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Three Ostinatos
Full Orchestra
Three Ostinatos is currently published by Roger Zare Music and distributed by Murphy Music Press. Visit Murphy Music Press to purchase printed copies of either version. If you need a quote for a purchase order or would prefer to purchase pdfs, please contact me.
Copyright © by Roger Zare Music, ASCAP. All Rights Reserved.
for wind ensemble
String Orchestra
Wind Ensemble
Vocal
Chamber
Solo Instrumental
I. Clockwork
II. Song
III. Celebration
Each movement of Three Ostinatos is based on a different repeated rhythmic pattern that spans the entire movement. The first movement moves like clockwork at a walking pace. Long melodies arc high above a mechanical ostinato that gradually transforms as the music proceeds. The euphonium and tuba are showcased with solos as the music eventually comes full-circle, returning to the opening at the close. The middle movement is haunting and lush, cast in a slow and cantabile 7/8 meter. The main melody is first played by a solo clarinet, who is joined by piccolo and vibraphone before the whole ensemble joins in. After an expansive climax, a solo horn gives a nostalgic return to the main theme. Closing the work is a quick polymetric celebration, overlaying melodies and rhythms in 5/8, 7/8, 3/4, and 3/2 and bringing the work to an energetic close.
The flexible instrumentation version was arranged as a response to the Covid-19 pandemic, and allows this piece to be performed by as few as six musicians.
Duration: ca 11'
To purchase, please use the PayPal buttons at the bottom of this page to buy electronic copies or head to Murphy Music Press for print copies.
Click on the audio players below to listen to a recording by the Oyster Bay High School Wind Ensemble, directed by Matthew Sisia.
I:
II:
III:
You may download a pdf of the perusal score in case the embedded score below is difficult to see or does not display.