Shenandoah: String Orchestra: Score

Bob Krogstad's skilled writing for strings is unmatched in its creativity and effectiveness. This sensitive setting of the beloved American folk tune is filled with Bob's artistic melodic treatment harmonic freshness and superborchestration. A beautiful program piece that will highlight any concert or festival perfromance. Dur: 3:30

The composer writes:Pilgrim was inspired it will be no surprise to learn by reading Bunyan's Pilgrim's Progress - Vaughan Williams's great opera on the subject had fascinated me from its first performance yet it was a long time before I caught up with this essential item in any well-stocked library of English classics. It made a great impression not least because of its theme of a journey of self-discovery and a rediscovery or renewal of faith. These are ideas which have a strong interest for me not in religious terms but in their application to every aspect of human life (including great journeys) and this piece reflects my response in musical terms to this concern. The tempo of the whole piece which lasts about 18 minutes is basically slow. There are two quick episodes but these act somewhat like the trio sections of a classical scherzo save that the tempo relationships are inverted (the classical trios would have been slower not quicker) and the canvas is much larger being that of a single substantial slow movement. The form of the whole is perhaps fantasia-like rather than having any relationship to classical forms such as sonata or rondo - some motifs and themes are varied as the work develops and the opening chords are of primary importance throughout the work. There has been no attempt to convey any pictorial elements deriving from Bunyan's great book. There is however one feature which upon completion of the score struck me with some force which is that almost all the thematic material is essentially striving upwards - there is a constant upward movement (sometimes over a lengthy period) throughout the work. Pilgrim was commissioned by the Luton Music Club for the Raphael Ensemble with funds provided by the Eastern Arts Board and Bedfordshire County Council and is dedicated to the Luton Music Club. The first performance was given in Luton on February 10th 1997 and followed as part of a joint scheme by performances in the same week at the Music Clubs of Bedford and Leighton Buzzard.

The fate of Bohuslav Martinu's String Trio no.1 which dates from the turn of 1923 and 1924 and was lost until 2005 is somewhat remarkable. The trio is the first work which Martinu created in Paris after becoming the private pupil of Albert Roussel and was probably performed twice in Paris during 1924. It had its Czech premiere in February 1925 and Martinu requested his friend S. Novak to make sure that they didn't lose the scores of the things they played because he did not have any sketches or copies.Precisely that which Martinu feared then occurred - the sole existing version of the trio was lost; it was not until the autumn of 2005 that the autographof the trio (the score and parts for the viola and cello - the violin part is still missing) was found at the Danish Royal Library in Copenhagen thanks to the searches of the Bohuslav Martinu Institute and it is after this autograph that this edition has arisen.

E-moll Op. 64-Mendelssohn’s Violin Concerto op. 64 is a key work of the 19th century adhering to the classical style of Beethoven while pointing the way to the romantic ethos of Brahms. It has long been known that Mendelssohn performed the work with three soloists in succession: Ferdinand David who worked closely with the composer during its composition and played it at the première; the ‘child prodigy’ Joseph Joachim; and Hubert Léonard a young Belgian virtuoso about whom little is known.As proof sheets for the Violin Concerto in E minor were long considered lost it could be described as somewhat of a sensation when proofs for the soloviolin part resurfaced together with a letter from Mendelssohn to Léonard.The letter informs us that the composer invited Léonard to his home in Frankfurt in order to make his acquaintance. It was already known that Mendelssohn had given proof sheets to David; now we know that he also gave some to Léonard.The recently discovered proofs reveal how Léonard played the concerto with Mendelssohn on that memorable evening in February 1845. Besides containing bowing marks and fingering they also show how Léonard executed shifts of position and where he employed open strings. Furthermore modifications made to dynamic markings and additional legato bowing are shown.It is safe to assume that all of this was done with Mendelssohn’s approval. That the young violinist made a positive impression on the composer is confirmed in the latter’s correspondence following their joint performance. Mendelssohn is full of praise for Léonard’s playing and offers to lend his support in finding employment in Germany.This revised edition of the Mendelssohn Violin Concerto (only the orchestral parts remain unchanged) includes a separate booklet on performance practice.The editor Clive Brown is an acknowledged expert on Romantic performance practice.- New source situation owing to recently rediscovered proofs- Revised Urtext edition- With a separate booklet on performance practice (BA9060) (Eng/Ger)- Full score in the revised early and late (popular) versions (BA9099)

