Bedtime Stories (Nina Shekhar)

"Bedtime Stories" by Nina Shekhar (I. Monster, II. Cheese Moon, III. Dream (or Nightmare) Waltz). Performed by Nina Shekhar (flute) and Cole Anderson (piano).

Program note:
When University of Michigan flute professor Amy Porter asked me to write her a flute sonata, I immediately knew that I wanted to write something slightly out of the norm. So often, we associate sonatas with a stuffy and weighty set of conventions, and instead I wanted to write something that was sweet, playful, fun, and maybe a little feisty.
Bedtime Stories attempts to capture the whimsy and innocence associated with children and nighttime. Like many children, I feared that a monster lived underneath my bed, as portrayed in the first movement, “Monster.” The second movement, “Cheese Moon,” is about the common fable that the moon is made of cheese. The final movement, “Dream (or Nightmare) Waltz” is a whimsical cross between a fanciful dance and a monster ball.
Many thanks to Professor Porter for commissioning this piece.