Violin and piano - Advanced

SKU: DY.DO-1525

Composed by David Braid. Score and part. Les Editions Doberman-Yppan #DO 1525. Published by Les Editions Doberman-Yppan (DY.DO-1525).

ISBN 9782897963057.

J'aime les formes musicales concises telles que le Prélude et la Fugue, où il y a une idée claire et directe, suivie d'une autre plus complexe et développée.

Conformément à cette idée, cette œuvre se compose de deux pièces distinctes, la première - Transfigured Life - vise à attirer l'auditeur avec son rythme rapide et dansant et sa partie de violon simple et mélodique. Il se «transfigure» via quelques courts intermèdes au piano solo en seulement deux notes alternées pour terminer - qui sont le cœur de l'idée originale, maintenant clarifiée en effaçant tout le reste.

Le deuxième morceau - Still Life - conserve son sentiment de quiétude grâce à une ligne de piano simple qui laisse beaucoup d'espace à la partie contrastée (mais encore une fois simple) du violon. En tant que pièce absolue et non programmatique, le titre fait référence uniquement à la couleur et au rythme atmosphériques ; c'est à l'auditeur de voir la « nature morte » de son choix dans son esprit.

Une note sur les performances :
Malgré ma référence à des lignes « simples » et l'évitement déterminé par l'œuvre des grincements modernistes traditionnels, l'œuvre présente certains défis d'exécution en termes de phrasé et d'ensemble qui nécessitent des compétences et une musicalité considérables. L'œuvre a eu le privilège d'être récemment enregistrée par le violoniste Ezgi Sarıkcıoğlu et la pianiste Rossitza Stoycheva, et est disponible sur toutes les principales plateformes :

https://open.spotify.com/album/6p5YIe17ci0UMuo2RqZgjR
https://music.apple.com/gb/album/transfigured-life-still-life-world-premiere-recording/1738035953
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Transfigured Life - Still Life, Op. 165 (violin and piano) - David Braid

I am keen on concise musical forms such as Prelude and Fugue, where there is one clear straightforward idea, followed by another that is more involved and developed.

In keeping with that idea, this work consists of two distinct pieces, the first - Transfigured Life - aims to draw in the listener with its quick, dancing rhythm and simple, melodic violin part. It 'transfigures' via a few short solo piano interludes into just two alternating notes to end - which are the core of the original idea, now made clear by clearing everything else out of the way.

The second piece - Still Life - retains its sense of stillness through an uncomplicated piano line that gives lots of space for the violin's contrasting (but again simple) part. As an absolute, not programmatic, piece the title refers to the atmospheric colour and pacing only; it's up to the listener to see 'Still life' of their choosing in their own mind.

A note on performance:
Despite my reference to 'simple' lines, and the work's determined avoidance of mainstream modernist squeak - the work has certain performance challenges of phrasing and ensemble that requires considerable skill and musicianship. The work has had the privilege of being recently recorded by violinist Ezgi Sarıkcıoğlu and pianist Rossitza Stoycheva, and is available on all major platforms:

https://open.spotify.com/album/6p5YIe17ci0UMuo2RqZgjR
https://music.apple.com/gb/album/transfigured-life-still-life-world-premiere-recording/1738035953.

Composed by Greg Bartholomew. For "trumpet, percussion & string orchestra". Pathways Series. Level 4. Score and set of parts. Duration "3 minutes, 40 seconds". Published by Imagine Music

Guitar

SKU: FG.55011-324-4

Composed by Kai Nieminen. Fennica Gehrman #55011-324-4. Published by Fennica Gehrman (FG.55011-324-4).

ISBN 9790550113244.

Quadri Morandi (2014) ties together two essential themes of Kai Niminen's (b. 1953) compositional style: guitar and a subject inspired by Italy. The strong presence of the guitar in his works is natural since he is in an actively performing guitarist himself, and guitar works indeed play a significant role in his oeuvre. Moreover, he has written plenty of orchestral music; for instance two symphonies, numerous concertos, and chamber music. In the field of Finnish music he is a composer who can be characterized as free from any specific school or style. In his musical language, free tonal in essence, one can detect traces of Impressionism, Neoromanticism and even Expressionism at times, but he is also willing to employ more recent 20th-century stylistic devices. Nieminen has mentioned that he finds himself very similar to Japanese Toru Takemitsu both musically and in thought.

