Year of Composition

1991

Duration

16'30"

Instrumentation

Woodwind quintet

Categories

Chamber

Movements

I. Hot Air
II. Who is Gulliver?
III. In My Land
IV. Yahoos

Program Note

An exploration of musical material from Bond's first opera Travels, based on Jonathan Swift's Gulliver's Travels. Hot Air reflects Gulliver's restless energy, his constant hunger for adventure, his eagerness for the journey, impatient to begin; Who Is Gulliver? finds him at a turning point, where he has lost his direction and sense of identity; In My Land the Houyhnhnms, a society of horses, possess an intelligence far exceeding humans, the music reflecting their lofty spirit. Yahoos is an unflattering portrait of human beings as described by Swift. These primitive creatures are selfish and aggressive, and the piece revels in their nasty whoops and hollers.

— Victoria Bond

Audio/Video

Purchase Sheet Music

Score and Parts (Theodore Presser)

Commission & Premiere Info

Commissioned by The Renaissance City Winds
Premiered by The Renaissance City Winds in Pittsburgh, PA on March 6, 1992