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Tonight I had the pleasure of seeing Dennis’s concert. Him and several other new composers had written music that was being premiered at the fabulous Christ Church Cathedral in St. Louis. The cathedral is a massive structure, over 130 years old, with a mighty pipe organ, and an amazing acoustic presence. Dennis had two pieces, one was based on a set of four ‘glosses’ which are short poem-like additions added to ancient texts, usually written in the margins. Think of them as Irish haiku. They describe things like the wonders of nature, the meditative peacefulness of reading a book in the forest, the song of a bird, things like that. His second piece was theme and variations on a traditional Irish tune, written for flute, string bass (which Dennis played himself) and harp. The piece was beautiful, utilizing all the best parts of the various instruments, and even using some parts that you wouldn’t expect, rapping on the wood, tapping and clicking the keys, etc.

There were also fabulous organ pieces, wonderful choral works, piano pieces, and more. It was a great concert, set in a great hall, and a wonderful opprotunity for some new musicians to get their pieces performed. I feel confident that there is a new generation of composers and performers coming into their own that will please and astound everyone. Its great to be a part of their beginnings.

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