A Yellow Rose Petal

A Yellow Rose Petal

A Yellow Rose Petal was Alvin Singleton’s first work for orchestra, commissioned by the Houston Symphony in 1982. The title is a reference to the state flower, though to my ear the musical content in no way connects with any sort of brush clearing, six-gun machismo. Rather, various sections of the orchestra play a sort… Read more »

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NewMusicBox Staff

A Yellow Rose Petal was Alvin Singleton’s first work for orchestra, commissioned by the Houston Symphony in 1982. The title is a reference to the state flower, though to my ear the musical content in no way connects with any sort of brush clearing, six-gun machismo. Rather, various sections of the orchestra play a sort of symphonic game of cat and mouse, pitting delicate melodies against the bombast of full section playing. The structure of the work gives the listener the sensation of peering through a kaleidoscope, colors recognized but constantly transformed.

The piece, originally recorded in 1988 with the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Louis Lane, is here reissued as part of the Santa Fe Music Group’s First Edition Music series. In collaboration with Meet The Composer, tracks are culled from the archive of the Louisville Orchestra’s landmark First Edition Records, remastered, and released on CD.

—MS