Track List
- Missing Words I: I. Eisenbahnscheinbewegung (Railway-Illusion-Motion)
- Missing Words I: II. Herbstlaubtrittvergnügen (Autumn-Foliage-Strike-Fun)
- Missing Words I: III. Fingerspitzentanz (Fingertips-Dance)
- Missing Words II: I. Leertretung (Void-Stepping)
- Missing Words II: II. Kraftfahrzeugsinnenausstattungsneugeruchsgenuss (Automobile-Interior-Furnishing-Aroma-Pleasure)
- Missing Words II: III. Brillenbrillanz (Spectacles-Luminosity)
- Missing Words III: I. Rollschleppe (Escalator-Schlep)
- Missing Words III: II. Mundphantom (Mouth-Phantom)
- Missing Words III: III. Straußmanöver (Ostrich-Maneuver)
- Missing Words III: IV. Schubladenbrief ((Desk-)Drawer-Letter)
- Missing Words IV: I. Erkenntnisspaziergang (Cognition-Stroll)
- Missing Words IV: II. Dreiecksumgleichung (Triangle-Reorganization)
- Missing Words IV: III. Tageslichtspielschock (Daylight-Show-Shock)
- Missing Words V: I. Ludwigssyndrom (Ludwig’s-Syndrome)
- Missing Words V: II. Kissenkühlelabsal (Pillow-Chill-Refreshment)
- Missing Words V: III. Watzmannwahn (Watzmann-Delusion)
- Missing Words VI: I. Witzbeharrsamkeit (Joke-Insistence) I
- Missing Words VI: II. Betttrug (Bed-Deception)
- Missing Words VI: III. Witzbeharrsamkeit (Joke-Insistence) II
- Missing Words VI: IV. Dielennystagmus (Hallway-Nystagmus)
- Missing Words VI: V. Witzbeharrsamkeit (Joke-Insistence) III
- Missing Words VI: VI. Erebusterror (Erebus-Terror)
- Missing Words VI: VII. Rolleirückblende (Rollei-Flashback)
Recording Members
Trumpets: Kevin Cobb & Louis Hanzlik
Horn: Eric Reed
Trombone: Michael Powell
Bass Trombone: John Rojak
Composer's Notes
Missing Words (2014-2021) is inspired by German words invented by writer Ben Schott in his book Schottenfreude: German Words for the Human Condition (Blue Rider Press/Penguin Group). These words illuminate experiences of everyday contemporary life for which English has no synonyms. The words are therefore “missing” from English, and Schott has proposed new German words that English speakers can adopt, in the vein of Doppelgänger, Schadenfreude and Wanderlust. I love the wit, humor, pathos and intimacy of Schott’s words, and use the concepts they evoke as points of departure for the music.
The series as a whole speaks to the complexity of life and human experience, and how all the little bits of the everyday present can help us find deeper meaning in our own. The music speaks to intimate yet shared experiences that range from the tragic and beautiful to the comic and commonplace. Missing Words is comprised of six sections that are each scored for different ensemble types, and are comprised of shorter movements that each reflect on a different German word and their conceptual associations.
