First Watch, a
carillon piece composed by Prof. Hilary Tann, will be premiered Sunday, Sept.
15, at 3 p.m. on the Albany City Hall
Carillon.
The piece is to be performed by Charles Semowich on the
occasion of the 75th anniversary of the dedication of the carillon.
She composed the piece (on commission from the Friends of
the Albany Carillon Inc. with support from the Ancient Temple Lodge No. 14, F.
& A.M.) to reflect Albany's
history as a port and trading center.
“At sea, the first watch takes
place from 8
p.m. to midnight,” Tann said. “A bell is struck each half hour — one at 8:30 , two at 9 and so on, culminating in eight bells as the
watch changes. In First Watch, marking successively longer sections, a
low pedal E is the watch-bell. The canal trade is recalled by references
to four folk songs. At 10 p.m. (“four bells”), there is an homage to the
hazards of the Adirondack logging trade (“The Wild Mustard River”) and, later,
fragments of three Erie Canal songs (“Low Bridge-Everybody Down”, “Oh! Dat Low Bridge”, and “The E-ri-e”) are introduced. The piece ends
quietly as the watch changes at midnight.”