Mediterannean culture and Italy especially have been close to Nieminen's heart ever since he first visited the country and appeared in the jury of the international Fernando Sor guitar competition in 1981. He has composed a great number of works which refer to Italian landscapes or artists. The work Quadri Morandi (Morandi's pictures) is written in four movements. It has at its centre the painter Giorgio Morandi (1890-1964), who is known as a master of still lifes and landscapes painted in a plain manner and is subdued colours. Their atmosphere typically reflects a calm spirit. This is the third guitar work that nieminen has written for Kleemola.

It is easy to find a counterpart for the encaptivating realm of Morandi's art in Nieminen's clear and pure expression. The titles and expression markings also include several references to Morandi. For example, in the opening movement Prelude the words la Natura morta (still life) appear as an additional note on the chord sequence following the freely flowing opening section. At the end of the movement one can hear rhythmic motif coloured with flageolets that repeats the syllables of the painter's name: Gior-gio Moran-di. A similar motif can be heard at the end of the second movement Quasi cadenza. The tranquilly breathing third movement Paesaggio (landscape) creates an illusion of landscape by imitating the echo of monastery bells (come campane del monastero) and at the same time refers to il monaco (the monk), the name by which Morandi was often called. The final movement Ritratto (Portrait) is the most extensive of all the movements and can be seen, with its recurring motifs, as a reflection of the stable yet subtly varying elements of Morandi's art. The work ends with the rhythmic motif that once more echoes Morandi's name, like signature.

Choral (Listening CD)

SKU: HL.35032529

A Service for Holy Week. Composed by Douglas Nolan. Shawnee Sacred. Cantata, Easter, General Worship, Holy Week, Sacred. CD. Duration 2220 seconds. Published by Shawnee Press (HL.35032529).

ISBN 9781540040183. UPC: 888680896898. 5x5 inches.

Written to commemorate the Passion of Christ, this cantata is a moving tribute to His life and ministry. Composed for maximum flexibility and scored for SA(T)B voices, the optional cued notes make it possible for the cantata to grow with your choir. Smaller choirs will enjoy the rich textures and larger ensembles will be able to engage their full resources. For churches that desire an instrumental component, a very modest consort instrumentation creates a reverent accompaniment. The narration contains scriptures and prayers to convey the graceful theme of Christ's sacrificial love. Ending with the crucifixion, A Gathering of Grace will set the stage for Easter morning. Songs include: Prelude of Shadows; In the Stillness of This Moment; Ask of Me; Palm Branches; A Light in the Upper Room; Jesus, in Gethsemane; The Day the Cross Held Up the Sky; A Green Hill Far Away; Recessional. Score and Parts (fl, cl, hn, perc, pno, hp, vn, vc) available as a Printed Edition and as a digital download.

Composed by Gwyneth W. Walker (1947-). 21st Century. Octavo. Duration 3 minutes, 45 seconds. E.C. Schirmer Publishing #8678. Published by E.C. Schirmer Publishing

Full orchestra Bassoon 1, Bassoon 2, Clarinet 1, Clarinet 2, Contrabass, Crash Cymbals, Flute 1, Flute 2, Glockenspiel, Harp, Horn 1, Horn 2, Horn 3, Oboe 2, Percussion 1, Percussion 2, Piccolo, Suspended Cymbal, Timpani, Trombone 1, Trombone 2, Trumpet 1 and more.

SKU: CF.SC88

Composed by William Grant Still. Full score. 32 pages. Duration 9 minutes, 20 seconds. Carl Fischer Music #SC88. Published by Carl Fischer Music (CF.SC88).

ISBN 9781491158845. UPC: 680160917563.

