SELECTED WORKS: with Type = 'Voices'
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Voices
In the Arms of Morpheus (1986)
A sparse texture, mostly piano and pianissimo dynamics, and textless soprano solos help create the ethereal imagery of In the Arms of Morpheus: that of succumbing to “weary eyes” and embracing the dream world created by Morpheus, the Greek god of dreams.
Voices
On Wings of Song (1986)
Weinzweig notes in the score: “When birds of a feather get together—bird talk, as overheard by the composer.” Weinzweig assigns various birdsong fragments to each section with one to four seconds of silence between each fragment. These songs are as varied as those found in nature, and are imbued with Weinzweig's humour, such as the birdsong "go away."
Voices
What's That? (1986)
The flurry of what Weinzweig calls “a teenage quibbling match in Steinese dialect” flies by in this fast and short piece for a capella mixed chorus.
While What’s That? opens in tutti homorhythm, much of the work alternates female and male voices. Each section sings in a limited melodic range, with more focus on text articulation and dynamics.
Voices
Prime Time (1991, revised in 1996)
Text fragments invoke the deluge of media as one clicks the television remote; the performers can replace certain names and references with more timely ones. The two voices and two instruments are used in various combinations, as duets, trios, and quartets. To expand the timbral variety of the four performers, the flutist doubles on piccolo and the bass clarinetist on B-flat clarinet; the flute and bass clarinet use extended technique, including multiphonics, singing while playing, and slap tongue.
Prime Time includes many characteristic traits of Weinzweig's output: brief “events” as opposed to large-scale movements; short ostinato figures; alternating major and minor thirds (evidence of the influence of blues); and dialogic textures.
Voices
Journey Out of Night: 14 Visions: a MonoDrama (1994)
Journey Out of Night (1994) approaches the text not as traditional poetry or with a concern for syntax but as word-play and satire, which rely on evocative meanings and the expressive qualities of the sounds. Though the work does not develop a plot or specific character, the vivid texts, specified placement of the singer, and lighting direction create theatricality.
Voices
Le Rendez-Vous (1995)
Le Rendez-Vous is a humoursly entertaining theatrical piece with no plot. The singers are instructed to dress in “tourist attire: light clothing, sun-glasses, sun hats.” The text indicates arrival at the two destinations by using Italian and Spanish words.
Voices
Parodies and Travesties: 8 Dialogues (1995)
A theatrical work in eight sections for soprano, mezzo, and piano, Parodies and Travesties explores the shifting meaning of words through wordplay, parody, sound-texts, all set as a musical banter.
Voices
Walking- Talking (1996)
In Walking-Talking, the four singers depict the conversations of those strolling down Toronto streets. One of Weinzeig’s many theatrical works, Walking-Talking uses the humour of language and the interaction of the four performers to create a witty, and at times silly, musical encounter.
Voices
Prologue to a Tango (2002)
The work is in two sections: 1. Prologue, 2. The Tango goes with fiddles and bows - (a) My sad night, (b) My Tango. The standing violinists dive right into the tango rhythm, but with dissonant chords, offering a glimpse into the character’s sad reflections of her tango with a señor in the second section.
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