Faye-Ellen Silverman
Connections
Year: 1994
Duration (in minutes): 11'39;
Difficulty: Medium (college/community)
Category: mixed instrument ensemble, mixed instrument trio, small chamber ensembles - 2 to 4 players
Instruments: any string, any woodwind, cello, clarinet, marimba
Publisher: Subito Music Corporation
Description: "Connections" was originally written for dance, in collaboration with the choreographer Leslie Satin. Composed in five short sections, it is based on a traditional Jewish Passover melody, which permeates the spirit of the work, most noticeably in the third section (where actual fragments are stated). The first and fifth sections are related in mood and tempo, and the second and fourth sections share actual musical material (as well as tempo). For example, the opening of the work - the notes D-E - arises from the cadence of the melody, which ends most phrases with E-D (and ends the work), while the opening of the second section - the notes G A B C, stated in the clarinet, relates to the A G F E of the original melody. The moving eighths of the second and fourth sections comes out of dance movements relating to prayer.
The title "Connections" has several meanings. It refers to the connection with Judaism, especially prominent during holidays such as Passover, the original relationship of the music to the dance, and the interconnections found within the work.