DESCRIPTION:
Geoffrey Gordon's chamber work, A Canticle in Shards, commissioned by the State of Connecticut, on behalf of the annual State Music Convention, references early music traditions: in this case, the Sancte Deus of Thomas Tallis (c.1505-1585), and the Ave Verum Corpus of William Byrd (1543-1623). These works appear in their original form and in variation, together and apart, and in various states of fragmentation. Other elements, including compound meters, unbarred music and controlled improvisation, are also present here, in an effort to unfold and honor the source music.