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Written to celebrate the Olivier Messiaen centennial in 2008, Lieuwen scored
Gulfstream (2007) for the same instruments as Messiaen’s landmark Quartet for the End
of Time: clarinet, violin, cello, and piano. Like other of Lieuwen’s nature-based pieces,
Gulfstream reacts to his aural impression of the Gulfstream current, a warm ocean current
that travels from the Gulf of Mexico to Northwestern Europe. High-profile discussions
of the current’s role in climate conditions and global warming piqued Lieuwen’s interest
and inspired the work’s composition.
Gulfstream opens with a minimalistic piano ostinato reminiscent of dark, rippling
water. Building on the piano’s foundation, melodic fragments layer over one another and
eventually grow to a lyrical melody. Exotic scales color the pure, lush harmonies, and
the piece’s sections variously swirl in circular patterns, rise to climactic extremes, and
turn suddenly. In a particularly peaceful moment, the clarinet floats gracefully over the
ethereal, undulating piano. Tenacious repetition interrupts the wandering melodies and
then trails off into the ether.

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