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Gene Young

35 Mescals in Cuautla

for soprano voice, trumpet and percussion

advanced Duration: 20'

Printed version

MCX90 Score and parts

CHF 29.00

In stock

Gene Young (*1938)

Gene Young, born 1938, composed several works including a song cycle, "Herb Songs", and two commissioned theater pieces, "Banish Evil From This Place" and "Englespiel". His "Three Loving Portraits, Harry (Partch), Chet (Baker), Malc (Lowry)" and "Post Mahleria" were premiered by the Peabody Camerata, which Gene Young founded in 1987 and continues to direct today. His most recent composition,...
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About 35 Mescals in Cuautla

Gene Young's "Thirty-Five Mescals In Cuautla" is a setting of Malcolm Lowry's (1909-1957) autobiographical verse that is derived from his towering novel, "Under The Volcano" (1947). All the performers are severely challenged technically and pushed to emotional extremes in this often violent, often desolate musical landscape.

The text is delivered by a female voice, at once declamatory and revealing. Trills, glissandi, extended range, and extreme dynamics elicit a nightmarish depiction of a tormented, alcoholic mind. The virtuosic trumpet part serves as counterpoint to Lowry's horrific vision. Metallic percussion underline the harsh, hallucinatory images found in the drink-infused perception of an addict.

As Death descends upon the poet, an ancient Aztec legend is relayed as the trumpet renders a mournful Mexican folk song off stage. The song tells of a vision referred to as "The Weeping Woman", seen at day break and purportedly warning of impending tragedy.