John McCabe

Fantasy On A Theme Of Liszt was written in 1967 for a Cheltenham Festival concert. The theme which lies behind the work is the opening tune of Liszt's Faust Symphony though this is never heard in its original form but is rather used as a thematic reservoir from which the music is derived. It is dedicated to the American composer and conductor Bernard Herrmann. John McCabe (1939-2015) was a British composer pianist and music administrator. He studied at the Royal Manchester College of Music (now the RNCM) and built a career as a virtuoso pianist. However he also wrote several hundred musical compositions ranging from large-scaleorchestral works to chamber music and solo instrumental pieces - it is said the only classical genre he did not write for was opera.

'Berceuse was commissioned by the Birmingham Chamber Music Society for their Diamond Jubilee Season 2011/12 the first performance was given by John McCabe on 18th February 2012 at the Adrian Boult Hall Birmingham Conservatoire. It is dedicated to John and Mary Joubert. The piece derives from three sources: the idea of the classical/romantic Berceuse (though in this case not so much a lullaby for children as is sometimes the case) the notion of two alternating themes of equal importance and the style of piano writing in which the main part of the melody is heard in the left hand rather than being right-hand tune plus left-hand accompaniment. The two mainthemes are closely related in style and content and towards the end they are heard together simultaneously in simplified form quietly revealing the dual texture for which the piece has been striving.'        John McCabe (2011)

Epithalamium was commissioned by John Sell as a birthday present for his wife Jane and is dedicated to her and to Malcolm Binns. It was written during summer 2006 and derived from the two great chords that swing to and fro during the Coronation Scene in Mussorgsky’s opera Boris Godunov. These provide a series of seven notes (heard in the quick flourishes after the opening chords) which provide the basis for the tunes and the harmonies through most of the work. The idea of bell sounds is carried through not only the chords during the piece but also some of the techniques (e.g. the gradually changing repeated patterns rather like bell-ringing changes encountered towards the end or the quiet and distant uneven tintinnabulation heard at the end of the central slow section). An epithalamium (or epithalamion) is a song or poem in honour of a bride and bridegroom though technically a wedding piece it seemed an appropriate title for a work honouring an anniversary especially one where bell-sounds provided the original inspiration.

Commissioned by the BBC for Ashley Wass one of Radio 3's New Generation Artists and first performed at a Proms Chamber Music Concert on 31st August 2009.'The series of concert pieces (ranging from 5 to 16 minutes) that I have called Studies started with the intention of exploring either pianistic or compositional topics but has since No 7 a homage to Dukas also reflected my love of the music of various composers. Tippett?s piano music some of which I have played many times has always fascinated me for its examination of an enormous range of keyboard sonorities and technique and for its lyrical poetry and the energy and dynamism so typical of its composer. Inthis study I have combined my tribute to him (during which I refer to two of his works) with an exploration of sonata form for many years I resisted the idea of writing a Piano Sonata (note the capital letters) thinking sonata form itself was not for me but I suddenly felt I could write a single-movement work thinking of the examples of Hoddinott Scriabin and Tippett himself which would impinge closely on sonata form. Thus the opening vigorous section recurs as a kind of recapitulation to close the work and between those two parts are a slow ?movement? and then a lightly scored scherzo. The actual ending itself vanishes into the distance in a little phrase which gets quicker and quieter until it is hardly heard.'????????????????John McCabe