Curious Calculations

soprano and horn
2026

Duration 3’
Instrumentation soprano and horn
First Performance 16 November 2026, Ganz Hall, Chicago, U.S.; Olivia Boen soprano, Jon Boen horn
Commissioned by Olivia Boen

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For these vivid songs, I set two poems by Charles Henry Ross (1842-1897). The verses were written for publication in comic books in the late 19th Century. Witty and fun, inhabiting a world of playful absurdity, they have great appeal to children and adults alike. Equally whimsical pictures were often published alongside the verses.

I
The wisest old man that ever was known
In the famous Wiseacre nation,
Sat up all night, with his head in a sling,
To make this calculation:-
If Tom’s father was John’s son,
But John’s son hadn’t a father,
What would John’s son’s son have done,
If Tom’s son’s father wouldn’t rather?
He worked all night, and he worked all day,
Till he came to this conclusion,
That Tom’s son’s father’s father’s son
Was the cause of much confusion.

II
John was a bad boy, and beat a poor cat;
Tom put a stone in a blind man’s hat;
James was the boy who neglected his prayers;
They’ve all grown up ugly, and nobody cares.