Colorsfor oboe, clarinet and string quartetby James Stephenson - American composer, and trumpeter Colors, written in 1997, represents my impressions of four colors that most inspired me musically at the time. Red is an angry color, pitting three members of the ensemble against the other three in a musical argument. They briefly 'get along' while pausing to notice the red hues of the sunset, but quickly begin to fight again. Hints of composers who lived in the old Red regime of Russia are undeniable as well. Blue is, of course, bluesy, but also depicts lazy summer afternoon on the front porch, with a glass of cold lemonade, watching the clouds slowly drift across the vivid blue elements of an Irish sky. Green, incorporating faint jig, is either a dark, forest green, or a summer meadow green. will let the listener decide. White, written in C Major (representing all of the white keys of the piano), is a flurry of notes evoking the blinding image of throwing open the curtains on a bright, sunny morning.
