This piece was written for my little girl, for first performance by the SOLI Chamber Ensemble. In the spirit of my piece Roadshow for Otto, I’ve selected a few toys featured on the hit PBS show Antiques Roadshow, and in each of the five movements I imagine how she might play with them.
In “The Yes No Bear,” Thora plays with the little handheld bear, which is capable of nodding and shaking its head. It can also – surprise! – turn its head around to reveal a goofy wide-eyed face.
In “The Ives Trotter,”Thora’s bay horse trots at top speed across the floor, pulling a lightning-quick phaeton and its jaunty driver. The toy was built by a company founded by Edward Ives, and in this movement, the musical material is derived from music by a distant cousin of Edward.
In “The Clown Magician,” a dapper clown, his hat cocked to one side, performs four conjuring tricks. The original music is used in this movement.
In “Pulling the Pink Pig,” Thora does not simply run about with her pig, she bonds with the animal and
