Music of Barbara Harbach, Volume 6: Chamber Music III - Reeds, Brass, Strings, Harpsichord and Piano

Frontier Fancies for Violin and Piano (1996) In Fiddleflirt, the two instruments are protagonists in a duel of speed and energy. Twilight Dream is an evocative aria and respite before the concluding tarantella of Dancedevil.

American Dialogues for Flute and Piano (1997) Flute and piano imitate, chase, and call out to the other as they explore the full range and dynamic possibilities of both instruments. Folk-like melodies, harmonies built on fourths, dissonances of rubbing seconds, clashing sevenths, and devilish fourths (diabolous in musica) give color to the dialogues.

Four Dances for Two for Oboe and Violin (1997) opens with Rococo Promenade, which is based on the French Baroque overture style with a galloping fugal middle section before a return to the jaggedly-dotted style of the beginning. Afternoon Divertimento alternates a calm, lullaby-like mood with bursts of frenzied energy typical of a weekend afternoon. Get Reel portrays a whimsically reeling, roiling, reel (really!) with rapid and smoothly flowing figures. Holiday Glide features clockwork precision interpolated with slides and glides and glissandi.

Tres Danzas para Clavecin (1989) is influenced by Spanish flamenco guitar music. Cante flamenco has cascading swirls of descending and ascending motives often incorporating South American dance rhythms. Andante para vihuelo de penole suggests a melancholic jazz feel featuring the lute stop, while Danza-Deliro is a frenzied, rapturous high-speed race to the finish.

Phantasy and Phugue for Solo Piano (1994) begins with a thunderclap opening, followed by a mysterious atmosphere that builds until the tolling of low octaves in the bass heralds a hypnotic middle section. One of the techniques employed in this section is a melody superimposed over a repeated rhythmic pattern. This moves into an athletic gigue-like fugue that changes it shape through augmentation, texture and range. Spaindango: Caprice for Harpsichord (1988) opens with an 11/8 meter with blistering chords, often only a 1/2-step apart, producing a sound that evolves into a Spanish dance with glissandos that zip up and down the keyboard. Rustic Scene for Viola and Piano (1998) evokes the quintessentially American frontier character and spirit. The musical terrain includes calm, quiet and melodious conversations, ecstatic dancing, cascading scales and fiery musical competition before settling on a common vision. Each theme has its own character and tempo, and the cadenza for the viola is reminiscent of fragrant blossoms in the summer. Rustic Scene vividly evokes a landscape full of lush harmonies and exotic melodic perfumes, a musical vista of resonant colors and aromatic counterpoint. Perambulations for Trumpet and Piano (1996) opens with a blues-tinged melodic theme before moving to a bright Vivace toccata in the piano with emphatic chords and considerable interplay between the two instruments. Development of each theme is followed by a playfully relaxed trumpet cadenza before joining with the piano for a bravura finish. Daystream Dances for Oboe and Piano (1992) Rolling Brightness is a rollicking and upbeat dialogue between oboe and piano with soaring lines and frequent key changes that give it a playful character. Reeling Dusk is a headlong rush into a whirl of sound and sense. The unusual meter signature of 11/8 creates a slightly off-kilter sway. Rhythmic complexities lead into a dramatic oboe cadenza before returning to the opening theme and meter. Emanations from the Sacred Harp for Cello and Piano (2001) was written for cellist Robert Haskins to reflect his great interest in early American sacred music. It is based on five hymn tunes primarily from the First New England School of Composers of the Revolutionary and Federalist Periods.