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Girard Kratz: The Witch's Kiss

from meander by Duo Montagnard

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In 1817, the Bell family of Adams, TN became haunted by a female ghost named Kate; she spoke, sang hymns, quoted scripture, and stated her ultimate goal was to kill the family patriarch, John. She became known throughout the entire Red River Settlement as the Bell Witch.

John and his youngest daughter, Betsy, got most of the witch’s abuse. Betsy was pinched, scratched, and beaten, often leaving hand prints and welts. The witch also relentlessly taunted Betsy and her fiancé, eventually forcing them to break off the engagement to stop the witch’s harassment. John had begun to experience facial twitching and difficulty swallowing. By the fall of 1820, he was too weak to leave the house. On December 20, 1820, John Bell died. A vial of poison was found close by. Within months of killing John Bell, the witch left the Bell house, and the hauntings ceased. There are many theories as to what really happened, as John Bell was not necessarily a model citizen, but there is no proof of anything. John is still and will probably remain the only person in history whose death was officially attributed to a spirit.

I’ve always been interested in human behavior and especially how people treat each other. Although presented as a haunting, this is really a story of human interaction. I found this a most appropriate inspiration as I had never written for guitar before and was terrified to do so. I used disconnected episodes of the story to explore different styles and force myself to employ various performance techniques. As such, the piece does not tell the chronological story of the Bell Witch and certainly the listener need not know the story, or even the specific vignettes that acted as inspiration.

Girard Kratz was born in Wilkes-Barre, PA, a coal town along the Susquehanna River at the base of the Pocono Mountains in the beautiful Wyoming Valley. He has earned degrees from Wilkes, Bowling Green State, and Temple Universities where his interests included writing for chamber ensembles and electronic music. He founded Temple University’s first Student Composer Organization, now called Contemplum. His pieces are often influenced by literature, explore his anti-war sentiments and love of nature, or whimsically interpret non-musical elements of life, history and philosophy. His music has been performed throughout the United States and Canada and has been called “beguiling” and “pregnant with meaning” by the Philadelphia Enquirer. His piece for choir with harp and vibraphone, There Will Come Soft Rains, was likened to “sweet spring in time of dissonant war” by Sequenza21 and was recognized by The Carlton Savage Endowment for International Relations and Peace. He shares his musical explorations with his wife and two daughters (all pianists).

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from meander, released June 11, 2018

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Duo Montagnard Pennsylvania

Duo Montagnard (Joe Murphy, saxophone and Matt Slotkin, guitar) was formed in 2002 and has performed over 300 concerts in 50 states, eight Canadian provinces, and twenty countries on six continents. The duo has commissioned, premiered and recorded more than thirty works for guitar and saxophone. ... more

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