Suite from Pearl, the Opera
Duration: ~ 10 minutes
Commissioned by the Durham Symphony Orchestra, Conductor William Henry Curry
Premiered by the Durham Symphony Orchestra, Maestro William Henry Curry
Available from Adamo Press
2 flutes, 2 oboes, 2 clarinets in Bb, 2 bassoons; 2 horns in F, 2 trumpets; timpani; percussion; strings
Scenes from Pearl the Opera was commissioned by the Durham Symphony Orchestra and premiered in December 2022 at the Hayti Heritage Center under the baton of Maestro William Henry Curry. The work draws on music from Pearl, a full-length opera retelling Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter from the perspective of Hester Prynne and Arthur Dimmesdale's daughter. The suite moves between worlds - tender, searching lyricism and fierce, turbulent outbursts - tracing Pearl's inner life as a child caught between love, shame, and an untameable spirit.