2222 4231 Timp+2 Strings, 11′. Commissioned by HPO.

The piece begins with uncertainty but soon finds individual paths to follow. The music reflects growing relationships, ideas, conversations, and building momentum. More than anything, the piece represents life unfolding. Different and unique musical themes, or paths, intersect, cross pollinate, and eventually merge. As this strength and energy builds, the path forward is illuminated for us to follow.

A Composer’s Kitchen for narrator and orchestra

3(3.picc)3(3.eng hn)3(3. b cl)3(3 cb)  433(3.bass)1  Timp+2  hp  pno  strings + narrator, 11′, Commissioned by OSM.

As a composer who loves to cook, it has often occurred to me that cooking is somewhat similar to composition. We imagine what to make, we prepare the ingredients through various techniques, then we cook different parts of the dish in different ways. I use this cooking analogy to take the listener through the creation of a new work. “Preparing the ingredients” highlights the different families of the orchestra while demonstrating how music becomes more refined as different elements are added: rhythm, articulation, accompaniment, etc. Other sections include: simmer, salad, bake/melt, fry and of course the most important part where it all comes together: eating!

Alligator Pie for soprano and orchestra, text by Dennis Lee

Soprano + 2222 2220 Timp + 2, hp, strings, 25′. Permission for the text included in the rental from the CMC. Commissioned by TSO and CPO.

The Mermaid and the Fisherman, text by Phoebe Tsang

for soprano, trumpet and string orchestra, 30′. Commissioned by HPO.

Making Light, a holiday tale for all ages, text by Alexis Diamond. Commissioned by CPO.

2222 423(3.bass)1 Timp + 1, hp, strings and two narrators (one adult, one child), 18′

A Canadian in Paris, based on paintings by Canadian watercolour painter William Blair Bruce

2222 2220 Timp strings, narrator, 15′. Commissioned by Bob and Maggie Carr.

Downstream for piano and chamber orchestra

1111 0000 1perc strings, 10′.  This piece follows the path of water from Webster’s Falls, through a nature sanctuary and out to Lake Ontario. Commissioned by HPO.

Step Up, “Sesquie”, for Canada’s sesquicentennial

2222 2210 Timp Strings, 2′. This piece celebrates the Canadian spirit of helping in times of need, specifically about people from across Canada joining to fight fires in the West. Commissioned by TSO.

Song of the Poets, for choir and orchestra with poetry from 5 poet soldiers of WWI from both sides of the war.  Commissioned by NACO, TBSO, CPO and The World Remembers. 

2222 2220 Timp + 1, SATB, strings, 6′. Available in English/French/German, or English, or French and English

The Hockey Sweater for narrator and orchestra, based on the classic Canadian story by Roch Carrier. Commissioned by TSO, CPO and NACO.

2(2^nd double picc) 222, 4221, Timpani (tacet, with optional “blades on the ice” played by scraping tiles) + 2, organ + celesta (1 player – can be keyboard), strings. 21′. Available in English and French. For narrator suggestions, please contact the composer.  Note: permission for the text is included with the rental from the CMC.

Trumpet Concerto

Solo Trumpet: C Trumpet, Flugelhorn, Cornet, 2222 2220 Timp + 1, hp, strings, 20′. Commissioned by HPO and Group of 27.

The Gull, the Raccoon and the Last Maple, commissioned by Tafelmusik

A contemporary fable on climate change for narrator and baroque orchestra: 2 oboes, 1 bassoon, harpsichord, strings, 27′.  All ages.

flute, violin, viola, cello, piano, 12′, Commissioned by New Works Calgary for the Quentin Doolittle Award.

The Corner House, a story of WWI based on Sir Ernest MacMillan

string quartet, commissioned by Jonathan Crow and Toronto Summer Music, 25′

Crossings for cello and piano, 11′, Commissioned by Rachel Mercer and Angela Park.

Violin Sonata, 16′, Commissioned by Michael Schulte.

Kitchen Ceilidh

string quartet, 14′, Commissioned by the Cecilia String Quartet.

Into the Silence, a solo piano work about the composer’s deafness as a child, 8′, Commissioned by Shoshana Telner.

Dark Days

string quartet, Commissioned by the Interro String Quartet.

All for One

string quartet, Commissioned by the Lafayette String Quartet, 16′

This Land

mezzo soprano, harp and percussion quartet (TorQ), Commissioned by Kimberly Barber.

The Perfect Screw, text by Alexis Diamond, a comedy inspired by Robertson and Philips screwdrivers (seriously). Commissioned by Tapestry New Opera.

soprano, tenor, baritone, countertenor, violin, cello, clarinet, percussion, piano, 45′

Mother Everest, text by Marjorie Chan. Based on the remarkable true story of an elephant in captivity and her eventual release to an elephant sanctuary in Tennesee.  Commissioned by Tapestry New Opera. 

soprano, baritone, 2 actors, violin, percussion, piano, 45′. Won a Dora Award for Best New Opera.

Sidewalk Flowers, based on the prizewinning graphic book by JonArno Lawson

tenor, string quartet and piano. Commissioned by McMaster Live Lab.

Another Day, song cycle

soprano and piano, 20′, Commissioned by Canadian Art Song Project

Commissioned by Canadian Art Song Project for sopranos Anna-Sophie Neher and Alexandra Smither for the Jeunesses Musicales Canada Maureen Forrester recital tour. In 2009 the UNHCR Toronto office (United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees) and COSTI Immigrant Services organized the first Refugees and Human Rights Child and Youth Poetry Contest in commemoration of World Refugee Day. Several years of winning poems were published in a collection entitled “A Book of Poems: Expressions From our Youth”. This song cycle, entitled “Another Day”, was commissioned by Canadian Art Song Project from Artistic Directors Lawrence Wiliford and Steven Philcox for the Jeunesses Musicales Canada Maureen Forrester recital tour. This song cycle tells six stories of people from war-torn countries. Collectively, we follow their journey from dreams of freedom to struggle for integration in a new world. Consistent themes of peace, love, hope, fear, anger, dreams, freedom, questioning, aging, memories and regret appear in many forms throughout. Young poets capture the struggles and dreams of people living this hard reality.

https://www.picanto.ca/en/another-day-a-song-cycle-for-soprano-and-piano-by-abigail-richardson-schulte

for scores and recordings, please contact the composer or the Canadian Music Centre