8 Mineral Miniatures

8 Mineral Miniatures is a commission for hornist and geologist Lauren Coon. This composition for solo F horn and aleatoric piano accompaniment has eight movements; each meant to express the visual appearance, cultural symbolism, or geological formation of a mineral or rock.

Program Notes

  • Granite, known for its strength and durability, is often used as a durable construction material. This rock comprises the vast majority of the continental crust and is unique to Earth. The piano’s erratic ostinato builds upon the foundation of the horn’s powerful tone to evoke the speckled texture and sturdiness of granite.

  • Garnet forms under high heat and pressure in metamorphic rocks, yet it  symbolizes love and warmth. The piano's fiery accompaniment and the horn’s wide dynamic range reflect both pressure and passion, capturing both facets of this gem’s composition.

  • Dolomite frequently forms in warm, shallow, tropical seas. While it is typically used as construction blocks, this movement depicts its submarine location. The piano trills mimic warm ocean water, while the horn plays beneath to represent the rock hidden below.

  • Bismuth crystals are known for their iridescent hues and spiraling patterns. The crystals’ unfolding, geometric structure inspires the horn’s repeated four-note pattern, while the piano outlines a whole tone scale to convey the mystical, shimmering quality of a bismuth crystal.

  • Quartz is a mineral composed of oxygen and silicon that makes up the majority of granite and accounts for its erosive resistance. Quartz that contains trace amounts of iron is known as Amethyst. To reflect both the icy clarity of quartz and the mystical glimmer of amethyst, the sparse melody of quartz is transposed down an octave to produce the sparkling texture of amethyst.

  • Slate is a dark metamorphic rock that forms in thinly laminated slabs. This movement captures the rock’s dark color and muddy origins using the horn’s low register and the piano’s bold pedal tones.

  • Olivine is forged under intense heat and pressure in the Earth’s mantle, yet displays an elegant green hue. Olivine illustrates this contradiction by alternating the piano’s thunderous rumble with the horn’s relaxed melody.

  • Basalt comprises more than 90% of Earth’s volcanic rock, forming from the rapid cooling of low-viscosity lava. This movement aims to capture both the dangerous temperature and raging speed of basaltic lava. The piano’s menacing texture flickers underneath the horn’s agitated trills to evoke heat and hazard alike.