Brass Band Instruments on Velvet Chair

Soft tungsten light spills across a plush velvet chair positioned on a polished floor in a Bywater home before dawn. The deep red fabric of the seat absorbs the warm glow, while the brass instruments resting upon it reflect the light with sharp, metallic highlights. A trumpet bell and the coiled tubing of a trombone catch the illumination, creating bold contrasts against the shadowed crevices of the velvet. Muted reflections of the gold and silver surfaces stretch across the dark floorboards, elongating the shapes of the instruments. The midsummer stillness settles over the room, leaving the instruments motionless and gleaming under the single overhead source. A thin rim of light traces the curve of a saxophone mouthpiece.