Not for Burning

2001, Revised 2017 | soprano or mezzo-soprano/alto saxophone OR with clarinet accompaniment.

Poem by Joyce Sutphen (b.1949). Not for Burning from Coming Back to the Body © 2000 by Joyce Sutphen. Used by permission.

Commissioned through a Special Projects Grant from the College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences at Georgia Southern University for soprano Sandra McClain and saxophonist Carolyn Bryan. Premiere: The Arden Duo (soprano Sandra McClain and saxophonist Carolyn Bryan) at the North American Saxophone Alliance Biennial Conference, University of North Texas, March 7, 2002.

Song 3 of Living in the Body.

The premiere recording is on the December 2019 Naxos double CD release Living in the Body — Songs of Lori Laitman, with soprano Maureen McKay and saxophonist Gary Louie. To purchase, please click here

The premiere recording with clarinet is on the May 19, 2020 Naxos release The Secret Exit, with soprano Kristine Hurst-Wajszczuk and clarinetist Denise Gainey. To purchase, please click here.

The most recent recording, released in 2023, is by The Decho Ensemble, with soprano Katherine Petersen and saxophonist Jacob Swanson.