Jonathan Posthuma
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Paul Klee : Painted Songs
For a complete listing of all pieces in this ongoing series, click here.
​
No. 1 "Twittering Machine" | 2011
​clarinet (or alto saxophone) and piano

​No. 2 "High Spirits" | 2011
flute (or sopranino saxophone) and prepared marimba

​No. 6 "Red Balloon" 
| 2011

tuba (or baritone saxophone), marimba, and vibraphone

​No. 7 "Separation in the Evening" | 2011
tenor saxophone (or bassoon) and vibraphone

​No. 8 "A Fire in the Evening" | 2011
tenor saxophone (or bassoon) and vibraphone

​No. 9 "Illuminated Leaf"
| 2015

solo piano (or chamber ensemble)

​No. 12 "Hovering" | 2017
solo piano (or chamber ensemble)

​No. 13 "Rose Garden"
| 2018

flute, clarinet, violin, violoncello, and piano

​No. 14 "Destroyed Place" | 2019
solo flute, opt. tam-tam

​No. 15 "Flowers in the Wind" | 2018

violin, violoncello, and piano

​No. 16 "In the Magic Mirror"
| 2017

solo violoncello

​No. 17 "Carnival in the Mountains"
| 2018

flute, clarinet, violin, violoncello, and piano

​No. 18 "Intoxication" | 2017
solo violin (or viola or violoncello)

​No. 19 "She Bellows, We Play" | 2018
flute and clarinet

​No. 20 "Unstable Equilibrium"
| 2017

violin and violoncello

​No. 22 "Dream City"
| 2018

flute, clarinet, violin, violoncello, and piano
A Sleep of Prisoners - An Opera in Two Acts
An adaptation of the 1951 one-act play by British playwright Christopher Fry. Four prisoners of war are held in a cathedral turned prison camp. Though the guards are never seen, ghostly voices are heard singing hymns and choral anthems, as if the cathedral itself were a character that participates in the drama. Tensions run high after one prisoner attacks another for making light of their situation and annoyingly playing the organ. As they try to sleep through the night, they awake as dream figures, re-enacting scenes from the Bible (Cain and Abel, David and Absalom, Abraham and Isaac, and The Fiery Furnace), each involving murder, violence, or sacrifice. By the end, the four soldiers are ready to join the heavenly chorus, which slowly fades as morning approaches and the men are finally at rest. Started in January 2018, this opera is in the very early stages of production, with plans for selected scenes to be recorded or staged in Summer 2019. The total running time is expected to be around 2 hours.

Characters
Private David King (Cain, David, Abraham, Shadrach), dramatic baritone
Private Peter Able (Abel, Absalom, Isaac, Meshach), dramatic tenor
Private Tim Meadows (God, Donkey, Christ), lyric baritone / countertenor
Corporal Joe Adams (Adam, Joab, Angel, Abednego), lyric bass

Chorus (SATB, 16 - 20 singers, opt. Boys' Choir, with a few solos)

Orchestra
Organ
Celesta
Strings (4 Vln, 2 Vla, 2 Vc, 1 Cb)
Brass (3 tpt, 1 hn, 1 tbn, 1 euph, 1 tba)
Percussion (2 players)
Picture
Original artwork depicting the four scenes and other thematic material from the opera, including the phrase "Amor vincit insomnia." Clockwise from top: The Fiery Furnace, Abraham and Isaac, David and Absalom, Cain and Abel.
The Hallelujah Tree
The Hallelujah Tree is an ongoing project for improvising singers with a flex-ensemble of instruments in which cells of music are repeated and alternated, in the manner of Julius Eastman or Terry Riley. Each cell is assigned a function as seeds, roots, rings, vines, branches, leaves, and fruits, which can be used by the ensemble to build patterns and textures in endless combinations for any duration of time.

There is no definitive performance or version of this work, with each ensemble determining its own process. Not all of the musical cells are completed and will be continually added to as the work is performed.
Picture
The in-progress score for The Hallelujah Tree
O Love, How Deep, How Broad, How High (Hymn Settings for Liturgical Use)
Arrangements and settings of hymns originally for solo piano and suitable for liturgical use edited after years of accompanying church services, including some improvisations. Each version is also available for solo voice or chorus and piano. This collection is a work in progress. For more information, use the contact form to ask if a setting is available.

Eventually, I hope to record these pieces professionally and release some of the titles below as Vol. I of an ongoing series of hymn settings, but if you are interested in using them in worship or public performance, please let me know!

