PROGRAM NOTE Spirit was composed in memory of Laura Flax (1952–2017), the renowned New York-based clarinetist and my cherished friend. Our musical and personal association began in 1977 when Laura invited me to compose a solo clarinet work, For an Actor: Monologue for Clarinet, in memory of her mother, Hazel Flax, whom I had known.…
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PROGRAM NOTE VERTICALS is a seventeen-minute solo piano work in one movement, which can be divided into several interlocking sections roughly suggesting an exposition / contrast / recapitulation / coda formal plan. All materials of the work, however, originate from the opening sonority—a vertical structure (chord) comprising eight notes (though containing only six of the…
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PROGRAM NOTE The process of contemplating a yet-to-be-written composition has always conjured up in my mind the image of a person embarking on a journey to a mysterious, unknown destination. All is possible, the freedom both exciting and daunting! Time and again, as I begin this process, two decisions, often determined by the external circumstances…
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PROGRAM NOTE When the American violist Melia Watras approached me about composing a solo viola piece for her, she presented an idea that added an intriguing extra dimension to this commissioning project. Her hope was to have me create a work that, in some way, alluded to, or made use of, an existing work of…
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PROGRAM NOTE FOR AN ACTOR: MONOLOGUE FOR CLARINET owes its inspiration in large part to the intensely personal ethos with which the clarinet is associated in my mind. To me, the instrument in its contemporary usage suggests an incredible gamut of gestures, dynamics and emotions. Accordingly, in MONOLOGUE, the player assumes the role of a…
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Winner of the Israeli League of Composers competition for theset piece played by all contestants at the2nd Arthur Rubinstein International Piano Master Competitionin Israel in 1977 Premiere performances: April 1977All competition contestants Duration: c. 8’ The word “Hyperbolae” has a double meaning: it refers to a geometric design, and is also the derivation of a…
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Composing for a solo, essentially melody-line instrument such as the violin, is a challenge I have found myself drawn back to time and again over the years. Inscriptions for violin follows solo works written (in reverse chronology) for flute, cello, and clarinet since 1978. The challenge for me, all the more intriguing in the context…
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The American Guild of Organists commission of a short solo organ work for its 2006 Biennial National Convention in Chicago provided me with the opportunity to explore what was exciting new territory for me. Whenever writing for a musical instrument for the first time, I become acutely aware that an instrument is not merely a…
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Chicago Flute Club 25th Anniversary Commission Premiere: August 10, 2014National Flute Association annual convention, Chicago, ILMary Stolper, flute and Kuang-Hao Huang, piano Duration: c. 12’ Birds of Paradise for flute and piano (2013) intersperses music that is brilliant and energetic with the wondrous and songful. Its title notwithstanding, I did not set out to compose…
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Commissioned by the Walter W. Naumburg Foundationfor Xiaohui Yang World Premiere: January 21, 2020Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie HallNew York CityXiaohui Yang, pianist Duration: c. 11’ Ballade, a work of approximately 11 minutes, is a one-movement work, internally divided into three main parts that are played without significant break. A pianist learning the work will…
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