SKU: P2.40006

James Grant says, Slow jazz... What musical language could celebrate more appropriately the lyrical, sensuous, expressive character of the bassoon? The three Chocolates, in this version for bassoon and piano, are torch songs in the tradition of the passionate, tuneful ballads of the American 40s and 50s. The first two Chocolates, Valentine and Bittersweet, offer soulful narratives that speak to devotion, poignancy, romance, uncertainty, longing. The third Chocolate, Triple Mocha Indulgence, is slightly less soul-searching, more ebullient, and progressively becomes more animated (a sugar high, perhaps?) right up to its raucous close. Chocolates was commissioned and premiered in 1998 by violist Michelle LaCourse, to whom this music is dedicated..

SKU: PR.14440727S

UPC: 680160681907. 9 x 12 inches.

My Eighth and Ninth String Quartets, begun in late 2017, are sonic cousins. Akin to real cousins, each piece exhibits differing natures. They were requested by two ensembles that have become asecond familiesa to me: The Jupiter Quartet of Urbana, Illinois and the Amernet Quartet based in Miami, Florida. Their collective dedication to, and care for, our art remains a personal and constant are-fuelinga for me. The quartets were commissioned by, and dedicated to, Margaret and Philip Verleger of Denver, Colorado. Additional financial support was provided by the School of Music at Stetson University, Timothy Peter, Dean. Quartet No.8 is laid out in a classical four-movement design. The work does break somewhat from conventional tradition by often placing quartet members into soloistic roles as the movement titles note. individual The opening piece presents at the outset a three-note motto which is turned over, tumbled, and energetically discussed, primarily by a violin duet. It is a duel. The two players part company only infrequently during the movement's progress, pausing briefly for other commentary by their alower cohortsa, the Viola and Cello do not argue, but abet their friends' aeffortsa. The piece's overall character is fairly bright and dancelike, closing in an unresolvedastandoffa. not Two principal asound-objectsa stitch the second movement scherzo together: sliding hands (glissandos) and a plucked ashufflea (pizzicato) - both instigated by the (solo) cellist. The others are influenced - or are not - by their aleadera, and follow - or interrupt - the cello throughout their four-voiced conversation. The third movement (longest of the set) is an elegy dedicated to the memory of a close personal friend, the American composer David Maslanka (1943 - 2017). Its' genesis is a simple 5-note melody derived from my own name (SaC/DaC/EaC/H). This line commences in the (solo) viola and is obsessively uttered without relief during the movement's lamentations. The closing movement revisits much of that opening three-note material, but now dressed up for the full quartet to view. It is a slowly accelerating romp which - twice - cannot avoid a nod to the Amernet and Jupiter performers by offering a humble bow to the 4th movement of Gustav Holst's PLANETS - Jupiter: The Bringer of Jollity. My quartet serves as an honouring salute of thanks for the talent, respect, and friendship of these two young quartets. STRING QUARTET No. 8 is roughly 22 minutes in duration. It was written as an homage to Franz Joseph Haydn, my adesert-island-composera, and completed in Holly Hill, Florida in early April of 2019. S.H.

SKU: OU.9780193564886

ISBN 9780193564886. 11 x 9 inches.

For SSATB and orchestra This work is centred around a powerful poem by Indian-American author Neelanjana Banerjee exploring the relationship of an immigrant and her child to their country of origin. Esmail engages full orchestral forces to create a vibrant work that draws on the sound-worlds of Western European and Indian traditions.

SKU: HL.233151

ISBN 9788759886427. 10.0x14.5 inches. English.

Piano solo part for Paganini Variations - Piano Concerto No.3 by Poul Ruders (2014). Score available: WH32201 Programme note: In 1999 my friend, American guitar virtuoso David Starobin, wanted me to write a concerto for guitar and orchestra. It quickly dawned on me, that this commission presented a golden opportunity to contribute to the time-honoured tradition of composing a series of variations on Nicolo Paganini's famous 24th Caprice for violin solo, a work which itself is a set of variations. The 16 bar (with the first 4 bars repeated) theme is not particularly sophisticated or intricate, but its inherent simplicity and logic just grow on you, almost to the point ofdistraction - and the secret behind it being hauled through the wringer by composers as disparate as Liszt, Brahms, Rachmaninoff and Lutoslawski is perhaps found in its - what I'll call, with a quick nervous look over my shoulder: brilliant banality. You can do anything with that tune, it'll always be recognizable and just there, however much you maul it. The piece (subtitled Guitar Concerto no 2) was written pretty quickly, premiered and subsequently recorded for Bridge Records with David and the Odense Symphony Orchestra conducted by Jan Wagner, and everybody was happy. But the story didn't end there, and it must be the ultimate proof of the durability of the theme, not to mention the flexibility and far-sightedness of David Starobin , when he 14 years later suggested why not transcribe the solo part for piano?. The idea appealed to me immediately. One thing was clear from the beginning: the new version could in no way sound like a transcription. My aim was to end up with a solo-part sounding like were it the one-and-only, the real thing, if you like. The orchestral score remains exactly the same in both cases. Both versions, the two Paganini Variations, are comparable to a set of twins, not quite identical, but almost. And both each others's equal. Poul Ruders.

SKU: HL.283172

UPC: 888680791209. 5.0x5.0x0.19 inches.

An American folk tradition, Play party songs like All Fly Around became popular in the mid-1800s due to the need for interaction and entertainment at social gatherings. Emily Crocker arranges this bright, country-flavored knee-slapper with an included fiddle part for those able to accompany their young singers in a celebration of dance and song!

SKU: KN.20071

UPC: 822795200713.

This rollicking favorite in 6/8 time will be popular wherever and whenever it's played. Modest technical demands account for the grade 3 rating, and the piece features good dynamic contrast and melodic/rhythmic interplay between parts.