Ourself Behind Ourself, Concealed

Tasha Warren, Dave Eggar

Release Date: April 1, 2022

Tasha Warren (bass clarinet/clarinet) and Dave Eggar (cello) present world premieres of chamber works by six of today's most dynamic and influential composers, Nathalie Joachim, Paquito D'Rivera, Meg Okura, Martha Redbone, Pascal Le Boeuf, and Cornelius Boots. As the world simultaneously stood still and transformed across the globe, these six pieces came into the world during the pandemic lockdown in 2020/2021, each emerging as a reflection of our complex global landscape. From the Far East to the Haitian Caribbean, to the plains of Africa journeying through Cuba to New York, tales whisper and weave to form a beautiful and poignant collision of genres. These stunning new works come to life on the contemporary classical music stage by way of the shape-shifting, chameleon-like natures of these two complementary instruments. The result is an explosion of beauty, power, joy, ecstasy, isolation, and unity; uniquely inspired by personal narrative, identity, and the time in which they were written.

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Ourself Behind Ourself, Concealed

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TRACK LIST

1. African Tales by Paquito D'Rivera

2. Crow Cavern by Cornelius Boots

3. Black Mountain Calling by Martha Redbone

4. Lalin by Nathalie Joachim

5. Phantasmagoria by Meg Okura

6. Snapshots by Pascal Le Boeuf

Notes from the composers:

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African Tales embarks on a personal musical journey, our departure point “a piacere, Lontano” introduction; like contemplating from afar a crossing caravan of Tuaregs with their passing camels at sundown in Timbuktu. We are then carried into the hypnotic 6/8 feeling so characteristic of the African rhythms. An improvised cello interlude leads to a piacere cello solo; more sand, camels, and Tuaregs, and a change from Bass to Bb clarinet, through which we are led to the swing and atonal walking bass of New York. -Paquito D’ Rivera

Black Mountain Calling draws inspiration from the music of my eastern woodlands heritage, bridging the past with the present day by weaving ribbons of traditional indigenous sonic landscape embracing the multicultural evolution of folk music that comes from the hills and hollows of Appalachia.

Black Mountain Calling echoes the sounds of our southeastern stomp dance songs and rhythms. I am excited to explore the possibilities of honoring our songs using the classical instruments, cello and bass clarinet, in a modern way that emulates the human voice singing our ancient mountain style of vocable. “I’m thrilled and deeply honored to collaborate with Dave Eggar and Tasha Warren on this important project so very near and dear to my heart and homeland. It’s a beautiful way to honor the land on which we stand, honor the place I was raised and honor my culture while continuing to move the music forward in a respectful and inclusive way- the way of our mountain.”- Martha Redbone

Crow Cavern: Crows must be taken on their own terms.  Beauty and vitality appear in many forms.  Our own animal nature is one of our true assets, and the ongoing misapprehension of it has spelled our doom.

A woodwind has a voice, a string has a voice -- a crow, a raven or a newt has a voice.  A place like a cave, forest, lake or planet has a voice.  Learn the difference between hearing and listening.  Listen to these voices.  And don't think that words tell the most important stories.- Cornelius Boots

Phantasmagoria is a trio work for bass clarinet/clarinet, cello, and violin and through-composed chamber work in my signature style of mixing jazz, world music, and classical music. The music starts and ends with depicting my mental state during the first few weeks of the pandemic, waking up every morning to a world more surreal than a dream. - Meg Okura

Lalin (pronounced la-leen) means moon in Haitian kreyòl. This piece was conceived and written beneath the moon and stars on my family’s farm in the Haitian countryside. The moon is always so clear and bright, a beacon in the sky as we sit beneath it, sharing our final thoughts of the day. Often, I’m the last to bed, spending some moments of solitude onder the night sky. I am always keenly aware of the change in the air as people and daytime animals ease into slumber and nocturnal creatures emerge, creating a hushed stuttering and suspenseful atmosphere, cradled by the light of the moon. In this work composed in two parts, the clarinet and cello come together to tell the moon’s story. - Nathalie Joachim

Composed for my dear friends Tasha Warren and Dave Eggar, “Snapshots” is a collection of musical impressions. I started composing “Snapshots'' while in residence at the historic home of Aaron Copland. While there, I thought about Copland's generosity towards other artists in his community (particularly Leonard Bernstein), about my place in my own musical community, and about those who had been kind to me as a young musician—for this piece, I specifically thought about Geri Allen, Chick Corea, Kenny Barron, and Marin Alsop. As “Snapshots” developed, it revealed itself to be a jumble of impressions of these individuals (short phrases or textures that reminded me of them) accompanied by mental images of Dave and Tasha rocking out. To paraphrase Copland, the compositional process that followed involved assembling materials consisting of these impressions.

Generous acts, like those of Copland, pass from person to person reaching from past to present and forming the foundations of musical communities along the way. The reach of this network is profound: My presence at Copland's piano, composing “Snapshots,'' was a direct result of these acts of kindness. The same can be said of Dave Eggar, who took piano lessons with Copland (as a kid) in that very same house on that very same piano. Our music and artistic identities are a product of these generous acts. “Snapshots” is a celebration of those individuals whose acts of kindness brought us together. - Pascal Le Boeuf