Seven Dances for Piano 

Program Notes

Seven Dances for Piano, written in 2004 for Christopher Brennan, is my 21st century take on the baroque dance suite: a collection of dances—some contemporary, some archaic—all in the same key.  In my piece, four of the movements are actual dances of various eras. For those Silenced is a sarabande, a stately baroque dance in three; Valse triste is, of course, a waltz; The Bountiful Heart is a tango; and Soaring is a jig, an Irish dance in 6/8 or 12/8 which is the final movement of virtually every baroque suite.  The other three movements are not specific dances, and yet are quite dance-like. The entire suite could easily lend itself to choreography.