Pale Blue Dot (concertino version)

Pale Blue Dot (Concertino) by Alex Stopa reimagines his celebrated marimba solo as a concertino for solo marimba, strings, and percussion. Drawing inspiration from the Voyager 1 photograph of Earth—a “pale blue dot” suspended in the vastness of space—the piece captures both the awe and fragility of our shared existence. Its emotional core reflects astronomer Carl Sagan’s message of humility, compassion, and care for our planet that accompanied the photo.

Stopa’s writing for the marimba remains expressive and virtuosic, blending fluid motion and lyrical phrasing with the added warmth and depth of a string ensemble (quartet, quintet, or full string orchestra). The percussion accompaniment can be performed by a single advanced player (a feature unto itself) or divided among multiple players, and a separate 3-player percussion score as well as individual percussion parts are included for flexible performance options.

This piece ships as a fully bound score or as an instant PDF download for printing or tablet viewing. Individual parts and the dedicated percussion score come exclusively in PDF format.