Imagine walking into the middle of the final act of a classical tragedy you don’t know – right off the street, straight into the point of highest agitation. You have no idea how things got to this point. All that is left is for you to watch the action play out to its final, fatal conclusion.

“Denouement for Two Harpsichords” was commissioned by Karen and Peter Flint for Brandywine Baroque of Wilmington, Delaware and premiered by Karen Flint and Ray Urwin in April 1988. It went on to form the starting point for a piece of the same title for large orchestra, premiered by Robert Spano and the Oberlin Orchestra with later performances under Spano with the New Jersey and Louisville Orchestras. This revised version was created for a residency at the Oberlin Conservatory in November 2013.

Having written the piece at the keyboard of a grand harpsichord and having performed in it myself on occasion, I’ve always felt that the best seat in the house is 
at one of the keyboards, where the sound is totally enveloping. That’s why I’ve 
asked that in any space larger than a living room, the instruments should be amplified to provide that same sense of total embrace of sound to every listener.

– Conrad Cummings