Composers > Rebecca Oswald
Rebecca Oswald
Rebecca Oswald composes music for orchestra, chamber ensembles, choruses, solo piano, and solo voices. In 2016 her first opera premiered in Bend, Oregon. In 2015 she received an Honorable Mention for “Theseus and the Minotaur” from The American Prize in Composition (chamber music, professional division); several of her other chamber and choral works also achieved semifinalist and finalist status for The American Prize in 2014 and 2015.
Oswald has released two CDs of original piano music, “Whereas” (2011) and “October Wind” (2005). Several of her chamber and orchestral works have been recorded by other artists as well. Enjoying great variety in her work, Oswald has also scored music for CD-ROM games, documentaries, and film.
Oswald received a bachelor of music degree summa cum laude in music theory and composition from Westminster Choir College of Rider University (1998), and a master of music degree in music composition from the University of Oregon School of Music (2001) where she was on the faculty from 2002-2004. Today she lives in Oregon and is a full-time composer and pianist.
Choral Music by Rebecca Oswald
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2'55" | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Carol of the Seekers is a short, sweet, simple Christmas carol for treble voices, either a cappella or with handbells. The refrain’s joyous, cascading “Noël” suggests tintinnabulation, while the five verses offer a metaphysical interpretation of the Christmas story: like the shepherds and the wise men, all who seek the infant Jesus will find him […] More info & view score » | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
4' 45" | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Oden und Lieder in fünf Bûchern, a collection of poems by prolific German poet Friedrich von Hagedorn (1708-1754), was published in Hamburg, Germany in 1747. The fifth volume contains the six verse poem Die Alster, the text of this choral work. The German language written and spoken in Hagedorn’s lifetime preceded today’s codified, standardized German, […] More info & view score » | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
3'30" | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
A popular song in Victorian times, In the Gloaming was written by English composer Annie Fortescue Harrison (1851-1944), with words by Scottish poet and author Meta Orred (1844-1925) which were first published in her 1877 book entitled Poems. With layered dynamics, a rich, chr
omatic palette, and a poignant, expressive tempo, this a cappella choral setting […] More info & view score » | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
6'30" | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Let Him Return acknowledges the fear, anger, sadness, and raw courage of the women throughout history who have prayed the universal prayer that their men return safely home from war. Primarily triadic, there are numerous modulations throughout this work, effectively preventing harmonic predictability. The vocals begin with the altos in unison, then sopranos divisi, and […] More info & view score » | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
2' | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Hailing from Dijon, France, poet and composer Bernard de La Monnoye (1641-1728) wrote a set of Christmas carols in his local Burgundian dialect. Noei Borguignon de Gui Barôzai (Gui Barôzai being de La Monnoye’s pseudonym) includes the familiar Christmas carol now known as Pat-a-pan. Originally titled “Guillô, Pran Ton Tamborin”, today this carol is the […] More info & view score » | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Pied Beauty is a short, reverent poem by English poet Gerard Manley Hopkins (1844-1898). Throughout the first half of this choral setting, the music combines a marcato, dappled polyphony with mixolydian/triadic harmony (a nod to the poet’s era and homeland); then, in the second half, the music’s texture mellows into a smooth homophony with extended […] More info & view score » | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
4' 10" | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Soul Considers Its Nearness to God is the second in a choral set entitled Three Songs of the Soul. Jan Luyken (1649-1712), a native of Amsterdam, lived a secluded life as a poet, artist, and engraver. In this choral setting, the melodies and harmonies aspire to express the meaning and beauty of the poet’s […] More info & view score » | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
for SATB a cappella with divisi and boy soprano obligato ROM-9601 | 4' 45" | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
From an Oregon Bach Festival concert review by Tom Manoff, in the (Eugene, Oregon) Register-Guard , July 11, 2002: “Rebecca Oswald is not a showy composer, but she’s an honorable one. ‘The Soul Contemplates the Creator In the Creation’ is splendid choral writing. This unpretentious style isn’t calculated to impress the trendy set, but in […] More info & view score » | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
3' 40" | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Soul’s Devotion at the Rebirth of Life is the first in a choral set entitled Three Songs of the Soul. Jan Luyken (1649-1712), a native of Amsterdam, lived a secluded life as a poet, artist, and engraver. In this choral setting, the melodies and harmonies aspire to express the meaning and beauty of the […] More info & view score » | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
