“…and felt that my heart could burst” for solo vibraphone

I was struck by the language James Baldwin used to describe emotional weight with physical sensations. Particularly, in this passage, he describes the emotional pull between David and Giovanni (our two main characters) through water and acid. He is describing the corrosion and erosion of David's barriers until Giovanni reaches to his core: the heart. The motive that runs through the entirety of this work is shrouded in musical material that does the same.

About the Composer

Ethan Pinckert:

Ethan Pinckert’s artistic process is celebratory, holistic, and collaborative. He seeks to view the past from a new angle in close collaboration with the voices of the present and future. Ethan is an avid participant in new music. He’s appeared in performance with the Stony Brook Contemporary Chamber Players, the Ithaca College Contemporary Ensemble, and at the Akropolis Chamber Music Institute. He is also the Director of Programming for the Massachusetts Modern Music Retreat. As a composer, Ethan confronts the evolution of narrative and memory across different settings, often interacting with theater, visual art, and improvisation. He has recently written for clarinetists Timothy Coffey and Noemi Bender, percussionist Michael Dolese, and the Ithaca College Percussion Ensemble. Ethan Pinckert is pursuing a D.M.A. from Stony Brook University, where he recently earned an M.M. He holds a B.M. from Ithaca College, and has studied with Eduardo Leandro, Mike Truesdell, Conrad Alexander, and Sally Lamb McCune.