Oneironaut's Journey by Roger Zare

Oneironaut's Journey was premiered by the Aspen Contemporary Ensemble, Sydney Hodkinson conducting, on July 23, 2010 in Harris Concert Hall at the Aspen Music Festival. Adam Matthes, viola; Paul Dwyer, cello; Sean Connors, vibraphone; David Friend, piano.

An Oneironaut is a person who is lucidly dreaming, which means that he or she is aware of the dream state. The work is cast in a single movement with three rough sections. The first section is similar to a prelude and fugue in structure, with an opening that suggests the violence and anxiety of the waking world. It features the cello and gradually descends into the second part, a fugato that is lead by the viola. The density of the music builds through the addition of contrapuntal lines into the middle section of the piece, an ethereal fantasy that features a series of cadenza-like passages for the piano. In the background is a dreamy murmur of vibraphone tremolos and doppler-like glissandos in the viola and cello. The final section returns to materials from the opening with a cello and viola duet that cites both the very beginning and the fugue subject. At this point, two unusual effects may be heard in the piano and vibraphone - the pianist uses magnetic tape tied to the low C string to create a shimmering bowed effect, while the vibraphone is pressing on its bars to bend the pitches.

for more information about the composer, visit http://www.rogerzare.com/

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