Stephen Albert's Into Eclipse for Tenor and Chamber Orchestra. Full score.'Into Eclipse is based on Ted Hughes' adaptation of Seneca's Oedipus. The five episodes chosen astexts for this musical setting form an abbreviated version in song of this Roman dramatisation of the Oedipus myth.Seneca's play has no external action. As Peter Brook informs us in his introduction to the play '...it takes place nowhere...possibly it was read aloud in the bathhouse to friends.' It therefore seemed possible to take the essential elements of the tale and transform them into a rather complete musical statement that wasnon-theatrical yet dramatic in its own terms. Into Eclipse is thus not a monodrama nor even a solo oratorio but rather a 'Herosong.' It is somewhat in the tradition but not of course in the manner of earlyballadeers and minstrels who often set ancient stories and myths to music and performed these musical narratives for both court and country village.The story is sung from different viewpoints (that of Creon thechorus of citizens and of course Oedipus the king) all encompassed within the bounds of one man's voice and his complement of instruments. There is no concious attempt to 'paint' or emphasise particular words or phrases withinthe text nor was there an effort to musically heighten Seneca's already nightmarish vision with its withering onslaught of bloodthirsty images. To do so seemed to risk weighing down the cycle in a morbid atmosphere one filledwith caricature and the grotesque.' - Stephen AlbertThe full-Orchestra version of Into Eclipse was premiered on September 8 1986 by the Seattle Symphony with Gary Lakes Tenor andGerard Schwarz conductor. It is also available in a version for Tenor and Chamber Ensemble [Flute/Piccolo Clarinet/Piccolo Clarinet Horn Trumpet Percussion (2 players) Harp Piano and Strings]. This version was premiered on

With marked and unmarked string part-In 1873 following the rejection of his opera 'The King and the Charcoal Burner' Anton n Dvorák reached somewhat of a turning point in his career. Inspired to give his compositions a new direction he started to writepieces such as his String Quartet In F Minor Op. 9 in a new style that was less orientated towards Wagner. However much to his disappointment this new style was rejected by musicians. Notwithstanding this painful experienceDvorák gave the slow movement of the quartet a second chance reworking it as a Romance For Violin Or Orchestra In F Minor. It was first performed in 1877 to great acclaim. The fingerings and bowings byAntje Weithaas lend the Henle Urtext Edition of this jewel of Violin literature a special touch.

Für Violine und Orchester Op. 64-Mendelssohn’s Violin Concerto op. 64 is a key work of the 19th century adhering to the classical style of Beethoven while pointing the way to the romantic ethos of Brahms. It has long been known that Mendelssohn performed the work with three soloists in succession: Ferdinand David who worked closely with the composer during its composition and played it at the premi?re; the ‘child prodigy’ Joseph Joachim; and Hubert L?onard a young Belgian virtuoso about whom little is known.As proof sheets for the Violin Concerto in E minor were long considered lost it could be described as somewhat of a sensation when proofs for the soloviolin part resurfaced together with a letter from Mendelssohn to L?onard.The letter informs us that the composer invited L?onard to his home in Frankfurt in order to make his acquaintance. It was already known that Mendelssohn had given proof sheets to David; now we know that he also gave some to L?onard.The recently discovered proofs reveal how L?onard played the concerto with Mendelssohn on that memorable evening in February 1845. Besides containing bowing marks and fingering they also show how L?onard executed shifts of position and where he employed open strings. Furthermore modifications made to dynamic markings and additional legato bowing are shown.It is safe to assume that all of this was done with Mendelssohn’s approval. That the young violinist made a positive impression on the composer is confirmed in the latter’s correspondence following their joint performance. Mendelssohn is full of praise for L?onard’s playing and offers to lend his support in finding employment in Germany.This revised edition of the Mendelssohn Violin Concerto (only the orchestral parts remain unchanged) includes a separate booklet on performance practice.The editor Clive Brown is an acknowledged expert on Romantic performance practice.- New source situation owing to recently rediscovered proofs- Revised Urtext edition- With a separate booklet on performance practice (BA9060) (Eng/Ger)- Full score in the revised early and late (popular) versions (BA9099)