Saxophone Quartet Number One
Saxophone Quartet (SATB) 4’50” 2014
Instrumentation
Soprano Saxophone
Alto Saxophone
Tenor Saxophone
Baritone Saxophone
Program Notes
This fun little piece for Saxophone Quartet came about as a result of my love for two things: the saxophone, and a television theme from the early 1990s.
When I began writing the piece in late 2013, I had no plan or outline – only a melody inspired by the theme song from the Australian children’s television show Ship to Shore, which had, at that point, been playing on repeat in the back of my mind for two decades. (It continues to this day.)
From my melody, I allowed the piece to grow organically, largely without any thought towards structure or form, occasionally stumbling upon ideas such as the quazi-cadenza section and the moderato section following it, which together make up almost half of the piece.
Saxophone Quartet Number One was premiered by the Rhapsodie Saxophone Quartet in February of 2014, along with two other world premieres from Adelaide-based composers, and it was the first time I had experienced other musicians performing a piece that I had written.
World Premiere:
Rhapsodie Saxophone Quartet
Sunday 23 February 2014
Published by Levi Whitworth Independent Press