These pieces were commissioned by the South African Music Rights Organisation (SAMRO) Foundation to serve as a prescribed work in the SAMRO Overseas Scholarships Competition for Instrumentalists 2016, in the spirit of which I set out to write music which would be both virtuosic and musically engaging for advanced players. As the names suggest, both are lyrical, with the first a more reflective meditation based around a constantly repeating rhythmic cycle, and the second a more active, and ultimately rather energetic, etude.

As no bassoon finalists were selected for the SAMRO Competition, Two Songs was premiered by Ashley Myall (bassoon) and Aleksander Szram (piano) of rarescale in London and Cardiff in 2021.