Robert Martin

Four New York Pieces

for Two Trumpets

Four New York Pieces is a duo for two trumpets. Each of the four pieces represents a special location in New York. The pieces were composed in January, 2002 in Manhattan.

Sometime after the September 11 attacks, I received a call from Christopher O¹Hara, a trumpet player in Boston, who praised my solo trumpet piece Antares, (recorded by Raymond Mase on Furious Artisans), and asked that I write for two trumpets. I was both delighted and inspired at the suggestion, and set out to write these Four New York Pieces. I tried to capture in music the essence of four locations:

the ominous IRT Powerhouse in Manhattan, from Eleventh to Twelfth Avenues and from 58th to 59th Streets;

the splendid Grand Concourse in the Bronx, with its streamlined Art Moderne architecture;

the beautiful romanesque revival Brooklyn Fire Headquarters, on Jay Street between Myrtle Avenue and Willoughby Street;

and Staten Island¹s uplifting Richmond Terrace, which looks out across the water to lower Manhattan's financial district; along this peaceful terrace, I have sometimes lingered to reflect on this great city.

The trumpets are in C, using harmon, cup and straight mutes.

(from the composer's performance notes)