William Grant Stillas catalog of works comprises over 200 pieces, including five symphonies, nine operas, four ballets and numerous works for chamber ensembles. He initially found employment as an oboist in pit orchestras in New York City, later as an arranger of popular music for various ensembles, including those by William C. Handy, James P. Johnson and Paul Whiteman. His career as a composer was launched with a performance in 1931 of his Symphony No. 1 aAfro-Americana by the Rochester Philharmonic, conducted by Howard Hanson, who would remain a life-long champion of Stillas orchestral works. By the 1950s the symphony had been performed in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles and various European capitals. This notoriety earned Still a Guggenheim Fellowship in 1934, after which he moved to Los Angeles. He is credited as the first African-American to conduct a major orchestra (the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra), the first to have an opera performed by a major company (Troubled Island by the New York City Opera in 1949), and one of the first composers to write for radio, films and television. So numerous were his awards and accolades, including three Guggenheim Fellowships and a variety of honorary doctorates, that he was designated as the aDean of Afro-American Composers.a Still composed his Serenade for Orchestra in 1957 on a commission by the Great Falls High School in Great Falls, Montana. He later transcribed the work for a chamber ensemble of flute, clarinet, harp and strings. The piece reflects Stillas interest in American folk idioms, with conventional melodies and harmonies that nonetheless express a fresh and individual compositional voice.
William Grant Still's catalog of works comprises over 200 pieces, including five symphonies, nine operas, four ballets and numerous works for chamber ensembles. He initially found employment as an oboist in pit orchestras in New York City, later as an arranger of popular music for various ensembles, including those by William C. Handy, James P. Johnson and Paul Whiteman. His career as a composer was launched with a performance in 1931 of his Symphony No. 1 Afro-American by the Rochester Philharmonic, conducted by Howard Hanson, who would remain a life-long champion of Still's orchestral works. By the 1950s the symphony had been performed in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles and various European capitals. This notoriety earned Still a Guggenheim Fellowship in 1934, after which he moved to Los Angeles. He is credited as the first African-American to conduct a major orchestra (the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra), the first to have an opera performed by a major company (Troubled Island by the New York City Opera in 1949), and one of the first composers to write for radio, films and television. So numerous were his awards and accolades, including three Guggenheim Fellowships and a variety of honorary doctorates, that he was designated as the Dean of Afro-American Composers. Still composed his Serenade for Orchestra in 1957 on a commission by the Great Falls High School in Great Falls, Montana. He later transcribed the work for a chamber ensemble of flute, clarinet, harp and strings. The piece reflects Still's interest in American folk idioms, with conventional melodies and harmonies that nonetheless express a fresh and individual compositional voice.
William Grant Still’s catalog of works comprises over 200 pieces, including five symphonies, nine operas, four ballets and numerous works for chamber ensembles. He initially found employment as an oboist in pit orchestras in New York City, later as an arranger of popular music for various ensembles, including those by William C. Handy, James P. Johnson and Paul Whiteman. His career as a composer was launched with a performance in 1931 of his Symphony No. 1 “Afro-American” by the Rochester Philharmonic, conducted by Howard Hanson, who would remain a life-long champion of Still’s orchestral works. By the 1950s the symphony had been performed in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles and various European capitals.This notoriety earned Still a Guggenheim Fellowship in 1934, after which he moved to Los Angeles. He is credited as the first African-American to conduct a major orchestra (the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra), the first to have an opera performed by a major company (Troubled Island by the New York City Opera in 1949), and one of the first composers to write for radio, films and television. So numerous were his awards and accolades, including three Guggenheim Fellowships and a variety of honorary doctorates, that he was designated as the “Dean of Afro-American Composers.”Still composed his Serenade for Orchestra in 1957 on a commission by the Great Falls High School in Great Falls, Montana. He later transcribed the work for a chamber ensemble of flute, clarinet, harp and strings. The piece reflects Still’s interest in American folk idioms, with conventional melodies and harmonies that nonetheless express a fresh and individual compositional voice.

Scott Joplin Reconsidered. Composed by Scott Joplin (1868-1917). Edited by Lara Downes. Collection. Theodore Presser Company #440-40028. Published by Theodore Presser Company