard was an idea for a violin and tuba gradually moving toward one another and then suddenly accelerating toward a violent gesture. After I filled out the ensemble with a cello and trombone, the piece became an exercise in unusual instrumentation. I also experimented with a non-rhythmic notation, quarter tones, and a restrained musical language. In much of the piece, I consciously tried to straddle the line between the grotesque and the delicate on the theory that beautiful things can sometimes be strange.
Sam Hoyland 