Burst

Burst, Kyle Wernke (2017)
for orchestra

Winner of the 2022 American Prize in Orchestral Composition, Professional Division

Burst is a piece that has continually shifted in personal meaning since its original composition in 2017. Originally the piece was a simple exploration of the idea of a "burst" in several different guises: a burst of energy, a burst of quiet, a burst of sadness or joy. As I kept working with the piece, eventually listening to it over and over again in the editing process for Orchestral Masters Vol. 6, I came to realize that the personal significance of the piece ran deeper than I had initially recognized. Burst was my first major work since finishing my D.M.A. in Composition at The Hartt School, and it was the end of over a year of writer's block. Since composing Burst I have composed a torrent of new music including a piano trio and a piano concerto. Burst signified the end of a compositional dry spell and the beginning of a new era of creativity - quite literally it was the start of my own Burst! I now consider the piece to be my love letter to creativity: composition and conducting for me, but so many more creative endeavors can be (and I certainly hope will be) invoked by the listener.

Orchestral instrumentation: 3.3.3.2/4.3.3.1/timp.2 perc/str