Gorgon (composition) a ceremonial work, used the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra's commission to see its realization. "Gorgon" was inspired by the legend of the three Gorgons from Greek mythology: Stheno, Euryale, and Medusa. Rouse described the creatures in the score program notes, writing: He added, "Since the time of the ancient Greeks, the gorgon has become a symbol for any terror too immense — and too horrible — to be faced. It has thus become an image of sublimated brutality and savagery, perhaps a metaphor for our own private and subconscious monsters." He concluded, "In addition to certain intentional similarities common to musical
The Twa Sisters brought to her father's hall and plays before the entire court, telling of her sister's crime. The song also mentions her brother named Hugh, and her beloved William, and gives a name to the older sister, Anne. An early Alfred Lord Tennyson poem, "The Sisters", also bears a resemblance to the ballad: a sister scorned in love who murders the lover of her sister, and possibly the sister too, out of jealousy. The Twa Sisters "The Two Sisters" is a Northumbrian murder ballad that recounts the tale of a girl drowned by her sister. It is first known to have