Tomes of the Wanderer
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Tomes of the Wanderer was written as a companion piece for Tomes of Hardened Steel. Patrick Curry had asked me to write a piece for his master's recital at the University of Akron, giving me free rein to write for whatever combination of solo tuba and accompaniment that I wanted. Not generally being a fan of the tuba/piano combination, I opted to write again for tuba and electronic accompaniment. As the days ticked by, I was having a hard time finding a direction that felt right. The idea occurred to me that, like a series of films, I could write a series of pieces that shared some melodic and thematic content.
In the years that had passed since writing Tomes of Hardened Steel my sample library had been significantly improved in terms of the realism I could produce, so it seemed like a good opportunity to "rev the engine" and see what kind of performance I could get out of those sounds. The main theme from Steel was carried over for thematic continuity, referred to as the "Tomes" theme, while a new "Wanderer" theme became the central focus. While there is no concrete story in my mind, there is some loosely implied plot with the movement titles: I. Over the Mountains, II. The Old Forest, and III. The Cursed Mire and Leviathan.
Commissioned by Patrick Curry. Premiered 3-7-2014 at The University of Akron.
Publisher: Potenza Music.