i. quockerwodger logic - score preview
ii. wistful at snowbrowth - score preview
iii. twattling & tattling - score preview
iv. gorgonized by your eyes - score preview
v. a grande houppelande - score preview
Dedicated to Nan Kemberling, Amy O'Dell, and Paul Stevens
Duration: 14 min.
This composition is based on antiquated words from the English language generally no longer in use. (Source: https://expresswriters.com/amazing-obsolete-words-in-the-english-dictionary/). The title of the piece is derived from two such words: monsterful(dating from the 1810s and referring to something rather extraordinary and wonderful) and excogigate (meaning to plot, plan, devise, with Latin roots meaning to bring out by thinking). The work is cast into five short movements each based loosely around the meaning of a word lost to antiquity.
The first movement takes its name from the word quockerwodger (dating from the 1850s) and refers to a wooden puppet that was controlled by strings. I couldn’t help but think about what currently passes for discourse in society when thinking about this word. Arguments, whether in person or online, seem to proceed from the idea that someone who disagrees with one’s point of view cannot possibly think for themselves and is controlled like a puppet on a string. The music is obstinate with each performer insisting that only they are correct.
The second movement is a meditation on the word snowbrowth (dating from the 1590s). The word describes freshly melted snow with only patches still visible on the ground. There is a certain sadness to this scene, as if something beautiful has vanished from the world with only small remnants of its former glory remaining. The music seeks to be evocative of winter and is quiet, reflective, and bittersweet throughout.
The energetic third movement takes its title from the word twattle which is another term for gossiping. The music is set as scherzo and features each player trying to get a word in edgewise as they each try to scoop the other with information that is really no one’s business! The movement also features moments of unexpected silence as if the talking suddenly is halted as the subject of the gossip passes nearby.
The fourth movement is inspired by the word gorgonize (dating from the early 17th century). It means to have a mesmerizing effect on someone. The music moves very slowly with the piano providing a steady and hypnotic pulse throughout. There is a slow, languid melody that begins on the lowest open string of the cello and proceeds up the range of the instrument until finally coming to rest on the same note four octaves higher.
The final movement takes its name from the word houppelande. This word was used in the medieval period to describe a cloak. In thinking about the word, I imagined a person grandly swinging their houppelande about themselves as they dramatically exit a gathering. This movement features the fastest and most energetic music in the piece. It’s intentionally flamboyant and overly dramatic and seems like a fine way to end a whimsical composition!