 view score
The day is cold. Below the high bank, the braided river winds through the valley, beneath the breaking clouds. Above, near a quiet fire, a small band of hunter-gatherers stands watch from their ancient camp. The flames flicker, amplifying their faces. From their bluff, they see them first-- mammoths, slow, immense, and ancient, moving, stepping, stomping, and sloshing steadily across the open braided river ground, and approaching. The youth of the clan grip their spears, eager to earn their place among the hunters. Perhaps tonight will be the night they prove themselves— to earn respect through bravery, to bring down a giant. But the elder speaks, cutting through the fire-lit tension and the unspoken hopes of the hunt: “Today, we will not hunt. We will watch them pass, and thank them for the life they have given. And in our stillness, we give something in return.”
My piece imagines such a scenario—perhaps even at the Teklanika West archaeological site in Denali National Park, where evidence shows humans once used that very bluff as a lookout for game. Situated above the Teklanika River, it is one of the oldest known cultural sites in Alaska, with signs of human occupation dating back over 13,000 years. Archaeological evidence confirms that humans and mammoths once shared this same braided river valley. Along nearby stretches of the Teklanika River corridor, mammoth remains have also been discovered— fossil traces of the great animals who once roamed this same landscape. Their presence places both species—human and mammoth— within the same valley, the same time, the same shared life. This piece does not depict any specific Indigenous story or belief. Instead, it offers a quiet meditation on shared presence, restraint, and reverence— a moment of watching rather than taking. It is offered with gratitude and deep respect for the ancient peoples of Interior Alaska, and for the living Native nations whose ancestral lands include Denali. Performers Notes. As the herd travels the braided riverbed, their footsteps shape the music: a soft collection of rhythms and patterns representing each mammoth as it moves through water, silt, and stone. The piece is tender and joyful, never thunderous—the footsteps are not stomps, but range from light distant steps, light staccatos, soft full quarter notes, playful triplets, burst of 16th note steps, all that intertwine as the herd travels as individuals. The steps grow in intensity as the herd draws near, and recedes as they continue past the bluff and into the distance. Though the melody of the herd is often voiced through the flute, each instrument at times carries part of the mammoths’ song, reflecting the individuality and unity of the family as they pass. 
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DATE
2025 DURATION 4 min 42 seconds INSTRUMENTATION 1 Flute 1 Bass Clarinet 1 Alto Saxophone 1 Cello 1 Vibraphone  CORVIS
PREMIERE
Composing in the Wilderness Performed by CORVIS August 7, 2025 University of Alaska Charles W. Davis Concert Hall Fairbanks, Alaska and August 8, 2025 Denali National Park Visitors Center 
Composing in the Wilderness compositions on "Alaska Live with Lori Neufeld" KUAC
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