The opening gesture of the piece is what gave this piece the name “Cascades”; the downward motions, both in terms of notes and entries, are similar to that of a waterfall. The piece is based on a couple of ideas that revolve around the number five. The five-note motif is based on the first letter of each players’ name. The first three notes of the motif can also be rearranged to create intervals of fourths and fifths and serves as the motif for the middle section. Finally, most of the harmony is built by stacking different combinations of perfect fifths.

ca. 8 min.