Internal States

Program Note

Tom Flaherty – Internal States

I. Doubt
III. Reverie
III. Celebration.

Internal States reflects, as all music does, inner states that we all experience. “Doubt” hovers between two harmonic worlds. An unsettled texture breaks into consonant major/minor sonority with some frequency. Just as often it remains locked in a paralyzed isometric state, unsure of where to go. Searching solo lines sometimes find resolution, sometimes continue the search. Just when the music might blossom into a clear resolution it takes an unexpected turn and ends with a quiet truce. “Reverie” mingles cloudy textures with expressive solo lines in an often dark but ambiguous dreamscape. “Celebration,” dances. A lot.

Internal States was commissioned by Brightwork newmusic, whose expressive and virtuosic playing were a constant inspiration.

About Tom Flaherty

Tom Flaherty is a composer and cellist who works with music for humans and electronics. He earned degrees at Brandeis University, S.U.N.Y. Stony Brook, and the University of Southern California,…

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