Orchestra with Soloist(s)

2222/1(a.sax)1(t.sax)1(b.sax)/4331/timp., 2 perc.(2nd plays drum set), solo pno./strgs

In 2005 the ESO performed at the National Arts Centre in Ottawa as part of the Alberta Scene festival. This was a wonderful night and the concert closed with my Dreaming of the Masters I. Bill Eddins was in attendance and during intermission told me he was especially interested to hear “Dreaming” as he had been thinking of a piece with a similar theme called Rhapsody GEB. He was looking for a “companion” piece to Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue that would be inspired by Gershwin, Ellington and Bernstein.

My “Dreaming” series arose from a desire to combine my experience as an orchestral composer with my background as a jazz player. I wanted to write a series of Jazz Concertos for soloists who where comfortable in both classical and jazz idioms. Each concerto would be inspired by the jazz greats of that particular instrument and though fully notated, would allow the player to improvise. Dreaming of the Masters I was written for clarinetist James Campbell and has become my most performed orchestral work. It even took Jim and I to Symphony Hall in Boston for a concert with the Boston Pops.

This new concerto is titled Dreaming of the Masters II - Rhapsody GEB and is inspired by Gershwin, Ellington and Bernstein. It differs from Dreaming I in two ways. First, rather than three distinct movements this concerto is one continuous movement and reflects the form of rhapsody. Secondly, this concerto does not have a jazz bass, and the drum set part is much more of a traditional percussion part but still played on the drum set.

The form of the work follows the letters GEB. Section one pays homage to Gershwin with two themes. The first, fast and loosely based on the blues and the second, slow and sweeping. Toward the end of this section I bring both themes together revealing that they are actually constructed from the same harmony. Section two reflects the compositional style of Duke Ellington. The theme in AABA song form with the A section recalling the highly chromatic nature of Duke’s writing. A phrygian melody is prominent in the B section giving it a Spanish flavor. Section three is least like its inspiration. The only reference to Bernstein comes toward the beginning of the section where I allude to the Prelude and Mambo from West Side Story. The bulk of this section is a large canon beginning with a bass line and ending with, a jazz players say, the piano “trading fours” with the orchestra. This all leads to a recap of the Gershwin themes.

You can hear the premiere broadcast of Dreaming of the Masters II from February 22/23. 2008 at CBC Radio 2 - Concerts on Demand.

Solo oboe/hpschrd./strings 43221

Concerto for Oboe, Strings and Harpsichord was commissioned by the Alberta Baroque Ensemble to celebrate their 25^th Anniversary. The idea of composing a piece of new music for an ensemble that specializes in music of the Baroque era provided some interesting challenges. Do you write a 21^st century piece of music, do you write a work that is in the Baroque style, or do you write a piece that reflects the textures and gestures of that era but still is rooted in the present? I decided on all three.

I began by listening to a considerable number of oboe concerti from the Baroque period, specifically the works of Tomaso Albinoni.

• This resulted in a principal theme for the 1^st movement that was very much in the Baroque style. I originally thought of developing it in a 21^st century language but this proved unsuccessful and I decided to compose a 1^st movement that is firmly rooted in the sound of the Baroque (hence the subtitle Albinology).
• The theme for the 2^nd movement was originally written as a wedding processional for one of my closest friends. This movement is more romantic in tone and the subtitle, Go Deeply Now Everlasting, is derived from the couple’s initials.
• The 3^rd movement is subtitled with perpetual motion to reflect the constant 1/8^th note that lasts throughout. This movement sounds the most “modern” of the three but still reflects textures common to the Baroque.

After completing the work I realized that the over-arching form is the movement from the Baroque to the 21^st century.

Score sample — solo oboe part

Audio Samples:

2222/4331/1 perc.(drum set), jazz bass, solo cl./strgs

This work was composed in 2003 during my tenure as Composer-in-Residence with the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra. Clarinetist James Campbell was scheduled to open our 2003/2004 “Pops” series and it was suggested that I compose a work for clarinet and orchestra.

For a few years I had been thinking about how to combine my experience as an orchestral composer with my background as a jazz player. The idea that took shape was a series of Jazz Concertos for soloists who where comfortable in both the classical and jazz idioms. Each concerto would be inspired by the great jazz soloists of that particular instrument; hence the title Dreaming of the Masters, and the allowance of the player the opportunity to improvise. This is the first work in that series.

The complete title of the work is Dreaming of the Masters I, a Jazz Concerto for Clarinet and Orchestra and as mentioned above, an important jazz clarinetist inspires each movement.

• Movement I, subtitled Benny’s Bounce, is inspired by Benny Goodman. The sound of this movement is very much in the style of Sing Sing Sing, one of Benny’s biggest hits. This movement also begins with one of the most famous moments in the clarinet repertoire, which I won’t give away.
• Movement II is the slow movement and is inspired by some of the great clarinetists of the '20s and '30s; artists like Pee Wee Russell and Barney Bigard. The subtitle, Stranger on the Prairie, is an inside joke. One of the biggest hits for the clarinet is Acker Bilk’s Stranger on the Shore. Since Jim Campbell is from the Canadian prairies, I titled my movement Stranger on the Prairie.
• The last movement is called Rhythm Buddy and the inspiration comes from Buddy DeFranco, one of the few clarinetists from the Bebop era. It is written on the chord changes to I Got Rhythm and gives the soloist a chance to show off their technique.

Score sample — solo clarinet part

A Celtic Concerto for Two Harps And Orchestra
*2*222/2110/timp., 2 perc., solo hp. I/II/strgs

I've learned that the secret to having your music sound good is to get great players to perform it. So when I was asked last year by our principal harpist, Nora Bumanis, if I would be interested in writing a double harp concerto for her and her duo partner Julia Shaw, I immediately agreed.

