The Origin of Birds
for oboe and piano
by Brian Krinke - American composer

Based on the story by Italo Calvino.

This is the printed edition.  For the PDF download, click

ABOUT THE MUSIC

Cosmicomics Trilogy

Italo Calvino was one of Italy’s great authors. I have always been drawn to his whimsical, colorful writing. For these musical works, I was inspired by his collection of stories, Cosmicomics. His stories follow characters through times of major change in the universe. I will provide a few thoughts about each story, with encouragement to explore Calvino’s amazing work! 

The three musical works of the Cosmicomics Trilogy were written for the 2024 IDRS International Conference in Flagstaff, AZ, and premiered by the composer at the piano, with Dr. William Aikens, oboe, and Dr. Jeffrey McCray, bassoon. 

For THE DINOSAURS - click

For THE ORIGIN of BIRDS - click

For THE AQUATIC UNCLE - click

The Origin of Birds - This story explores the surprise of the appearance of birds in evolution, and how unlike they were from all creatures that came before. The narrator tells us his story by describing imaginary cartoon panels that would illustrate the story for us. It begins with the appearance of the Archeopteryx, and traces the appearance of all manner of very strange, winged creatures, culminating in the hatching of a gorgeous bird, which leads to a love story. Our narrator finishes his story wandering among the ordinary birds of today, searching for some sign of the incredible bird and species he had encountered all too briefly.

ABOUT THE COMPOSER

BRIAN KRINKE has written solo and chamber works for winds, piano, and strings. His compositions have been performed in venues in New York City, including Merkin Hall and St. Paul’s Chapel, as well as universities such as Princeton University and Colorado Mesa University. He has several times been invited to perform concerts of his compositions for the  International Double Reed Society conferences, both in the U.S and in Thailand. His works have been performed by principal wind players of the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra and the Minnesota Orchestra. Mr. Krinke studied composition at the University of Minnesota with Paul Fetler, and presently serves on the music faculty at Colorado Mesa University.