Chimera Odyssey: Suite for Wind Quintet

Chimera Odyssey is a suite for wind quintet in five movements. It was written for the Southerly Winds quintet, and it was also written to fulfill the requirements for the Master’s of Music degree in composition. The main inspiration for the work came from the composer’s experience studying and performing wind quintet music, and the preferred sources of inspiration can be heard throughout the work.

The title of the work has a double meaning: a chimera is “an illusion or fabrication of the mind; an unrealizable dream.” A chimera is also a fire-breathing she-monster from Greek mythology with a lion’s head, a goat’s body, and a serpent’s tail. Because of the synthesis of diverse movements within the whole work, Chimera Odyssey may be compared to the mythological monster and her incongruous body that makes up a powerful and cohesive creature. More specifically, the work is a “fabrication of the mind,” as are all musical works, and each movement is reminiscent of a dream and the struggle in completing the journey to the end. The movement titles describe the overall theme of fantasy and imagination:

1. Phantasy Quest

2. Midnight Melee

3. Pegasus (double meaning: “poetic inspiration” and winged horse)

4. Sol’s Return

5. Dream Caprice

The composition was completed in March, 2005 by Karen T. McNeely. It is approximately thirteen minutes in duration. The work was primarily composed using a Yamaha^TM SO3 music synthesizer, a Power Macintosh^TM G3 computer, and Coda®’s Finale® notation software, version 2003.

The purpose of this study is to discuss the composition within the historical context of the wind quintet medium, examine its formal and structural elements as compared to other quintets or works that were a source of initial inspiration, and describe the applied compositional techniques. The study will include concepts such as form, melody, harmony, rhythm, texture, and timbre, and these elements will be considered along with similar devices used in the following works: Summer Music by Samuel Barber, Deux Images by Béla Bartók, Ballad by Henry Cowell, Quintette by Jean Françaix, Quintet, Op. 43 by Carl Nielsen, Sextet by Francis Poulenc, and Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis by Ralph Vaughan Williams. Conclusions from this study will include a modern perspective on the wind quintet in view of its past, present, and future role in chamber music composing and performance, details of the compositional process in writing for wind quintets, and an in-depth knowledge of the components used to create Chimera Odyssey.