Flute I-II
Oboe I-II
B-flat Clarinet I-II
Horn in F I-II
Bassoon I-II

I. Des Monstres...

II. The First - Glory of God

III. The Second - His Wrath

IV. The Third - Too great a quantity of seed

V. The Fourth - Too little

VI. The Fifth - Imagination

VII. The Sixth - Narrowness or smallness of the womb

VIII. The Seventh - Indecent posture of the mother

IX. The Eighth - A fall or blows

X. The Ninth - Heredity of accidental illness

XI. The Tenth - Rotten or corrupt seed

XII. The Eleventh - Mixture or mingling of seed

XIII. The Twelfth - Artifice of wicked spital beggars

XIV. The Thirteenth - Demons and Devils

XV. ...et prodiges

Seat the two quartets with some degree of spatial separation, if the venue permits, and in mirror image from a center point. For instance, from stage right to stage left Fl1, Ob1, Cl1, Hn1, Bn1, Space, Bn2, Hn2, Cl2, Ob2, Fl2.

Parts are purposeful in the programmatic intent with the cross voicings and tessituras.

All trills are half-step unless otherwise notated.

Des Monstres et prodiges [On monsters and marvels] by Ambroise Paré (c. 1510-1590) is a medical treatise from 1575. In it, Paré--a noted surgeon and medical philosopher--catalogued what he "found" to be the common causes of birth defects or as he called it "the 13 reasons for monsters." Paré's work is a fascinating read, epitomizing much of the 16th century and his own reconciliations between science and religion. This balance of observable fact and divine (or in some case profane) intervention is clear in his reasonings and in his famous quote: Je le pansai, Dieu le guérit ("I bandaged him and God healed him").

I stumbled across Paré's work during an exhibition at the Mütter Museum in Philadelphia, which houses a collection of medical oddities. I was immediately struck by the impressive woodcuts, the "Monster of Ravenna" in particular. Reading the plaques on which he listed the causes of birth defects (the titles of each movement) compelled me to seek out and read this book, and, consequently inspired this double wind quintet.

Commissioned by Steve Lewis and the Midwest Chamber Ensemble.