"Title" (TUNE NAME) [Year Completed] availability

"O Love, How Deep, How Broad, How High" (DEO GRACIAS) [2012]
"My Shepherd Will Supply My Need" (RESIGNATION) [2012]
"Jesus Lives, and So Do We" (JESUS, MEINE ZUVERSICHT) [2013, rev. 2015]
"O Jesus, I Have Promised" (NYLAND)  [2013, rev. 2016]
"It Is Well With My Soul 'O grosse Lieb' " (VILLE DU HAVRE / HERZLIEBSTER JESU) [2015, rev. 2020]
"He Leadeth Me" (AUGHTON) [2013]
"My Faith Looks Up to Thee" (OLIVET) [2013]
"Ah, Holy Jesus, How Have You Offended?" (HERZLIEBSTER JESU) [2013] not available
"Humble Praises, Holy Jesus" (VESPER HYMN) [2012] not available
"I Lift Up My Eyes to the Mountains" (LUZON) [2013] not available
"My Lord I Did Not Choose You" (CRUCIFIX Greek) [2014] not available
"Toccata on 'The Spacious Heavens Tell' " (GENEVAN 19) [2015] available by request
"Beams of Heaven" (SOME DAY) [2016]
"Were You There" (WERE YOUR THERE) [2018, rev. 2020] available by request
"Savior of the Nations, Come" (NUN KOMM, DER HEIDEN HEILAND) [2017]

Instrumental / Chamber

Orchestra
Revolution of the Viaducts "Passacaglia" from Paul Klee : Painted Songs |  2021
large orchestra [3(2/pc).3(2/EH).3(2/BsCl).3(2/Cbsn) 4.3.3.1 Timp+2(3) Cel Hp Str: 8.8.6.6.4]

Monument of Shadows |  2018
medium orchestra [2.2.2.2 1.1.1.1 Timp+2 Str: 6.5.4.3.2]

Modderpuilmelodieeën (Mudpuddle Melodies) |  2017
large orchestra [3(2/pc).3(2/EH).3(2/BsCl).3(2/Cbsn) 4.3.3.1 Timp+3(4) Pno Hp Str:12.12.8.6.4]

Chamber Symphony "Beams of Heaven" |  2017
chamber orchestra [2.2.2.0 1.1.0.0 Timp+2 Pno Str: 5.4.3.2.1 opt. singer]
IN PROGRESS

 Fili di Perle ​(Strings of Pearls)  |  2015
large orchestra [3(2/pc).3(2/EH).3(2/BsCl).3(2/Cbsn) 4.3.3.1 Timp+3(4) Pno Hp Str:16.14.12.10.8]
3rd Prize, Karol Szymanowski Composition Competition

The Rising Doubt, The Rebel Sigh  |  2015
chamber orchestra [1.1.1.1 0.0.0.0 Str: 4.4.4.3.1]

Concerto Grosso No. 1 in E minor  |  2015
strings, percussion, and piano
Commissioned by the Madison Area Youth Chamber Orchestra

Kitseguecla: The Sharp-Pointed Mountain  |  2011
large orchestra [2(1/pc).2.2.2 4.3.3.1 Timp+3(4) Str:12.12.8.8.4]
Wind Ensemble and Band

Bdote "The Great Confluence" |  2017
wind ensemble

An Isthmus Aubade  |  2014
wind ensemble
Commissioned by the UW-Madison Wind Ensemble, Scott Teeple

Rhapsodecaphrenia  |  2013
wind ensemble

Spencer Municipal March  |  2013
concert band

R.O.M.P: Four Short Preludes |  2013
concert band
Finalist, 3rd Annual Frank Ticheli Band Composition Competition

My Shepherd Will Supply My Need  |  2013
symphonic band

Reinventing No. 13  |  2012
jazz band
Chamber Ensemble
...i grew up on a farm... |  2024
bass clarinet, piano, percussion and fixed media
​Commissioned by Zeitgeist through Sounding Ground
jnthnpsthm · ...i grew up on a farm...

And, Plus, Also |  2020
wind sextet (fl, ob, cl, bsn, hn, euph)

Going-to-the-Sun (String Quartet No. 1)  |  2018
string quartet (2 vln, vla, vc)

Scompiglio melodioso "Melodious Disarray"  |  2016
trumpet, violin, cello, and piano
Created for the Alba New Music Festival ~ Alba, Italy

Three Meditations |  2015
flute, alto saxophone, and cello
Created for Cruci Project, Northwestern College ~ Orange City, IA

Visions at a County Fair  |  2013
brass quintet

Synthesis |  2010
saxophone quartet

Dialogues for Ten Instruments  |  2010
large chamber ensemble
Instrumental Solos and Duos
Fantaisie - réflexions sur tristesse et de joie |  2020
solo harp

Suite excentrique |  2017
bass clarinet and marimba
for Transient Canvas ~ 2017 Alba Commission
​William Thomas McKinley Memorial Award

Gabriel Takes Flight  |  2013
trumpet and piano

Cottage Flowers  |  2011
solo flute

Memorial |  2010
clarinet and piano
Keyboard and percussion
Fantasia: Other Unidentified Possibilities  | 2019
solo piano

