Natalie Draper
Praised for her "individual and strong voice" (Colin Clarke, Fanfare Magazine), composer Natalie Draper explores character and evocative sound-worlds in her music. She has written works for a variety of ensembles and performers, including The Master Chorale of Tampa Bay, organist Anne Laver, Albany Symphony's Dogs of Desire, Beth Willer and Peabody Institute's NEXT Ensemble, and Akropolis Reed Quintet. Draper is currently working on an album of new music for organ, which will be released via Acis Productions in the coming year. Her music has been included on recordings by pianist Mirna Lekić, Akropolis Reed Quintet, soprano Danielle Buonaiuto, and Symphony Number One. She has been featured in articles in Vox Humana, I Care If You Listen, and Van Magazine. Draper has held residencies and fellowships at the Ucross Foundation, the Tanglewood Music Center, the I-Park Foundation, Yaddo, and St. David's Episcopal Church in Baltimore, MD. She is an assistant professor in the music theory and composition department at the Setnor School of Music at Syracuse University in Syracuse, New York.
About The Piece
“Spiraling, Falling Objects” was commissioned by pianist Mark Stevens (thank you!) and was written in the winter of 2023. In many ways this is an abstract work - I had the idea that I wanted to create something crystalline and fragile that would sound like it was forever falling. However, this piece was written only a few months after I lost my first pregnancy at 17 weeks, which completely devastated me. And so, this piece also became a reflection of the grief process. You will hear a variety of “falling” gestures, from the descending twelve-tone cascades to the grace-note fifth sparkles to a spiraling bass line. As the cascading descents continue, the bass line slowly morphs into incessant repeated notes, giving way to bursts of anger at the ends of the “A” sections of the piece. In the middle “B” section, you will hear a break from the anger: a time to gently consider all that was lost.