If Falling is a Leaf (2020/2021)

for strings and harpsichord
Duration: 8 minutes

If Falling is a Leaf was written as a kind of 'autumn' movement, responding to Vivaldi's Four Seasons, with which it was paired on the premiere concert with the Allentown.  Like the Vivaldi, my piece is written in response to a poem, in this case by the poet, Melissa Studdard, called, If falling is a leaf urging the earth, which was written especially for the occasion.  Additionally, both her poem and my piece respond to a painting by David Hockney- Autumn Leaves- which is wonderfully vibrant in its colors, motion, and depth.  

If Falling is a Leaf was commissioned by the Allentown Symphony Orchestra, Diane Wittry, Music Director, and the Wildlands Conservancy, Chris Kocher, President, Ted Douglas, Chair, in memory of Gloria Peter Pool and Leonard Parker Pool in celebration of all the nature-made moments created at the Dorothy Rider Pool Wildlife Sanctuary.

—Christopher Theofanidis