PHOTO OF DBR BY ElLVIS SUAREZ
Autumn Days and Nights (2024)
for large orchestra
by Daniel Bernard Roumain (DBR)
Instrumentation: 3 Flutes (III. doubling on Piccolo), 3 Oboes (III. doubling on English Horn), 3 Clarinets (III. doubling on Bass Clarinet), 3 Bassoons (III. doubling on Contrabassoon), 4 Horns, 3 Trumpets, 3 Trombones, Tuba, Timpani, 3 Percussion (Snare Drum, 2 Tom-Toms, Bass Drum, Large Triangle, Suspended Cymbal, Crash Cymbals, Tam-Tam, Glockenspiel, Xylophone, Marimba, Vibraphone), Harp, Strings
Length: 21 minutes
Please contact us to rent orchestral score + parts
COMPOSER’S NOTE:
“Dedicated for my dear friend and musical champion, Xian Zhang.
The title Autumn Days and Nights points to when the work began, during the autumn months of 2023. I’ve often felt that the promise of winter, spring, and summer runs restless in the simmering smoke of autumn days and nights. It’s the season of change and challenge, and this orchestral concerto does just that, inviting the musicians into sound collages based on Haitian folk music (e.g., Merci Bondye), the Black National Anthem (Lift Every Voice and Sing), African-American spirituals (Wade in the Water), and my own ‘Hallelujah Chorus’.” - DBR
Please contact us for rental, to request a preview score, or to purchase a study score.
Notable performances:
Commissioned by New Jersey Symphony, Premiere (2024)
Planning a performance of this work? Please contact us and let us know the date and venue.
About the composer:
Composer’s website
Composer’s biography
Press
Press:
“His one-movement work drew influences from Haitian folk music, African American musical traditions, and the composer’s own ingenuity to create a sound collage showing off the musicians of New Jersey Symphony. In Friday night’s performance, such spirituals as “Wade in the Water” and “Lift Every Voice and Sing” were well heard within the rich orchestral texture, especially as conveyed by bassoonist Joshua Hodge, English horn player Julia DeRosa, cellist Jonathan Spitz, and trombonist Levi Boylan. Snippets of instrumental solos were clear from throughout the orchestra, and repeating rhythms built power within the music. Roumain incorporated traditional forms into the complex counterpoint, such as a baroque passacaglia providing a foundation from the double basses which was well punctuated by clean horns. The intensity of the piece successfully created a feeling of autumn days marching toward winter.” - Nancy Plum, Town Topics
Score sample:
