Butterfly Effect
2025
Soprano Saxophone
Alto Saxophone
Piano
~20 minutes
For Zoey Isom and Jemma Rumbaugh
Thank you to Dr. Courtney Long
Your guidance and collaboration throughout the writing
process made this piece something very special.
Getting to work on this project with Zoey, Jemma, Bridget and Dr. Courtney Long was such a blessing and I am so grateful for everyone involved in getting this piece performed.
photos by: Cheyenn Isom
Program Notes:
Butterfly Effect is about change, growth, and connection, with each movement representing a different year of college.
The smallest acts of kindness can have the most impact.
I. Give Yourself Grace
Freshman year signifies a fresh start and all the mixed emotions that come with that.
It begins very eagerly, with excitement and intrigue. The alto calls out, anticipating a reply and a warm welcome.
No one returns the call.
The alto tries again, yet still no one answers.
Suddenly, disaster strikes before the year has even begun.
Life is upended and you realize that you are alone. The piano enters with
heavy, plodding chords. You are surrounded by strangers in a
new place and it feels as if there is no end to this weight you
feel. The starting call, what was once a proud declaration of
one’s identity, is now a lament. The music fades without any real closure.
II. Remember To Breathe
It’s a new year and that means another chance to call out the void. It feels nice to have the stability and response of the piano,
but it’s not true connection, just familiar circumstances.
Then...
What was that?
From offstage we hear an answer!
The soprano saxophone enters and suddenly you aren’t alone.
You’ve found someone who understands you and shares in your wishes.
The atmosphere lightens and becomes playful as you finally have some real connection with those around you.
Just when you feel like you can finally enjoy school, you fracture. The unity of the two saxophones splits as we hear the
alto saxophone return to the sorrowful state of the first movement as the soprano saxophone
tries to comfort and console the alto.
The two go back and forth, gradually building
intensity and energy until finally you are convinced by your
friend’s words and both the alto saxophone and soprano join in on the uplifting theme.
The movement ends contentedly, not fully resolved but in a
better place than the start.
III. TAKE UP SPACE!!
We open with a fully-fledged declaration of the opening call,
finally played at full force with complete confidence in oneself.
The saxophones drive all the energy and intensity
throughout and the first movement’s lament becomes a self-assured ballad,
a quiet confidence in who you are.
The support from those around you builds with the intensity of the music
culminating in a release of all this tension and a true expression
of oneself in a moment of solo piano. This calm moment is brief,
with the energy building into a false climax at the end.
IV. Grow
Following the dramatic ending of the third movement, the build-up fizzles out
and the atmosphere shifts to more of an introspective, bittersweet sound.
We have grown so much across these four years and that is something to celebrate,
but it also mean many goodbyes while looking forward to things to come. As the text builds in intensity,
the soprano saxophone gradually sneaks into the solo piano texture and this continual
build under the spoken word continues to twist and morph, becoming increasingly frenzied.
There is one final celebration, a victory lap honoring the past four years and how far we have come.
As the energy slows and calms, each performer leaves one by one.
We return to the original introductory material and now, instead of a seeking,
yearning call for others, it becomes a goodbye to one another.
The last thing we hear is the alto saxophone offstage concluding the call, looking on to new horizons.