Hinterludes-BSN/PN

1. Ballad- This was intended to display the gruff good nature that the bassoon portrays so well.
2. Menace- The anxious main part of this piece is offset by a more melodious middle section in which bassoon and piano seem to be reconciled, and "singing from the same song-sheet", if somewhat drunkenly. But the bassoon is determined to have the last work and the tension returns.
3. Cogito- The title is Latin and means "I think". Thinking in moderation is okay, but heavy thinking is more dangerous and to be deplored. The heavy thinker becomes pompous, boring, and argumentative, embarrassing in company. He or she may even become a know-it-all. In this piece, collegiate bonhomie is laced with some pseudo-intellectual parody.
4. Snooze- Siesta would have seemed too pretentious a title for this portrayal of an after-lunch nap in front of the television. Cogito threatens momentarily, but it is a false alarm!
5. Trog- Down in a deep, dark cave lived the Trog, short for Troglodyte. Were the Trogs in fact cheerful souls who help parties in their caves, with little danger of disturbing the neighbors? Not so. The sombre sounds in this piece reflect the spooky feelings modern persons may experience when entering a Trog's prehistoric dwelling.
6. Lord Nelson- These variations on a tune resembling a sailor's hornpipe developed a period flavor: In 1800, Horatio Nelson visited Eisenstadt, and perhaps met the composer Haydn. The music itself includes references to Lady Hamilton, splicing the mainbrace, death, and sadness. But no musical pun is intended at the end. Nelson was not buried at "C", but, deservedly, in St. Paul's Cathedral. 

Written in 2002 for Graham Salvage.