Lullabies and Crooked Dances

Lullabies and Crooked Dances (2007)

-version for Oboe, Clarinet and Bassoon

Duration: approx. 12 minutes

Difficulty: Advanced

Download includes full score and complete set of performance parts.

A Lullaby is a song which is sung to children to help them get to sleep. One would think this to suggest sweet and relaxing music, and yet many lullabies are melancholic in their choice of tonal material, and some, such as ‘Rock-a-bye Baby, are disastrous in their lyrics. Lullabies and Crooked Dances is a study in the classical form of the lullaby, set in juxtaposition to rhythmically driven, but at times somewhat distorted dance themes. 

This single movement work comprises of five short episodes, each which borrow elements from both the lullaby and dance genres. Vibrant and energetic dance rhythms intertwine with the triple metre of a classical Berceuse. Driving, strong melodies are accompanied by the gently rocking rhythmic ostinatos common in Cradle Songs. The opening theme, heard first in the oboe, evokes a Turkish folk song ‘Nani’ (meaning sleep) which infiltrates the dance themes, and eventually quietens the music into a somewhat uneasy, yet strangely calm resting place.