Colors for wind dectet

Description

for Wind dectet + optional Double Bass

duration: 11 minutes

instrumentation:

2 flutes, 2 oboes, 2 clarinets, 2 bassoons, 2 French horns + Double Bass [see note]
Note: Tenor and Baritone saxophone may substitute for the two bassoons (but not join)
Double bass is preferred, but is optional (cues provided in other instruments)
A Bass clarinet part is provided as an option to replace Horn 2

in four movements:

I. RED
II. BLUE
III. GREEN
IV. WHITE

Program Notes (taken from the original version, for oboe, clarinet, and string quartet):

I. Red:
This movement opens as an angry, aggressive color. Stephenson pits some members of the dectet against the others in a tense musical argument. The ensemble briefly “gets along” when they pause to notice the peaceful, warm red hues of a sunset, but the friction quickly returns as they resume their musical fighting. Listeners will notice undeniable, stylistic nods to twentieth-century composers who lived and wrote under the old “Red” Soviet regime of Russia.

II. Blue:
Transitioning into a relaxed and “bluesy” atmosphere, this movement depicts a lazy summer afternoon spent relaxing on a front porch. With a glass of cold lemonade in hand, the music evokes the slow, peaceful drifting of clouds across a vivid blue sky.

III. Green:
Incorporating faint, spirited elements of an Irish jig, this movement carries a highly organic and rustic character. The composer intentionally leaves the exact imagery ambiguous, letting the listener decide whether the music represents a deep, dark forest green or a bright, sunlit summer meadow.

IV. White:
Written strictly in C Major at the outset—symbolizing the use of only the white keys on a piano—the finale is a brilliant, virtuosic flurry of notes. It is designed to evoke the blinding, refreshing image of throwing open the window curtains on a bright, sun-drenched morning.

This new dectet version was created in September, 2026.

~ Jim Stephenson