Commissioned by Symphony San Jose-Silicon Valley and premiered in its 2002-2003 inaugural concert season with guest conductor Paul Polivnick, “Scenes” is cast in three movements, each inspired by a different scene in William Merwin’s “The Folding Cliffs”: I. Up the mountain; II. Full Circle; and, III. Darkness Dance. Reviewers noted: “…an accumulation of musical moments, fast-moving melodic fragments and instrumental colors. Relentlessly, they slide into and pile on each other, creating a delicious agitation as the orchestra moves up, up, up through registers — goose-bump stuff, set off in Magnussen’s brain by his reading of W.S. Merwin’s The Folding Cliffs.” —Richard Scheinin, The Mercury News “…a commanding piece wrapped in thick fabric, often busy at so many levels as to obscure the main thread of it. However, it also revealed moments of transparency. Its overall structure of three sections was clear, along with rising and falling thematic sequences, solos (for bassoon, vibraphone, marimba, tuba, violin and piccolo), unusual meters and exceptional craftsmanship.” –Scott McClelland, Metro Silicon Valley