Duration: c. 5½'
DETAILS
COMMISSIONED by Ray-Michael Kauffman, in loving memory of his mother.
PREMIERED by Ray-Michael Kauffman flute, Betsy Buzzelli-Clarke, Pocono Flute Camp, East Stroudsburg PA, July 2018.
AVAILABLE from your favorite sheet music dealer or direct from Presser.
Recorded (on private label) by Patricia Surman flute and Jooeun Pak piano.
Recorded (on private label) by Sharon Sparrow, flute and piano.
YOUTUBE of live performance (with video collage) by Lisa Hedley and John Sparkman.
YOUTUBE of Sharon Sparrow's recording.
PROGRAM NOTES
One morning in 2017, Ray-Michael Kauffman wrote to me upon awakening from a dream that solved a meaningful question he'd been facing for many years. Ray-Michael grew up as a flutist and music lover, very inspired by his mother's musical nurturing. She passed way too young, when Ray was still in college. He wrote to me explaining that ever since this loss, he longed to reach out to her to be reunited through music, but there was no way to do so. Ray had just awoken from a dream where he played flute for her - the music had been composed especially for their spiritual bond, and in the dream I had written that music. Ray awoke with a clear vision of bringing this to reality, and I was deeply moved to be their medium.
I soon learned that Kim Michelle Beaston Kauffman had loved the snow (as I do), and that she was particularly fond of snow angels - sculptures, candles, and playing with her children in the outdoor snow. This sweet image, along with Ray telling me more about his mom, inspired the mood and pacing of what I would write. SNOW ANGEL begins and ends with three gentle bells; the actual music alternates between two gentle melodic scenes, leading to a kind of magic minute toward the end. Ray-Michael Kauffman premiered SNOW ANGEL, with pianist Betsy Buzzelli-Clarke, in July 2018 at the Pocono Flute Society's summer flute camp in East Stroudsburg, PA.
REVIEWS
"The simplicity in the writing makes Snow Angel an ideal piece for the intermediate student to work on tone colours and flexibility whilst allowing for expressive playing and providing a slight challenge."
– Pan Magazine (Gavin Stewart), November 2019
"This is a pleasant and lilting song that allows the flute to sing in the lower and middle registers. With its optimistic rising motives, the overall quality is gentle and hopeful."
– Flute Talk (Diane Boyd Schultz), November 2019
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