Temkin-Expansive Horizons-M

Expansive Horizons is a virtuosic and musically challenging work for solo marimba by Daniel Temkin. It was conceived in stages over many years, and was finally revised and completed in its present form in 2007. It is dedicated to Christopher Norton.

This work is a fantasy piece in which an antecedent/consequence motive established at the outset undergoes constant transformation amidst many shifting textures and harmonic regions. The piece's many sections portray various images of nature ranging from brazen, jagged, cliffs, to smooth, flowing, rivers. It is from these images that the piece gets its title.

The first movement "Cascading gently" is divided into three main sections: an introduction, a large, flowing, chordal section, and a final lyrical section which is played very freely. The second movement "Soaring" is a perpetually moving expansion of the opening music. In this movement there are four very large sections: "Allegro passionato" characterized by tense syncopations; "Andante maestoso" a softer, fluid, section; "Moderato tranquilio" a gentle section of chordal arpeggios; and, after a brief recapitulation of the movement's opening, a flourishing coda appropriately marked "Allegro meteorico."

Difficulty - Grade 5 (medium-advanced)