Notes and Editorial Reviews
Among composers of so-called serious music over the last 50 years, few have realized the term "serious" as uniquely and powerfully as has Alvin Singleton. With many contemporary composers the seriousness of their work has been concerned with musical structure; Singleton throughout his career has answered the call of allowing his music to address crucial matters of his time. But this has always been accomplished through eloquent crafting of his musical materials. Singleton was born in Brooklyn, New York in 1940, the son of warm, witty, devoutly Christian parents. Abandoning a career as a CPA after falling in love with a Mahler symphony, Singleton studied composition at both New York University and Yale before working with Goffredo Petrassi
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as a Fulbright Scholar in Rome. He remained in Europe for nearly a decade and a half before returning to the U.S. to serve as composer-in-residence with the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra. Extension of a Dream, written in 1977 and revised in 1987, memorializes the brutal beating death of South African freedom fighter Steve Biko by South African police. Argoru is a word from the Ghanaian Twi language meaning "to play" and both works heard on this disc, Argoru VII and Argoru VI are scored for solo instruments (vibraphone and marimba). Between Sisters (1990) is a musical setting of "The House Slave," a poem by former U.S. Poet Laureate and Pulitzer Prize winner Rita Dove. Read less
Works on This Recording
1.
Extension of a Dream by Alvin Singleton
Performer:
Peggy Benkeser (Percussion),
Michael Cebulski (Percussion)
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1977/1987; USA
Venue: Roswell United Methodist Church, GA
Length: 20 Minutes 37 Secs.
2.
Argoru VII by Alvin Singleton
Performer:
Peggy Benkeser (Vibraphone)
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1970; USA
Venue: ACA Digital Recording Studio, Atlanta
Length: 5 Minutes 25 Secs.
3.
Between Sisters by Alvin Singleton
Performer:
Cheryl Boyd-Waddell (Soprano),
Laura Gordy (Piano),
Paul Brittan (Alto Flute),
Peggy Benkeser (Vibraphone)
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1990; USA
Venue: Spivey Hall, Morrow, Georgia
Length: 8 Minutes 37 Secs.
Language: English
4.
Argoru VI by Alvin Singleton
Performer:
Michael Cebulski (Marimba)
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1970; USA
Venue: ACA Digital Recording Studio, Atlanta
Length: 5 Minutes 49 Secs.
5.
Inside-Out by Alvin Singleton
Performer:
Brent Runnels (Piano),
Laura Gordy (Piano)
Period: 20th Century
Written: 1983-1984; USA
Venue: ACA Digital Recording Studio, Atlanta
Length: 18 Minutes 4 Secs.
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