Teklanika Cadences
Textile based mixed media  
8”h x 12”w x 13”d (approximate, open)

Charlotte Bird

created in response to On Distant Hills
composed by Brent Lawrence

In these hills, the Calico Creek saddle gives way to 1,600 vertical feet of scree down to Refuge Valley, source of the Sanctuary River. North 20 miles, the Sanctuary joins the Teklanika. Each watered realm of river country has cadences. The high fell fields sing in flute and marimba. The waters rush and roll their stones through middle elevations in pitches, volumes, and rhythms of the whole ensemble. In Refuge Valley, the choir sings. The river sizzles along gravel bars. In oxbows it slithers in sucking sounds of the bass clarinet until it reaches the Nenana. We bring our own cadences, from rest-stepping the alpine steeps as in the opening measures to crunching percussion along the bars.