SKU: PR.144407380
ISBN 9781491133903. UPC: 680160683475. 9 x 12 inches.
In her powerful Foreword to the music, violinist Kelly Hall-Tompkins has written: “There are great works which give voice to important moments for generations, and this is one of them.†The tragedy of Elijah McClain’s murder has moved us all, and for many musicians the image of this gentle young man playing his violin for kittens at an animal shelter has added a poignant extra layer. Zwilich was a professional violinist before turning exclusively to composing, and A LITTLE VIOLIN MUSIC is a memorial from the heart of one violinist to another.[THESE NOTES MAY NOT BE REPRODUCED OUTSIDE OF THE PUBLICATION; OK TO QUOTE A BIT AND GIVE AUTHOR CREDIT]We often research important pieces of music to gain some glimpse into the mind of the composer by understanding the times in which a piece was written. The times that brought this piece into being, 2020, has been a year like no other in our lifetimes.With the suffering of a once in a century pandemic raging in ever higher waves, and millions of people around the world confined to their homes with a shared attention span for the first time in generations, we watched in horror the 8 minute 46 second killing of George Floyd, a man previously unknown to us, but now unwillingly joining a long list of names of unarmed African Americans killed by police. The anguished backlash of citizens around the world, from Japan to New Zealand to Germany to the United States, of every age, color, and creed, has rallied for weeks and months on end to demand enough and that “Black Lives Matter.â€And yet, in the midst of it all is an America starkly divided against itself with some defiantly pushing back, emboldened by authoritarian-style government actions against its own citizens occurring all over the country. It is against this backdrop that we ever had a chance to know of Elijah McClain. Here in quarantine I sometimes practice my scales in front of the news. And one day the mirror image looking back at me from the screen was a slight young man, warm, affable brown eyes, and also a violin under his chin. The newsreel-style camera pan so familiar now, I knew the only reason we were gazing upon his unfamous face was that he too had been killed by police nearly a year before. But the revelation of it in the broadcast hit me particularly hard.Ellen Taaffe Zwilich, who is not only one of the great composers of our time, is also a dear friend, and called me the next day, also deeply saddened by the news. It was from Ellen that I learned that Elijah used to play for the kittens at the local animal shelter so they wouldn’t be lonely. This kind, gentle soul was aggressively taken into police custody while saying, “I am an introvert. Please respect the boundaries that I am speaking... I’m going home.†He was never seen alive again.Ellen and I spoke of the sadness and the injustice of this several times. She felt a powerful calling to contribute something in a statement and the result is the piece you now hold in your hands. I am deeply honored to be the dedicatee of the piece, to have worked together with Ellen on some of the final details, and to pen this score note. As an invited alumna of the Eastman School of Music, I premiered the work for their virtual event on Diversity and Inclusion. Each time I play it, there is a persistent lump in my throat because Ellen has captured something poignant and powerful here.There are great works which give voice to important moments for generations, and this is one of them. We humbly offer this piece in memory of Elijah McClain.Foreword © 2021 by Kelly Hall-Tompkins. Used by permission.
SKU: SU.29120120
String Trio for Violin, Viola, & Cello is a single-movement work albeit with distinct sections including a fast paced and energetic opening, the slow and very emotional middle, an off-beat lively waltz and, finally, a return to the rapid opening material. The harmonic language of this trio could be described as chromatic tonalism with a dissonant edge. Mason says: The goal of this Trio is to take the listener on an emotional journey of discovery. There are sounds of perhaps JanáÄek but, in other places, a bit of Hindemith or even a pinch of Beethoven. But the point is to tell a story where new and unexpected things are always happening.Violin, Viola & Violoncello Duration: 10' Composed: 2023 Published by: Todd Mason.
SKU: AP.6-450414
ISBN 9780486450414. UPC: 9780486450414. 9x12 inches. English.
How long should I practice? Which pieces should I study? How can I develop a singing tone? All violinists ponder these questions, striving to make the most of their practice and performances. This enlightening and encouraging book holds the answers, offering a series of interviews with the most celebrated violin teachers and performers of the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.Twenty-four famous violinists reveal the secrets of their success, sharing the lessons of their artistry and experience. In addition to aesthetic and technical aspects of playing, they discuss their personal conceptions of violin mastery. Eugene Ysaye reminisces about his studies with Vieuxtemps and Wieniawski, and Leopold Auer emphasizes the importance of fostering students' individual talents. Maud Powell describes her pioneering role as a female orchestral musician, and Jascha Heifetz voices his views on technical mastery and temperament. Hints and advice from other masters include tips on efficient practice, immproving bow technique, and refining intonation. A rare find in musical literature, this book is essential reading for every serious violinist.Dover (2006) unabridged republication of the work originally published by Frederick A. Stokes, New York, 1919.
SKU: HL.49047398
ISBN 9798350127898. UPC: 842819121244. 9.0x12.0x0.061 inches.