Nocturne  | 2018
solo marimba
Available exclusively through Heartland Marimba Publications

The Glass Menagerie Suite  | 2014
solo piano

R.O.M.P: Four Short Preludes  |  2011
solo piano

Five Studies for Piano (Two Pencils and a Hymnbook)  |  2010
prepared piano
​Winner, 2011 BMI Student Composer Awards

Seven Variations on a Theme by Mussorgsky  |  2009-2010
solo piano

Fantasia on Genevan Sixty-Five  |  2010
solo organ

Two Children's Duets |  2007
piano four-hands
Arrangements (Orchestra / Wind Ensemble / Band)
Lyric Pieces, Book IX, Op. 68 | 2024
(Edvard Grieg, arr. Jonathan Posthuma)

chamber orchestra (1 1 1 1 - 1 1 0 0 - Str)
IN PROGRESS
Lyric Pieces, Book X, Op. 71 | 2024
(Edvard Grieg, arr. Jonathan Posthuma)

full orchestra (2[1,2/Picc] 2[1,2/EH] 2 2 - 4 2 3 1 - 2Perc - Hp - Str)
IN PROGRESS

Poèmes provençaux | TBD
(Cécile Chaminade,
arr. Jonathan Posthuma)
concert band / wind ensemble
IN PROGRESS

Penny Lane | 2024
(John Lennon and Paul McCartney, arr. Jonathan Posthuma)

chamber orchestra (2[1,Picc] 1 0 1 - 0 1[PiccTpt] 0 0 - Str)
Available only through SheetMusicDirect via ArrangeMe

D'un matin de printemps (Of a Spring Morning) | 2023
(Lili Boulanger, arr. Jonathan Posthuma)

chamber orchestra (2[1,2/Picc] 2[1,2/EH] 2[1,2/BsCl] 2 - 2 1 0 0 - 1Perc - Hp - Str)
​
Commissioned by The Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra
BY REQUEST ONLY (under exclusivity until March 2026)

Menuet sur le nom d'Haydn | 2023
(Maurice Ravel, arr. Jonathan Posthuma)

chamber orchestra (1 1 1 1 - 1 0 0 0 - Hp/Hpschd/Vib ad lib - Str)

Heiliger Dankgesang from String Quartet No. 15, Op. 132 | 2023
(Ludwig van Beethoven, arr. Jonathan Posthuma)

chamber orchestra (2 2[1,EH] 1 1 - 2 1 0 0 - Str)
Commissioned by The Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra

BY REQUEST ONLY (under exclusivity until April 2025)

"Resta d'armi noia" from Madgrigals, Book 6 | 2022
(Carlo Gesualdo, arr. Jonathan Posthuma)

chamber orchestra (2 0 1 1 - 2 0 0 0 - Str) or string orchestra
for Conrad Tao and The Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra, October 2022

Vocal / Choral

Voice(s) with Orchestra
The God of Material Things |  2013-2015
soloists, narrator, chorus (SATB), organ, and orchestra
Text by Dave Schelhaas

Hymn of Trust |  2011
soloists, chorus (SSAATTBB), and string orchestra
Text by Oliver Wendell Holmes
Voice(s) With Chamber Ensemble
​Psalm 6 "Lord, Do Not Rebuke Me in Your Anger" |  2020
soprano, mezzo-soprano, trombone, electric guitar, bass guitar and pre-recorded voices. Created for zFestival 2020.
Text from Psalm 6, NIV

Musica Ignotum - O Orzchis Ecclesia |  2018
solo soprano, alto, tenor, baritone, bass with flexible instrumentation of organ(s), choir(s), and percussion
Text by Hildegard von Bingen

PostSecret: A Song Cycle  |  2014
soprano and Pierrot ensemble (flute, clarinet, violin, cello, and piano)
Texts from PostSecret, created by Frank Warren

somebody knew Lincoln,somebody Xerxes  |  2013
baritone, prepared marimba, and percussion
Text by E.E. Cummings
Finalist, 2015 BMI Student Composer Awards

somewhere i have never travelled,gladly beyond |  2011
soprano and glockenspiel
Text by E.E. Cummings

Three Songs of Summer  |  2010
soprano, flute, clarinet, horn, and piano
Original text
Voice(s) With Piano / Keyboard
Seasons: Five Poems of Louis Jenkins |  2021
medium voice and piano
Commissioned by Schubert Club for Maria Jette with funding providing by Barbara Brown and John Michel in honor of Barry Kempton

Text by Louis A. Jenkins

The Voices of the City |  2017
medium voice and piano
for Maria Jette, SourceSong Festival 2017

Text by Ella Wheeler Wilcox

Chant Etudes |  2016-present
voice and organ [manuals only]
Text based on Ambrosian/Gregorian chant

