Classic String Quartets for Festivals, Weddings, and All Occasions

Commissioned by the Presteigne Festival of Music and the Arts Limited with funds provided by the Arts Council of Wales for premiere in August 2012 by the Carducci String Quartet in St. Andrew?s Church Presteigne.Composer's Note.'Some years ago I noted down the opening theme of what I anticipated would be a relatively Classical string quartet ?Classical? in the sense of the forms adopted plus perhaps a predominantly lyrical tone of voice. The commission for this work from the Presteigne Festival for their 30th anniversary in 2012 gave me the opportunity of putting into practice this long-held idea. It isdedicated to the Festival and to the Carducci Quartet whose career as much-admired friends and colleagues I have greatly enjoyed.The only break with ?classical? tradition is that there are five movements instead of four with two Scherzi as the second and third though both these are very short and contrasting. I found myself listening to Haydn?s string quartets a lot before and during the composition of this work and I hope the spirit of his delight in writing for this medium is echoed in my own music. The opening movement is in sonata form unusually for me and lyricism is I hope the basis of it though there is a good deal of activity at times. The Scherzo light and marked by frequently-changing rhythms is followed by an equally short but ferocious Perpetuum mobile marked Wild und rasch (one of my favourite German tempo markings). The fourth movement is an intense Adagio in which a single phrase uttered strongly in unison is gradually transformed into gentle diatonic chords before the close intermingled with cadenzas for cello for viola and for the two violins together. The finale (a Rondo) resumes the classical tone of the first movement but apart from one dance-like episode it builds up a fair head of steam towards a final Presto which however ascends slows and quietens towards a gentle summer sky at dusk.'

By the age of forty Finnish composer Magnus Lindberg was one of the busiest concert composers in the world. His music avails itself of all manner of modern innovations but there is a Neo-Classical orientation in his harmoniesand formal design that makes his works appealing to a wide audience. The Quintet for Clarinet and Strings was comissioned by Kuhmo Chamber Music Festival and first performed in this festival in Finland in 1992. In the composer'sown words: 'Despite its rather extended duration (almost 20 minutes) the work is in one continuous movement. Sections are based on either a static material composed of different scales giving the music an 'insect like'appereance or on directional processes forcing the music to gradually change character or even physically pushing the music to extreme registers or speed.' This edition contains all the Parts.

In Grade 4 of Succeeding at the Piano students continue to cultivate musicianship and a passion for playing piano! New concepts are: triads and inversions; two octave scales; the circle of fifths; dominant seventh chords in root position; the trill; the key of B flat Major; 3 forms of E minor and G minor; diminished triads; refined pedal technique; sixteenth notes and sixteenth notes variants. Bach?s Prelude in C BWV 846 and classical themes by Brahms Liszt Mozart Beethoven and Grieg are interspersed with folk tunes and original solos by leading FJH composers. By reviewing the concepts of transposing musical forms intervals and technical tips Grade 4 supports the pedagogical foundation laid down in previous grades. The CD reinforces good practice habits with a short verbal pedagogical comment between the practice track and performance track. It also provides an opportunity to play with a string quartet accompaniment for some of the pieces. Engaging pieces in a wide variety of compositional styles reinforce valuable concepts presented in the Lesson and Technique Book. These compositions make fine recital festival and competition repertoire for students.Some of the selections are: Fantasie by Telemann; Minuet by Haydn; Musette by Gräfe; artistic arrangements of Tales from the Vienna Woods and Musetta?s Waltz; and outstanding originals by Timothy Brown Kevin Costley Mary Leaf Edwin McLean and Kevin Olson. Musicianship good practice habits and listening skills develop as students focus on ?Before Playing? and ?After Playing? points.

Par CASABLANCAS BENET. Shade and Darkness, lasting some 12:30 minutes, was co-commissioned by the Centro Nacional de Difusión Musical and the Festival Internacional de Música y Danza de Granada. The work is inspired by Turner's famous painting of the same name, subtitled 'The Night Before the Flood', although this does not imply any programmatic or even less descriptive intention, beyond the composer's admiration for the painter, and for the richness of tones and chiaroscuro, subtlety in the treatment of pictorial matter, and the dynamism and emotional force present in his work, to whose depth John Ruskin alludes: 'Nuance is in Turner, first of all, a beautiful aid to the great impression to be conveyed, but it is neither the source nor the essence of that impression; it is little more than a visible melody... preparing the feelings for the reading of the mysteries of God.' The score, generous in expressive contrasts, explores the ductility and richness of possibilities of the strings, with a very diversified use of textures, densities and colours. The formal arrangement describes a wide ternary arc, consisting of two slow and often static sections - not without ominous foreboding - and a more lively central part, punctuated by occasional turbulence and dazzling flashes of timbre, culminating in a powerful climactic process. In the final bars the four voices of the classical quartet fleetingly emerge, as a tribute to Günter Pichler, founder and member of the Alban Berg Quartet, to whom the score is dedicated, and who conducted the premiere of the work in front of the Joven Orquesta Nacional de España on 24 and 25 June 2014 at the Auditorio Nacional de Música in Madrid and in the Patio de los Mármoles del Hospital Real in Granada. / Date parution : 2022-03-15/ Répertoire / Petit Orchestre