Format : Textbook
SKU: SU.50600030
Commissioned by the Colonial Symphony, Paul Hostetter, Music Director and Conductor First performed in 2006 Published by: Dunsinane Music Composer's Note: My inspiration for Smiling Dennis is the great bass clarinet virtuoso Dennis Smylie. I have had the pleasure of getting to know Dennis over the past several years owing to our mutual affiliation at Montclair State University. We would meet unintentionally in the halls and begin conversations regarding all manners of topics: from the colorful history of the bass clarinet—and bass clarinetists—to the furious appetite of the New Jersey groundhog. Dennis inevitably finds the humor in things—he revels in discovering the comic story that can often be found, just underneath the topic. When Maestro Hostetter asked me to compose a new piece during his initial season with the Colonial Symphony, and mentioned the possibility of a work related to humor, I immediately thought of the Dennis. When I spoke with Maestro Hostetter the following day, I had already conceived of the title (very unusual for me—I’m much more a musical/visual thinker than a verbal one) as well as the overall musical narrative. Smiling Dennis is a concerto in one movement for one bass clarinetist and twenty string players. Somewhat unusually, each performer has a unique musical assignment—that is, the string players are not aligned into their typical alliances of first violins, second violins and so forth. This permits a more complex string texture, allowing each performer to assert his or her individuality. Indeed, the notion of individuality is essential to this concerto, as it often is in concerti. For example, Smiling Dennis begins with the bass clarinet not quite obeying the conventions of tuning to the orchestra. Rather than simply take the A offered by the Concertmaster, the soloist playfully performs a gently descending series of notes. Offered another A, the soloist repeats this gesture (though with a different descending series). This exchange occurs four times. In the final one, members of the string orchestra join the soloist in the first significant statement of one of the central melodies. The bass clarinet completes this introductory section alone, playing all the way down to a low A, a third below the lowest note in the celli. Following the introduction, Smiling Dennis consists of six sections, somewhat along the lines of a dance suite: an energetic Allegro, a lyric Arioso, a forward Piú mosso, a light-hearted and syncopated dance, a even more energetic passage for strings alone, and finally a modified return to the introduction. In the return, the string ensemble is no longer at all oppositional to the soloist. Rather, in response to the soloist’s gentle cajoling and supportive commentary, the strings accompany—with pleasure, you might say—the quiet, individual playfulness of the bass clarinet. The work ends with a return to the soloist’s substratum A, accompanied quietly by the strings.
SKU: SS.50600030
Commissioned by the Colonial Symphony, Paul Hostetter, Music Director and Conductor. First performed in 2006. Composer's Note: My inspiration for Smiling Dennis is the great bass clarinet virtuoso Dennis Smylie. I have had the pleasure of getting to know Dennis over the past several years owing to our mutual affiliation at Montclair State University. We would meet unintentionally in the halls and begin conversations regarding all manners of topics: from the colorful history of the bass clarinet - and bass clarinetists - to the furious appetite of the New Jersey groundhog. Dennis inevitably finds the humor in things - he revels in discovering the comic story that can often be found, just underneath the topic. When Maestro Hostetter asked me to compose a new piece during his initial season with the Colonial Symphony, and mentioned the possibility of a work related to humor, I immediately thought of the Dennis. When I spoke with Maestro Hostetter the following day, I had already conceived of the title (very unusual for me - I'm much more a musical/visual thinker than a verbal one) as well as the overall musical narrative. Smiling Dennis is a concerto in one movement for one bass clarinetist and twenty string players. Somewhat unusually, each performer has a unique musical assignment - that is, the string players are not aligned into their typical alliances of first violins, second violins and so forth. This permits a more complex string texture, allowing each performer to assert his or her individuality. Indeed, the notion of individuality is essential to this concerto, as it often is in concerti. For example, Smiling Dennis begins with the bass clarinet not quite obeying the conventions of tuning to the orchestra. Rather than simply take the A offered by the Concertmaster, the soloist playfully performs a gently descending series of notes. Offered another A, the soloist repeats this gesture (though with a different descending series). This exchange occurs four times. In the final one, members of the string orchestra join the soloist in the first significant statement of one of the central melodies. The bass clarinet completes this introductory section alone, playing all the way down to a low A, a third below the lowest note in the celli. Following the introduction, Smiling Dennis consists of six sections, somewhat along the lines of a dance suite: an energetic Allegro, a lyric Arioso, a forward Piu mosso, a light-hearted and syncopated dance, a even more energetic passage for strings alone, and finally a modified return to the introduction. In the return, the string ensemble is no longer at all oppositional to the soloist. Rather, in response to the soloist's gentle cajoling and supportive commentary, the strings accompany - with pleasure, you might say - the quiet, individual playfulness of the bass clarinet. The work ends with a return to the soloist's substratum A, accompanied quietly by the strings.
SKU: CA.4057609
ISBN 9790007219086. Key: A minor. Language: all languages.
An oboe concerto from the romantic era? Embarassingly, due to the small amount of solo literature for the instrument from this period, this question often asked of oboists, must be answerded with a reference to the few small concert pieces and sets of variations available. The A minor Concerto by Hugo Schuncke, who was a musician at the Court of Stuttgart, fills a need. The work consists of three movements: a virtuoso Allegro, a pastorale Andante and a rhythmic, exciting Bolero in rondo form. Score and parts available separately - see item CA.4057600.
SKU: CA.4057600
ISBN 9790007105976. Key: A minor. Language: all languages.
An oboe concerto from the romantic era? Embarassingly, due to the small amount of solo literature for the instrument from this period, this question often asked of oboists, must be answerded with a reference to the few small concert pieces and sets of variations available. The A minor Concerto by Hugo Schuncke, who was a musician at the Court of Stuttgart, fills a need. The work consists of three movements: a virtuoso Allegro, a pastorale Andante and a rhythmic, exciting Bolero in rondo form.
SKU: CA.4057611
ISBN 9790007219093. Key: A minor. Language: all languages.
An oboe concerto from the romantic era? Embarassingly, due to the small amount of solo literature for the instrument from this period, this question often asked of oboists, must be answerded with a reference to the few small concert pieces and sets of variations available. The A minor Concerto by Hugo Schuncke, who was a musician at the Court of Stuttgart, fills a need. The work consists of three movements: a virtuoso Allegro, a pastorale Andante and a rhythmic, exciting Bolero in rondo form. Score and part available separately - see item CA.4057600.
SKU: CA.4057614
ISBN 9790007219123. Key: A minor. Language: all languages.
SKU: CA.4057613
ISBN 9790007219116. Key: A minor. Language: all languages.
SKU: CA.4057615
ISBN 9790007219130. Key: A minor. Language: all languages.
SKU: CA.4057619
ISBN 9790007133191. Key: A minor. Language: all languages.
SKU: CA.4057612
ISBN 9790007219109. Key: A minor. Language: all languages.
SKU: CA.4057603
ISBN 9790007105983. Key: A minor. Language: all languages.
An oboe concerto from the romantic era? Embarassingly, due to the small amount of solo literature for the instrument from this period, this question often asked of oboists, must be answerded with a reference to the few small concert pieces and sets of variations available. The A minor Concerto by Hugo Schuncke, who was a musician at the Court of Stuttgart, fills a need. The work consists of three movements: a virtuoso Allegro, a pastorale Andante and a rhythmic, exciting Bolero in rondo form. Score available separately - see item CA.4057600.
