Paz y Luz (String Orchestra Gr. 3)

This lush pastorale primarily set in 3/4 time offers opportunities to all players to shine. A contrasting pizzicato B section in 4/4 will keep students and audience members on their toes.

Genre: String Orchestra | # of Players: 8-8-5-5-5
Series: Emerald Orchestra Series
Level: 3 | Duration: 3:15

Instrumentation
Violin I
Violin II
Viola
Cello
Contrabass

Program Notes
Written over the course of a few days, the main theme of this piece came to me while I was engaged in actively monitoring the administration of standardized tests (all the while hoping I would remember it once the session was over). It has occurred to me that despite the intense focus on things that are ostensibly deemed important (like standardized assessments), the truly essential things in life cannot be tested, such as the ability to appreciate beauty and to attain inner peace.

The title itself comes from a play on the abbreviation PSSA, and is named Paz y Luz, meaning “Peace and Light” in Spanish, due to the fact that nearly all the students taking the English Language Arts assessment spoke English only as their second language.

As my wife points out, I love a good pizzicato section, but this one took on a life of its own. This is the first time I’ve explored a key change while plucking. I went back and forth on whether to keep the piece in D or change it, but the music kept wanting to change to C major.

– B.S.