At the time we began planning the piece Nora and Julia had already been booked for our 2002/03 season, so I suggested since I had yet to choose the works I would write for this season, that I compose a double harp concerto for this concert. Normally these things take a lot longer to plan but this one fell into place quite easily.

I originally began with the idea of a work in three movements but as it developed it became just one movement with three sections; fast, slow, fast. From the beginning Nora and I decided that somewhere in the piece I would use the Robert Burns song My Love is Like a Red Red Rose.
This idea arose because at the time Nora had just performed this song at a memorial service for Nancy Fairley, a longtime active member of our Board of Governors. When her husband Grant then decided to dedicate this concert to her memory, Nora asked if I could work the song into the concerto. I was more than glad to do this since I too knew Nancy and I also loved the melody.

At first I thought I would just hint at it but as I worked with that tune it grew and grew to the point where it is the central material of the slow section. That is why the piece is called Gaol's Ruadh Ròs which is Gaelic for "Love's Red Rose."

The piece begins with some bold chords stated with a rhythm known as the "Scottish Snap." The piece then builds into the fast section which has two themes. One, a series of chord clusters interjected with lively unison lines and two, a Celtic-like dance in the undance-like time signature of 7/8. The fast section ends with a cadenza for the two harps which leads into "My Love..." The melody is first played by the two harps in a very light and ethereal style and then repeats in a more bold and straightforward manner. The slow section then transitions back into the Celtic dance and ends with the cluster chords.

The work is dedicated to the memory of Nancy Fairley.

*22*22/4231/timp., 3 perc., *pn.,hp., solo vln./strgs

One of the first things I did when I began my tenure as Composer-in-Residence was approach Martin Riseley about writing him a Violin Concerto. I believe that part of my job is not only to compose works for the orchestra but to also give its individual players an opportunity to step forward as soloists and what better person to start with than our concertmaster. Martin was more than happy to have a work written for him and now that discussion has come to fruition as my Concerto for Violin and Orchestra.

The piece is in the standard three movements and at their most basic. Each movement focuses on the three elements of music; melody, harmony and rhythm. Each movement also has ties to my compositional past as well as having traditional formal structures.

• Movement one is subtitled Ayre, simply because it has a song-like melody as its primary theme. The form is the standard sonata allegro form, which was most popular during the classical era. When I began the first movement, after completing the second and third, I realized that those last two movements used traditional forms and so I thought it might be interesting to compose this first movement in the traditional sonata form (something I have never done before). The primary theme comes from the first sketch book I ever had while studying with Violet Archer. In fact, the melody was one of the first things I ever wrote for her. The assignment was to write a series of melodies on a wide variety of modes and scales. This particular one was for the mixolydian mode. I knew when I wrote it that someday it would show up in a piece and now twelve years later, it has.
• Movement two is subtitled Chaconne — sacred time. The chaconne belongs to the family of musical forms that include the passacaglia and ground bass. These forms use repeating bass lines as the foundation for a set of variations. Historically the chaconne could also be a set of repeated chords and that is how it is used in my work. The other title, sacred time, is there because my set of chords were first composed as apart of a much longer work called Sacred Time which I wrote for the Brian Webb Dance Company in 2000. The progressing is quite simple and hypnotic and reminds me off the music from the late romantic period.
• The third movement is subtitled Basse Danse. It too has connections to my past. My wife was, at one time, a very fine tuba player and I composed a work for her and bass trombone called Basse Danse. The Basse Danse was a French dance improvised over a bass line. That piece began with a slow chorale and it is this chorale that I take as the starting point for the third movement. The second movement segues into the third which begins with this chorale. It is quite simple and acts as a release from the intensity of the second. The violin then begins in a fast tempo in the 8/8 time signature. This time signature allows me the opportunity to experiment with 1/8 notes grouped in 3s and 2s. The rest of the movement is in the traditional rondo form and gives the soloist the chance to showcase their technique.

It has been a great pleasure working on this concerto with Martin Riseley. He is a violinist of immense talent, and a fine composer himself. Without out his input it would not be the piece it is, and for that I owe him my thanks.

Score sample — solo violin part

Audio Samples:

2222/4231/timp., 2 perc., hp., solo tpt./strgs

Jens Lindemann and I have known each other since high school and this Concerto is a direct extension of that close friendship. This piece began as a Suite for Trumpet and Piano which Jens first performed during a faculty recital at the Alberta Summer Music Workshop in Camrose. After that performance we decided that the work should be expanded into a Sonata. Jens then began performing that version on various recitals and radio broadcasts.

In 1993 he entered the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra's Concerto Competition performing what was now being called a "Concerto" for trumpet (the thought being, if he won the competition I would expand again). Jens won that competition and went on to premiere the new Concerto for Trumpet and Orchestra with the ESO in 1994.

The piece is in three movements:

• The first movement contains two themes: the first is classic trumpet — bold, strong, and declamatory and the second focuses on the more melodic side of the instrument, with a tango-like section in the middle for contrast.
• The second movement is mysterious and ethereal. The soloist is asked to use a Harmon mute (without the stem), a sound made famous by Miles Davis. This movement allows the soloist the opportunity to show off the melodic side of the trumpet.
• The final movement is driving and rhythmic. A conversation is implied between soloist and piano — almost a question-and-answer dialogue. The end of the piece demonstrates the power and range of the instrument, finishing on a high concert D^b.

Score sample — solo trumpet part

Audio Samples: