Historically Haunted (PDF)

Historically Haunted (2024) was commissioned by Metropolitan Youth Symphony Orchestra of Atlanta to be premiered on October 27, 2024.

Savannah, Georgia is notorious for being the most haunted city in the United States. We are transported from each scene in the piece by a horse drawn carriage much like many tourists. But there are also stories of people being transported by a haunted horse and carriage that typically ends in a cemetery. Some of the ghosts believed to haunt Savannah are sailors and pirates, including the infamous Blackbeard. The opening of Historically Haunted begins with a type of sea shanty. A common complaint in some of the places pirates are believed to haunt, is the eery singing of sea shanties. However, most ghost stories in Savannah are about love, war, and yellow fever - indicated by the waltz section. Typically it starts off as a romantic love story, but ends in tragedy which tortures the souls for eternity - and people occupying those places. Many people who experience one of those terrifying unexplained events vow never to return to those places. Are you brave enough?

Instrumentation:

Solo Flute
Solo Oboe
Solo Bassoon
Solo Horn in F
Solo Guitar (with amplification)

2 Flutes
2 Oboes
2 Bb Clarinets
2 Bassoons
2 Horns in F
2 Trumpets in Bb
2 Trombone
Tuba
Timpani (regular & super ball mallet): E, B, C, F#, A
Percussion I:

Temple or Woodblocks
Tambourine
Snare Drum
Chime (B)
Whip
Crash Cymbals

Percussion II:

Suspended Cymbal (with bow & mallets)
Sleigh Bells
Castanets
Triangle
Bass Drum

Violins I & II
Viola
Cellos
Double Basses

Extended Techniques Tutorials: