The life of My Sister's Tears after the world premiere is considered briefly in this section. It allows the reader to consider the outcomes of my having written the work from the viewpoint of publication, performance and recording. It also allows the reader to access, in context, materials such a scores, publication details and responses to the piece.
Martin Ellerby and I met in December of 2001, in the time leading up to the premiere of Bright Sunlit Morning, in St Paul. Matthew George was the intermediary who introduced us. Martin is the editor for Studio Music in London and they have chosen to publish Bright Sunlit Morning, and also My Sister's Tears. Ellerby has also gone on to produce a compact disc recording of both works played by the band of the Band of Her Majesty's Coldstream Guards, conducted Graham Jones. I am overwhelmed by what they have done. The recording has much in it that comes very close in realising my original ideas. The sensitivity in the playing, the wonderful blends of sounds, and the richness of the texture - all combine to make me very satisfied with the compact disc recording of the piece. I have become a listener again.
My Sister's Tears has established a place in the contemporary wind orchestra repertoire which is evidenced in the peer review of being chosen for publication by Studio Music in London, in 2006. Around the same time it was presented in a compact disc recording produced by Polyphonic, also in London reflected on above.
Though other performances of the work have taken place (e.g. Cleveland, Ohio and St Paul, Minnesota) there are no other recordings available for consideration here.
I have also found that hearing from those who listen to my work allows me a greater understanding of what I do and the impact it has. This paying attention to the voices of others provides me with a varied perspective which often presents new insight or awareness in respect of my work, the stories that underpin and emanate from them and the affect on listeners they often have. Listening to responses also tells me if we have spoken truthfully and fully and told the story honestly. In this specific instance, listening has helped me to grieve and heal.
All that has been written before gives voice to the responses of others at various times. The work lives only because people react to it and want to play or listen to it. The compilation of responses here includes a mix of age, gender, social background and nationality.
I have alluded previously in this dissertation to the responses from those who came to the world premiere and those who participated in my doctoral confirmation event. There are also responses that have come from around the globe and those reactions display the variety of attitudes to what the work is and how it might be valued.
A review of the work, from a review of the compact disc that was published is also available. It says the work "...is not mawkish or depressive in any way, but attempts to rise above the tragedy by finding comfort in the memory of the young woman..." and suggests the work could be classified as 'inspirational'.
The sketch of My Sister's Tears can be found here. This is a PDF copy of the pencil and paper sketch I produced, beginning on the 14th of February, 2004.
The hasty nature of the scribble can be seen as the ideas fly on to the page. The first page is an excellent example of that but it can be seen constantly throughout the sketch. Such haste sits alongside a more thoughtfully reflective editing that comes after the flurry of stream of notes appears. It can also be seen on page 1, and then across the work as a whole. Located beside and at times despite them, is the heavy handed response to what I did not find fulfilling or 'right' that can be seen at the bottom of page 4.
There are various analyses that may be undertaken on all my sketches but I will leave it to you to ruminate on what you see in them. It may be of interest to consider these sketches alongside the journals mentioned above: "Reflection and Description", "Process and Thinking" and "Process and Doing".
Two versions of the final score of My Sister's Tears are available here in PDF formats. The first is my manuscript, and the second is the one I engraved, using Finale software, produced for the premiere before it was published in London. Details of that publication are also included in the synopsis of the work.