Couchiching Suite was written as a commission from the National Music Camp of Canada which runs each year on the shores of beautiful Lake Couchiching north of Toronto, Canada. The first movement is a march in 5/4 that derives its pulse from the melodic shapes rather than set groupings of beats. The middle movement is a slow homophonic song with rich harmonies and thick chordal textures requiring good listening and tuning skills. The third movement is a burner in mixed meters featuring solo alto saxophone and a soaring soli for the french horns. |