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—Program Notes—
TRAVEL JOURNAL: BOOKS I-III
The plan of the composition, unusual for a string quartet, resembles that of the
PRELUDES by Chopin or Debussy, rather than that of traditional chamber music works.
Each of the miniatures is a response to a particular haiku of Basho. In addition, each
miniature is a response to a particular piece of Western classical music.
TRAVEL JOURNAL won the 1985 triennial Washington International Competition for
String Quartet. It was recorded by the Portland String Quartet in 1992 (Arabesque CD
#26632).
VARIATIONS ON A JAZZY THEME
These pieces were written in 1992 for Louis Stewart, and premiered by him in February,
1994 at the Berklee Performance Center. The Theme is somewhat bluesy in nature, and
each of the five Variations explores a different implication of the Theme.
THREE SONGS FROM CAMBODIA AGONISTES
CAMBODIA AGONISTES is the result of a two-year collaboration among playwright-
lyricist Ernest Abuba, producer-director Tisa Chang and composer Louis Stewart. It
was produced off-Broadway in fall of 1992 by the New York City-based Pan Asian
Repertory Theatre. It tells the story of a Cambodian refugee in New York, haunted by
memories of the Cambodian holocaust in the 1970’s. She is slowly going blind as a result
of flashbacks to the “killing fields” of Cambodia and remembrances of her lost child. The
production is currently touring the East Coast.
FUSIONS FOR TROMBONE AND ORCHESTRA
FUSIONS is the product of a genuine creative partnership. Composer John Bavicchi and
trombonist Phil Wilson have been friends since college days in the 1940’s. Bavicchi long
recognized Wilson’s extraordinary ability to improvise in dialogue, and responded to
Wilson’s urging that he write a work for trombone and orchestra. The piece is in the
form of a fantasia in which a series of tutti ideas provide material for the soloist, who
improvises “breaks” over orchestral ostinati derived from the same sources. In
preserving the integrity of both its “classical” and jazz elements, the work makes a strong
statement about fusion, as opposed to amalgam, of styles.
FUSIONS was completed in 1985. In 1992 it was recorded by the Norddeutsche Rundfunk
Symphony Orchestra for broadcast throughout Europe. The orchestral portion of
tonight’s performance is generated by a MIDI sequence derived directly from Bavicchi’s
own notated score, using the computer software program MusicPrinter Plus.
TRAVEL JOURNAL: BOOKS I-III
The plan of the composition, unusual for a string quartet, resembles that of the
PRELUDES by Chopin or Debussy, rather than that of traditional chamber music works.
Each of the miniatures is a response to a particular haiku of Basho. In addition, each
miniature is a response to a particular piece of Western classical music.
TRAVEL JOURNAL won the 1985 triennial Washington International Competition for
String Quartet. It was recorded by the Portland String Quartet in 1992 (Arabesque CD
#26632).
VARIATIONS ON A JAZZY THEME
These pieces were written in 1992 for Louis Stewart, and premiered by him in February,
1994 at the Berklee Performance Center. The Theme is somewhat bluesy in nature, and
each of the five Variations explores a different implication of the Theme.
THREE SONGS FROM CAMBODIA AGONISTES
CAMBODIA AGONISTES is the result of a two-year collaboration among playwright-
lyricist Ernest Abuba, producer-director Tisa Chang and composer Louis Stewart. It
was produced off-Broadway in fall of 1992 by the New York City-based Pan Asian
Repertory Theatre. It tells the story of a Cambodian refugee in New York, haunted by
memories of the Cambodian holocaust in the 1970’s. She is slowly going blind as a result
of flashbacks to the “killing fields” of Cambodia and remembrances of her lost child. The
production is currently touring the East Coast.
FUSIONS FOR TROMBONE AND ORCHESTRA
FUSIONS is the product of a genuine creative partnership. Composer John Bavicchi and
trombonist Phil Wilson have been friends since college days in the 1940’s. Bavicchi long
recognized Wilson’s extraordinary ability to improvise in dialogue, and responded to
Wilson’s urging that he write a work for trombone and orchestra. The piece is in the
form of a fantasia in which a series of tutti ideas provide material for the soloist, who
improvises “breaks” over orchestral ostinati derived from the same sources. In
preserving the integrity of both its “classical” and jazz elements, the work makes a strong
statement about fusion, as opposed to amalgam, of styles.
FUSIONS was completed in 1985. In 1992 it was recorded by the Norddeutsche Rundfunk
Symphony Orchestra for broadcast throughout Europe. The orchestral portion of
tonight’s performance is generated by a MIDI sequence derived directly from Bavicchi’s
own notated score, using the computer software program MusicPrinter Plus.
