Rude Awakening

What do you dream about when the lights go out? Rude Awakening is a four-movement journey through the hopes, wishes and fears that come alive while we sleep. The first movement drifts off with the jazzy sweep of Gershwin’s “Rhapsody in Blue,” melting into the Disney classic “A Dream Is a Wish Your Heart Makes.” In the second movement, “A Million Dreams” from The Greatest Showman soars with the courage to dream big. But every dreamer has fears, and the third movement turns dark as Metallica’s “Enter Sandman” drags us into the nightmare. Then the alarm goes off! The fourth movement bursts into the furious final movement of Beethoven’s “Moonlight Sonata,” a frantic, hectic rush into the start of a brand-new day. Listen closely along the way for quotes of Brahms’ “Lullaby” and Grieg’s “Morning.”