Silken Rags: music for violin and piano
The Silken Rags series is the outcome of years of collaboration with my wife, the violinist Dorothea Cook. From the first moment Deede and I played together in 1987, we knew there was a special musical chemistry between us. We fell in love overnight and began a musical collaboration that has lasted ever since.
"Silken Rags," the name of our duo, suggests the combination of earthiness and elegance we aim for when we make music together. This collection reflects our love of popular music of many kinds – gospel music, tango, American popular song, ragtime, etc. – and our attempt to capture some of the spirit and feeling of these styles within the medium of concert music for violin and piano.
Silken Rags Collection:
CD Available from CDBaby and other outlets.
The CD also includes "Yaa Amponsah" and "Waterborne"
Available separately (click on links for details):
Saboreando el Gusto Cubano (1994) (5:20 min.)
Blue Ridge Samba (3 min.) (2001)
OTHER SILKEN RAGS WORKS:
June Waltz (2016) (5:30 min.)
"How Can I Keep from Singing?" Variations for Violin and Piano (2012)
Introduction and Slow Drag (2010)
Cabo Maio (2006) (8 min.)
Saying Goodbye (2005) (3:21)
Walnut Hill (2005) (11 min.)
For the Beauty of the Earth (Chorale Prelude) (2000-2015) (3:40 min)
Yaa Amponsah - Fantasy on a Ghanaian Popular Song (1988) (10 min.)