ANDREW STEFFEN
CONDUCTOR | COMPOSER
JW PEPPER'S MID-YEAR EDITOR'S CHOICE 2023
Similar to "Paradisum", I was drawn to write "Spark of Light" as a necessity of accessible music for all programs. Reflecting on the cosmos and origin of the heavens, Jónas Hallgrímsson's poetry illicits excitement and stirs spatial imagery - "...speeding spark of light", "...wings swifter than wind...", "...I watched the stars...rise from the still stream of heaven...". The pure and almost child-like fascination with the universe and its expansion and progression fuels the perpetual rhythm of the work as it continually pushes forward.
Consideration to range, tessitura, and content was all considered as part of this process in creating music that is accessible to all programs and ensembles.
Voicing: SAB and Piano
Status: Published, Carl Fischer