Take me out to the ballgame

The Baseball Story

“It’s a piece about risk,” said Livingston. “You can’t drop the ball.”
—Sports Illustrated

This is the first line of Annie Gosfield’s composition for Guy Livingston, premiered at the New York Public Library at Lincoln Center in 1997. The score calls for 2 baseballs, and was written as part of a program conceived by Livingston called “Ten Thoughts on the Five Boroughs.” This brilliant composition exists in two versions: the original which lasts about 5 minutes, and includes a baseball mitt to perform the final pounding clusters; and a short, high-octane 1-minute version which was recorded by Livingston as part of his “Don’t Panic” program, premiered in Amsterdam.