PRIMORDIAL VOICES (2020-21) for clarinet, violin, cello and piano

Instrumentation: clarinet in Bb, violin, cello, piano

Duration: ~20’

Performance/Recording History:

• Movements 1 + 3 premiered 5/26/21 at the Interlochen Arts Academy Composition Recital by Jackie Groves, clarinet, Valerie Xu-Friedman, violin, Andrew Siehr, cello, and Chip Miller, piano

• Movement 1 to be performed by Ian Dodd, clarinet, Matilda Goldie, violin, Avi Lindner, cello, and Davis Morgenstern, piano on 5/19/22 at Jonah’s joint Senior Recital with fellow Interlochen Arts Academy composers Jack Kaiser and Rowan Lemaster

Program Notes:

Primordial Voices is my attempt to extract earthy sonorities that are evocative of the past from the instruments and from the ensemble. I began the process of composing this piece by exploring ancient music and its use of rhythm and harmony, and my goal was to create a work inspired entirely by this music. However, I discovered that the sound world that was most meaningful and “ancient” to me was quite different and not very reminiscent of the actual ancient music I analyzed. After much debate, I decided to sacrifice my “homage to the past” goal in favor of creating a piece that was more successful in my eyes (and ears). The first movement is, as the title suggests, in the form of a fugue, and attempts to create dark, rich, and, of course, primordial timbres from each instrument. The third movement, entitled Incantation, is inspired by chant and its place in the world of religion and spirituality.