This work for solo violin was commissioned by American Violinist Wendy Case for her CD of works for solo violin by living composers titled The Tiger and The Clover released in February 2022 by the label Blue Griffin. Just as Wendy proposed this new work, I heard the news that the Polish poet Adam Zagajewski who I had met through mutual friends, had died. I had long admired his essays that thoughtfully and with grace and ease, merged the past with the present in the way that only a poet can, lifting the reader onto a plain of images, thoughts and words that conjure seamless journeys through time, space and the imagination. His essays often refer to the music of Bach and I found myself writing this piece inhabited by the physical pleasure of playing Bach's suites for Lute transposed for the guitar. The piece revolves around a simple repetitive semiquaver motif playing with the Aeolian mode starting on G. The motif ascends and descends playing with and against the low G string to extend itself away from the home mode, then returning and gradually extending into quavers to reach the key of E major while hinting at A minor. The repetitive nature of the piece invites the player to explore variations in sound quality and dynamics and to enjoy the effect of the notes playing against each other as they rise and fall away but always maintain a constant tempo and rhythm.
SKU: AP.48274
ISBN 9781470643270. UPC: 038081556109. English.
Adaptable and flexible to your unique needs, Solos, Duets & Trios for Strings is a versatile series that encourages playing in a variety of combinations. Featuring three written parts for every song, the arrangements are designed so that the top line is the melody (Part 1), the second line (Part 2) creates a duet, and the third line (Part 3) forms a trio. You can play solo parts alone or form small string ensembles by mixing and matching instrumentation, as well as mixing the parts played. Students will gain the opportunity to learn how to play in a small chamber group setting. Solos, Duets & Trios for Strings: Movie Favorites features 19 of the most familiar and popular movie themes ever. Titles: As Time Goes By * Can You Read My Mind? (Love Theme from Superman) * Cantina Band * Family Portrait * From Russia with Love * Gonna Fly Now (Theme from Rocky) * Hedwig's Theme * The Great Escape March * The Imperial March (Darth Vader's Theme) * In Dreams * May the Force Be with You * James Bond Theme * The Magnificent Seven (Main Title) * Newt Says Goodbye to Tina/Jacob's Bakery * Over the Rainbow * Shallow * Song from M*A*S*H (Suicide Is Painless) * Star Wars (Main Title) * Theme from Superman.
SKU: HL.49046553
ISBN 9781705122785. UPC: 842819113027. 9.0x12.0x0.109 inches.
For almost 100 years, violinists had to live without Eugene Ysaye's Sonata Op. 27bis. The work was re-discovered in a sketchbook recently given to the library of Brussels' Koninklijk Conservatorium and is now published for the first time. The Sonate posthume was composed in the surrounding of Ysaye's famous cycle of six solo sonatas for violin and shares their artistic quality.
SKU: SU.29120130
Premiered at Brigham Young University and comissioned by Duo Novae, Los Angeles composer Todd Mason wrote his Duo for Violin & Viola in 2023. Mason says: The Duo was a chance to explore the wide range of textures, harmonic worlds and emotions of just one violin & one viola. This piece spans many energy states with a kind of Bartókian chromaticism mixed with a bit of an East Indian feel in some sections. The work is in one-movement and keeps driving forward from the first notes to the end! This piece was recently admitted into the prestigious William Primrose International Archive at Brigham Young University.Violin & Viola Duration: 8' Composed: 2023 Published by: Todd Mason.
SKU: PR.416411770
UPC: 680160091508.
I was tempted to call the piece Throw Back because it consciously employs rhythmic and harmonic approaches characteristic of the earlier part of the twentieth century, much of which plays a part in forging my musical personality. Going along with the impetus, I have paid homage by subtly interpolating stylistic or actual references to such unexpected bedfellows as Scriabin, Ravel, Debussy, Piston, Roussel, and Ysaye. I hope I will be musically forgiven. In one continuous movement, there are three definite internal sections: Presto-Largo-Allegro. The first section opens with a very soft percussion cadenza. If the acoustics allow it, the player will use sponge pottery mallets (sponge-headed mallets employed to smooth the interior of a pot as it is being spin-dried). No matter how hard the percussionist strikes the drums, the dynamic cannot go above pp (pianissimo). This cadenza serves as a basis for the first movement. The elements of the cadenza are taken by the orchestra to make the first major statement, similar to the classical concerto; but rather than making a restatement, the soloists, when they come in, begin with variational ideas. The second section is given over to the soloists, and is lyrical. The third section begins with an alternation between strict rhythmic pulsation and free-sounding timbres, as if reluctant to leave the second section behind. The rhythmic aspect takes over more and more as the piece progresses toward its conclusion. Double Play was commissioned by the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra with financial assistance from the Northwest Area Foundation. It received its premiere on January 7, 1983, in St. Paul, with the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra; Pinchas Zukerman, violinist; Marc Neikrug, piano; and the composer conducting.
SKU: PR.11441691S
UPC: 680160631261. 9 x 12 inches.
Two disparate instruments begin in their own voices, slowly become aware of each other, play off of each other, play together, become close. The analogy to a human relationship (though not one specific type of relationship) between two people that either are, or become, extremely close, fraught with all the complexity, contradictions, and degrees of emotion that an ever-evolving close relationship engenders, was indeed on my mind throughout the compositional process, says Ran. A Due spans a wide range of emotional content from fully immersed musicians.
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