Palaver

Instrumentation: 2 euphoniums, 2 tubas

Duration: 7.5 minutes

Palaver was written in 2019 for tuba-euphonium quartet. At the time, I was deep into Stephen King’s magnum opus, the “Dark Tower” series. I was inspired by King’s portrayal of the group of adventurers in the books and the characters’ nightly camaraderie around the fire. Palaver reflects the unique feeling of sharing stories stories over a campfire and presents to the audience a fantasy of emotional tales — tales of heroism, love, triumph, and grief.

The piece was premiered at Baylor University in 2021.

Recorded by Preston Arnold, Hunter Bellows, Isaiah Buzdygon, and Tristan Murray