The God of Material Things Songbook  |  2014-2015
soprano, mezzo-soprano, baritone, tenor, and piano
(or voice and piano)

Text by Dave Schelhaas

The Sighs of Kilmeny  |  2015
4 sopranos and piano ensemble

Voices: Five Songs of Cavafy  |  2010-2011
medium voice and piano
Text by C.P. Cavafy

Songs of the Sea  |  2010
soprano, baritone, and piano
Original text
ChorUS (Secular)
On a Monument to the Pigeon | 2024
SATB div., unaccompanied
Text by Aldo Leopold

Say Cheese! | 2023
SATB div., unaccompanied
Original 'found' text of cheese varieties

lay me on a bed of moss | 2022
Solo voice or SATB plus 4 soloists, unaccompanied
Text by C. F. Thompson

The Wind |  2018
SSATTB or vocal sextet (AATTBarB), unaccompanied
Text by Ivor Gurney

Two Dickinson Poems |  2017
SATB div., unaccompanied
Text by Emily Dickinson

At the Bend |  2017
SATB div., unaccompanied
Text by W. S. Merwin

An Old Frisian Poem |  2017
SATB div., tenor solo, unaccompanied
Anonymous Old Frisian text

From A Window (Three Songs) |  2017
SATB div., unaccompanied
Text by William Carlos Williams

Heirloom Hallelujah!  |  2016
SATB div., unaccompanied
Original 'found' text of heirloom tomato names
Created for VocalEssence ReMix 2016

Year That Trembled  |  2015
SATB div., 3 trumpets, 3 trombones, and organ
Text by Walt Whitman

A Poem is a Home |  2014, rev. 2016
SAB, unaccompanied (opt. Orff instruments)
A work for young singers using an original nonsense poem and an open-ended section of silly freestyling.

love is a place  |  2014
SATB div. a 12, unaccompanied
Text by E.E. Cummings

Angels in the Early Morning |  2013
SATB div. and piano
Text by Emily Dickinson

Dew |  2013
SSAA and harp
Text by Sara Teasdale

Songs of Ophelia |  2012
SSA and guitar

Suite for Winter Fog  |  2011
SATB div., piano, and percussion
Text by Nick Van Ee

Sky Line  |  2011
SAB and piano
Text by Prescott Hoard

Opening the Window  |  2011
SATB div., unaccompanied
Text by Oliver Wendell Holmes
CHorus (Sacred)
O Antiphons |  2022
Chorus with soloists (sop, mez-sop, alto, ten, bar, bass) and handbells

Holy Spirit, Ever Dwelling |  2019
SATB, organ (opt. congregation)
Text by Timothy Rees

Es flog ein Täublein weiße |  2018
SATB div., unaccompanied
Traditional German carol by David Gregor Corner, as excerpted by Brahms
based on a melody by Elliott Miles McKinley

Your Grace Is Sufficient for Me |  2018
SATB, piano
Setting of 2 Corinthians 12: 9 -10 (NIV)

​Kyrie eleison (Psalm 37) "Do Not Fret" |  2018
Treble chorus, SATB div., organ
Setting of "Kyrie" and Psalm 37 (NIV)

Saints, At Thy Heav'nly Father's Word |  2017
SATB div., unaccompanied
Text by Isaac Watts

O Child of Mary's Tender Care |  2017
SATB div., unaccompanied
Anonymous Christmas carol

As the Deer (Psalm 42)  |  2016
SATB div., unaccompanied
Setting of Psalm 42 (NIV)
Created for VocalEssence ReMix 2016

Gloria in excelsis: A Commentary |  2016
SATB div., narrator, soloists, and vibraphone
Text from John Calvin's Commentary on Luke 2

Blessed |  2013
SATB, piano (opt. praise team)
Original text based on the Beatitudes (Matthew 5:3-12 NIV)
Arrangements (Vocal / Choral)
Klokje Klingt, Vogel Zingt |  2018
SATB, unaccompanied
Traditional Dutch folk song

Nibi (Water) Song |  2017
SATB div., unaccompanied
arrangement of Ojibwe melody, text by Doreen Day

Lulajże, Jezuniu |  2016
SATB, unaccompanied
arrangement of traditional Polish carol

Little Bethlehem of Judah |  2013
SATB, piano
arrangement using hymn tune WESTRIDGE, text by Calvin Seerveld adapted from Micah 5:2-4

Let All Mortal Flesh Keep Silence |  2012
SATB, piano, violin; SATB piano and saxophone trio
or SATB with strings, brass, and organ

arrangement of traditional French carol

Theatre / Film / Ballet

Theatre / Film / Ballet
Dreams |  2014
music for ballet
​soprano, strings, piano

Hamlet  |  2012
incidental music
​organ, harp, contrabass, percussion

The Glass Menagerie  |  2010
incidental music
solo piano
National Finalist for Sound Design, Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival
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