Stephen Hartke

OH THEM RATS IS MEAN IN MY KITCHEN (1985) for Violin Duo Duration: 16 Minutes  I. Oh II. Them Rats III. Is Mean IV. In My Kitchen Oh Them Rats Is Mean In My Kitchen was composed as a gift for Michelle Makarski and Ronald Copes in 1985 while I was living in Brazil on a Fulbright grant. One of the chief results of that stay abroad was a sharpening of my awareness of those elements in my musical thought that are distinctly American and reflect my experience as a listener in this culture. I found myself prompted to compose a scherzo-fantasy in homage to early blues, transforming its characteristic wailing and energetic speech-song into the seemingly incongruous medium of the violin duo. The title is the first line of Blind Lemon Jefferson's Maltese Cat Blues, although I first became aware of it in a version sung by Tennessee blues singer Sleepy John Estes. In addition to suggesting some of the more pictorial writing of the third movement, the line also provides the rhythmic basis for an important motif in the final movement.

Recording: Michelle Makarski, Ronald Copes, violins New World Records  80391-2

YouTube Video: Cleveland Institute of Music New Music Series Keith Fitch, Director