Owls, Eagles, Caterpillars and Swallows

Lance Eccles
Owls, Eagles, Caterpillars and
Swallows AA
Orpheus Music OMP 275
These are sweet and tuneful with Owls in the Night Forest my favourite. Caterpillars on a Branch has a lot of syncopation for alto 1 with top Es and Fs whilst Alto 2 is lower and easier rhythmically The Eagle Soars has a beautifully soaring top part with a gentle breeze for alto 2 underneath and Nesting Swallows is just charming. For players of good moderate ability.
MU

Moira Usher, The Recorder Mail, Spring 2018 p.  34.

OWLS, EAGLES, CATERPILLARS AND SWALLOWS
OMP275,2017. AA. 2 scs 5 pp ea.

This programmatic set of four duets for alto recorders, which musically portrays birds and insects, is vastly different from Eccles's L'Afrique. The pieces are contemporary in character, with modern harmonies and modest dissonances. The upper voice ventures more frequently into the highest range, but the passages are quite accessible. The edition is well suited to intermediate level players.
Of the four songs, we really liked the first and the last, "Owls in the Night Forest"and "Nesting Swallows." It was more of a challenge to engage with "Caterpillars on the Branch" and "The Eagle Soars."
In the pieces representing the owl and swallow, the voices interact in a variety of ways to produce a lively duet. The melodies are charming, and the motives repeat. The rhythms and the dissonances are carefully constructed, so that the lines play off each other. Both parts are active and equally interesting. Though these pieces are not difficult, they are pleasing and fun to play.

Here, the music does in fact suggest certain characteristics of the subjects. The step-wise and chromatic
motion in "Caterpillars on the Branch," accompanied by arpeggio-type figures in the lower voice, does call to mind caterpillar motion. The soaring eagle is implied in the upward and downward motion of the lines. We were fooled at first by the "Nesting Swallows," which we imagined would convey calmness. Instead, he depicts the birds flitting in fast-paced melodies that rise and fall and skip.
The edition is nicely laid-out, clear and easy to read, with no page turns. A second copy is included. Metronome speeds are given, but no other programmatic indicators.
This collection can be recommended to intermediate players who like contemporary music. Because the selections are not difficult, it offers an experience with modern conventions that are relatively easy to master.

Beverly R. Lomer, Ph.D, is an independent scholar and recorder player whose interests include performance from original notations and early women's music. She is the president of the
Palm Beach (FL) Recorder and Early Music Society.

American Recorder Summer 2018