Atmospheric Tremors. 2013. 10′
For Chamber Orchestra
Commissioned by Sound Icon; Jeffrey Means, conductor

Instrumentation:

Flute/piccolo, oboe, clarinet/bass clarinet, alto baritone saxophone / baritone saxophone, bassoon/contra bassoon,  French horn, trumpet, trombone, tuba, harp, piano/celeste, cimbalom, 2 percussionists, strings.

SCORE

Program Note:

Note:

“…the air through which we look upon the stars, is in a perpetual tremor; as may be seen
by the tremulous motion of shadows cast from high towers, and by the twinkling of the
fixed stars. But these stars do not twinkle when viewed through telescopes which have large
apertures. For the rays of light which pass through diverse parts of the aperture, tremble
each of them apart, and by means of their various and sometimes contrary tremors, fall
at one and the same time upon different points in the bottom of the eye, and their
trembling motions are too quick and confused to be perceived severally. And all these
illuminated points constitute one broad lucid point, composed of those many trembling
points confusedly and insensibly mixed with one another by very short and swift tremors,
and thereby cause the star to appear broader than it is, and without any trembling of the
whole.”

–Issac Newton

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