Burning Bush Variations - piano score

PDF score for piano

Burning Bush Variations is a set of variations on the spiritual “Go Down, Moses." Spirituals were made known throughout the United States at the beginning of the 20th century through performances, recordings, and published songbooks. To this composer, however, the song came through oral tradition as did her first hearing of the story of the man listening to God speak through a bush aflame but not consumed. The piece consists of the seven variations, which may be performed in any order:

Candor, a canonic refrain with a chordal verse
Plashes, brightly lilting in 5/4 meter
Justice Seekers, solemn fragmentation with echoes of a protest song
Tango, the habanera rhythmic pattern as learned from an Argentine dance
Siciliano, a rhythmic pattern from Sicily as learned from J. S. Bach's suites
Self-Portrait, free improvisation
Ether, the refrain abstracted and glistening; the verse fragmented and whispering

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