3' 15" | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Walk With Me is a charming, romantic invitation to share the simple activities of life with one’s companion of the heart. The text reflects the passage of time — spending a day, or metaphorically, a lifetime, alongside the beloved. While this piece is basically tonal, a few surprising and challenging modulations maintain a certain freshness […] More info & view score » | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
13'10" | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Wise Words of Love wends its way through a colorful landscape of various aspects of love in nine short movements. A unique collection of lines spoken by women characters in various plays by William Shakespeare (1564-1616) serves as the text. Drawing from Shakespeare’s comedies and tragedies alike, the viewpoint starts out firmly tongue-in-cheek, then swings, […] More info & view score » | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Music for Solo Piano by Rebecca Oswald
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thirteen songs for solo piano | 53' 30" | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Whereas songbook is a concept album of thirteen neoclassical pieces for solo piano written in 2011. The songs’ emotive content ranges from nuanced to dramatic, romantic to tragic, introspective to celebratory. All of the songs have clear form and structure; several use compound or unusual meters, and one has a strict left hand ostinato […] More info & view score » | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
for piano | 9'00" | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Sonata no. 1 is rather like a dramatic tone poem suggesting a hero’s journey (challenges, striving, uncertainty, searching, inner and outer struggles) — one which ends darkly, but with a glimmer of hope. The structure of this single movement work recalls classical sonata allegro form. Inspired by late 19th and early 20th century tonality, the […] More info & view score » | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
13 songs for solo piano | 49' 25" | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The October Wind songbook is a retrospective collection of thirteen pieces for solo piano written between 1981 and 2005. With strong, flowing melodies, tonal/triadic harmonies, and clear form, each song offers a unique journey to a gorgeous landscape of color and emotion. One of the pieces is for right hand alone. The book includes several […] More info & view score » | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
4'00" | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Claro de Luna is an Argentine tango-style adaptation of the well-known first movement of Ludwig van Beethoven’s piano sonata no. 14 in C# minor, “Quasi una fantasia”, Op. 27, no. 2, popularly known as the Moonlight Sonata. Dark, bold, and passionate, this adaptation remains true to the original’s harmony, melody, and form. Its edge and […] More info & view score » | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Music for other instruments by Rebecca Oswald
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for B♭ Clarinet and Piano | – | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Field Report: News from Rural Oregon is a four movement atonal concert work for clarinet and piano. Techniques in the clarinet part include fluttertongue, resonant trills (alternating two fingerings of the same pitch), portamento slides, and blowing air through the pipe. I. Goat Dance: mischievous, rather humorous. II. 186 Days of Rain: unrelenting, with a […] More info & view score » | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
two violins, cello, piano | 4'40" | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Dos Cabeceos explores the dynamic atmosphere of Argentine tango milongas, including the cortinas — brief periods between the three-song sets when available partners might invite and accept dance invitations by exchanging small, potent nods (cabeceos) of the head. Three slow, expressive passages of complex harmonic colors alternate with two active, intense musical episodes evocative of […] More info & view score » | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
for flute quartet (2 C flutes, alto, bass) | 4'10" | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Barbara was written in honor of Barbara Bowerman (1914-2010). Her husband, Bill Bowerman (1911-1999), was a famed track and field coach and cofounder of NIKE. In my 2007 commissioned symphonic biography of Bill’s life, the essential, recurring “Barbara” theme is always played by the flute. This chamber work for flute quartet takes that “Barbara” theme […] More info & view score » | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
for woodwind quintet and narrator | 12' | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Everyone remembers Aesop’s meaningful stories from childhood! This spirited suite for woodwind quintet with narrator recounts five of Aesop’s well-loved tales. The fables come to life through vivid music and clever narration; and of course, each fable concludes with its timeless and well-known lesson. The two main characters in each story are musically represented by […] More info & view score » | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||