John Harbison

Composer John Harbison writes: “Rubies is a version of Thelonious Monk’s Ruby, My Dear, which he composed while still in his teens. When I was invited by the Seattle Symphony to make a short piece reflecting my first musical passions, my thoughts were of Bach and Monk. Since I had recently made some Bach-like chorale preludes, I chose to make a version of Monk’s tune, first in a chamber-musical, contrapuntal manner, then in the grand orchestral style I had always heard lurking there.” Dur: 5:30

(Recorded live by the Rutgers Symphony Band – Peter Stanley Martin, guest conductor)