Program Note

In the winter of 2014 I traveled to Cuba with a delegation from the American Composers Forum. While there we attended a rehearsal of Camerata Romeu and I got the idea to write a piece for string orchestra dedicated to them.

The title Posibilidad (Possibility) is linked in my mind to the mixed media work by Cuban artist Kadir López Nieves which I brought back with me from Havana. In shades of gray, it depicts four fisherman perched atop the concrete wall of the Malecon, the horizon beckoning from beyond. For this project I listened to a lot of Cuban music and practiced some of the clave rhythms from a workbook I found in order to introduce them more fully into my consciousness. I cannot pretend to understand the full meaning of these rhythms — so intriguing — but only to create something uplifting both for my own development as a composer and as a gift to my Cuban friends.

Other Versions/Arrangements

Arrangement for full orchestra