Danielle Schindler, Stratospheric (2001)

Danielle Schindler studied piano, theory and voice through the Eastman Preparatory Division and composition for six summers at The Walden School. She continued study in composition, traditional theory, and 20th century music while pursuing a degree in Environmental Science and Public Policy at Harvard University. Ms. Schindler has written works for a variety of traditional instruments as well as with electronic media, including Evasion, a saxophone quartet that has been played internationally by the Prism Quartet, and Once Over, for tape and string quartet, premiered at Harvard. Currently Ms. Schindler teaches composition and musicianship at The Walden School. In the fall of 2001, she will be a first-year in medical school.

Admittedly, few composers find their inspiration from the study of atmospheric chemistry, from which this piece finds its beginnings. More specifically, Stratospheric originates from an awe of the tremendous complexity of the world in its ability to be life-supporting. In particular, the piece is based on the idea of a transition state -- a world between worlds in which there is a meeting of seeming contradictions: strength and resilience with fragility, intense activity despite a context of sparseness. These dualities are woven into nearly every musical aspect of the piece -- for instance, encompassing the fullness of the marimba in its lower range and its strikingly contrasting lightness in the upper range -- and the overall structure is meant to be a constant flux between two extremes. This piece was written for and dedicated to the yesaroun' Duo in the spring of 2001.

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