I did a limited release of Crack: A Tone Poem on SoundCloud yesterday, which quickly had just under 50 plays. That by itself is not extraordinary, but I was surprised by the places where the plays came from: 6 from the the US; 3 each from the UK, Australia, Canada, and Germany; 2 each from Israel, Italy, and Pakistan; and then 1 each from the Czech Republic, France, Lithuania, Georgia, Brazil, Austria, Thailand, South Africa, Egypt, Russia, Kazakhstan, Spain, Saudi Arabia, The Netherlands, Morocco, Mauritius, India, Viet Nam, Ukraine, and Ireland.
I didn’t know what genre to call it so chose “World” and added “alternative long form” and “eclectic long form” because who knows. (I’d actually like to hear if anyone has a better name for it. A friend once suggested “orchestral eclectic” for some of the other things I had written, but that doesn’t seem to fit the third movement.)
I’ve also called it a tone poem. It has three “attacca” movements (meaning without breaks).
Movement one: “Mitakuye oyasin,” a Lakota phrase I borrow with respect. This is an invocation, a prayer, and, as with many prayers, a hope that we can indeed be “all relations.”
Movement two: “March to the Capitol,” a scene from recent US history, inspired by reflective pieces of Samuel Barber, Henryk Gorecki, and Sergei Rachmaninoff.
Movement three: “Broken Boy,” a different sort of reflection, with these lyrics: [Verse 1] Workin’ man, proud boy, American fake. / Tweetin’ man, butcher boy, whatcha gonna take? Whatcha gonna break? [chorus] Say, can you see? Can you listen? Can you breathe? Say, can you see? Can you listen? Can you breathe?” [Verse two] Runnin’ man, kingpin, American rake. / Spinnin’ man, broken boy, whatcha gonna take? Whatcha gonna break? [Chorus]
Towards the end of the third movement, “America the Beautiful” comes in over the top, clashing with the other themes that continue through the end. Lots of influences in this last bit of wildness, and words drawn from many sources.
The piece is scheduled to be released on all the major streaming platforms on August 24.
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Russell Scott Valentino 