“…effectively evokes the timeless lives of a people who inhabited this region for 15,000 years before the first European settlers crossed the Atlantic.”
Winter Moons
Ballet Score for Chamber Orchestra and Narrator - 40'
1(Pic.) 0 0 2 - 2 1 0 0; 1Perc. Pno. Stgs.
Commissioned by Dr. Patricia Tate/University of Wyoming.
Premiered February 18, 1992
Winter Moons is a ballet based upon American Indian legends from the Northern Plains and Rocky Mountains. It is in four movements and is performed with a live storyteller to guide the audience thought the different legends.
The title of the ballet is derived from the idea that American Indian stories are best told during the full moons of the wintertime. Winter Moons was commissioned by and is dedicated to my mother, Dr. Patricia Tate.
I. Opening, Winter Moon, Puberty Blessing Songs
II. The Indian Spirit at Mesa Falls
III. Chief Red Plume and His Quest, The Medicine Wheel, The Origin of Bitterroot
IV. She Runs with the Wind, Finale
