Avatar, The

Dana Wilson

Subtitle: Concerto for Bassoon and Chamber Winds

General Info

Year: 2004
Duration: c. 16:00
Difficulty: (see Ratings for explanation)
Publisher: Dana Wilson
Cost: Score and Parts (print) - $140.00 | Score Only (print) - $30.00

Movements

1. Krishna – 6:10
2. Kalki – 4:30
3. Juggernaut – 3:45

Instrumentation

Full Score
Flute I-II
Oboe
Solo Bassoon
B-flat Soprano Clarinet
B-flat Bass Clarinet
B-flat Trumpet
Horn in F
Trombone
String Bass
Piano
Percussion, including:

Drum Set

Errata

None discovered thus far.

Program Notes

The bassoon is the most curious of instruments. Its mechanical evolution has made it a challenge to play, and its sound ranges from the most jocular to the most haunting. There have been many pieces that stress its ability to be humorous, so I wanted to focus in this piece on its incredible ability to plead, entice, command, and conjure. Hence its role as an avatar.

An avatar is the incarnation of an immortal being, or of the Ultimate Being. It derives from the Sanskrit word "Avatara" which means "descent" and usually implies a deliberate descent into mortal realms for special purposes. The term is used primarily in Hinduism, for incarnations of the god Vishnu the preserver, but is also used by extension by non-Hindus to refer to the incarnations of the gods in other religions and mythologies.

I. Krishna is one of the avatars of Vishnu. Krishna's body is the color of an enchantingly beautiful dark rain cloud, since Vishnu is epitomized by the principle of water, being himself the God of Preservation. Water is seen as the basic principle for life as we know it on earth, the nourisher of plants and animals alike, the very substance of existence.

II. Kalki is the name of the tenth and final avatar of Vishnu. The name Kalki is often a metaphor for "Eternity" or "Time".

III. Juggernaut is also the title of one of Vishnu’s avatars. The Sanskrit Jagannath, meaning "lord of the world," is used to describe any literal or metaphorical force regarded as unstoppable, one that will crush all in its path.

The Avatar was commissioned by Michigan State University and was premiered in April 2006, with Michael Kroth as soloist.

- Program Note by composer

Media

Audio: Reference recording. Ensemble and conductor unknown

State Ratings

None discovered thus far.

Performances

To submit a performance please join The Wind Repertory Project

University of Delaware (Newark) Wind Ensemble (Lauren Reynolds, conductor; Thomas Reynolds, bassoon) - 6 May 2022
Lynn University (Boca Raton, Fla.) Wind Ensemble (Kenneth Amis, conductor; John Isaac Rolles, bassoon) – 8 September 2018
Eastman Wind Ensemble (Rochester, N.Y.) (Mark Davis Scatterday, conductor; George Sakakeeny, bassoon) – 6 April 2018
Shenandoah Conservatory (Winchester, Va.) Wind Ensemble (Timothy Robblee, conductor; Ryan Romine, bassoon) - 4 November 2017
University of Illinois (Champaign) Wind Symphony (Stephen G. Peterson, conductor; Timothy McGovern, bassoon) – 31 March 2016
Musique 21 (Kevin Sedatole, conductor; Michael Kroth, bassoon) - 2013

Works for Winds by This Composer

A complete list of Dana Wilson's compositions may be found here:

Avatar, The (2005)
Awakening... (2011)
The Banquet (2017)
Black Nightshade (2004)
Calling, Ever Calling (1990)
Clarion Call (1988)
Colorado Peaks (2009)
Concerto for Double Bass and Wind Ensemble (2010)
Concerto for Drum Set and Wind Ensemble (2021)
Concerto for Horn and Wind Ensemble (1997)
Concerto for Jazz Piano and Wind Ensemble (2019)
Concerto for Trombone (2015)
Concerto for Tuba (Wilson) (2012)
Conjurer, The (2015)
Dance of the New World (1992)
Day Dreams (2006)
Evolution (1999)
Fanfare for a New Center (2011)
Fanfare for Karel (2017)
Footsteps (2010)
Front Burner (2020)
How Very Close (2012)
Io Rising
Kah! Out of Darkness (1999)
Last Ride to Solutré (1998)
Leader Lieder (1993)
Liquid Ebony (2006)
Liquid Gold (2005)
May the Road Rise Up to Meet You (2013/2019)
Odysseus and the Sirens (2008)
Of my dream before me... (2021)
Old Number One (2017)
On Fire! (2017)
The One-Lady Band from Owego (2021)
Piece of Mind (1987)
Primal Worlds (2000)
Quintessence (2019)
Sang! (1993)
Searching for Lost Dreams (2013)
Shakata: Singing the World into Existence (1989)
Shortcut Home (2003)
Speak to Me (2010)
...the harder they fall (2004)
the most sacred of times (2022)
Time Cries, Hoping Otherwise (1991)
To Set the Darkness Echoing (2005)
Uprising (1995)
Vortex (1999)
When I Am Gone Away (2006)
Winds on the Steppes (1994)

Resources

Dana Wilson website
Wilson, D. (2004). The Avatar: Concerto for Bassoon and Chamber Ensemble [score]. Dana Wilson: [Ithaca, N.Y.]