2 flutesOboeEnglish horn2 Clarinets in Bb2 Bassoons2 Horns in F2 Trumpets in BbTromboneBass tromboneTimpaniPercussion ISnare DrumTambourineCrash CymbalsGlockenspiel(Triangle)(Suspended cymbal)Percussion IIBass DrumMounted Tom-tomWood blockSlapstickXylophone(Triangle)(Suspended Cymbal)PianoHarpStrings

Elysian Spring, like several of my pieces, was discovered in a dream-state. In this particular case, a dream that I was hearing a piece a dear friend wrote, thinking how splendid and colorful it was (I believe the part I was hearing in the dream was the slow section marked “Gently Lilting”). I woke up and realized it wasn’t his piece at all! The melody was still swimming around my head, so I jotted it down around 4am. I set it aside for a while, feeling that it was too simple and uninteresting to turn into anything, or perhaps so familiar that it must have been lifted from something else. A few months later, in the summer of 2024, I decided to embrace the simplicity of the idea and write the overture. Without any particular intention about the programmatic or affective details of the piece, I approached it purely musically, with no goal other than total transparency. I leave the meaning of this work open ended, allowing listeners to create their own story as the music unfolds.  Elysian Spring is dedicated to my niece, Elysia Noel, whose light-hearted simplicity I hope remains with her always.