Concerto for Violin and Percussion Orchestra (Agocs)

Kati Agócs

General Info

Year: 2018
Duration: c.
Difficulty: (see Ratings for explanation)
Publisher: Title Publisher
Cost: Score and Parts - $0.00   |   Study score available for $39.95

Program Notes

Concerto for Violin and Percussion Orchestra was commissioned by the Fromm Music Foundation at Harvard University. Scored for solo violin and six percussionists, and conceived as a companion piece to the eponymous work by Lou Harrison, my concerto is cast in four contrasting movements that flow into one another to make an eighteenminute trajectory; the last two movements are played without pause. The first movement, marked “encantata” (enchanted), conjurs an exotic, pure sound world by way of a lyrical violin barcarolle with ringing pitched percussion, including a pair of vibraphones, as the accompaniment. The second movement, “inquieto” (restless), is a fast dirge that highlights two xylophones in close conversation both with one another and with the violin. The third movement, majestic in tone and tempo, is a recitative and aria that showcase the warmth and mysterious colour of a pair of marimbas. The recitative features the solo timpani in dialogue with the violin; chromatic inflections of the aria’s lyrical violin line embody the drama (and sense of melting) of flying too close to the sun. The final movement, “brioso” (spirited), creates a dialectic between a wild, exotic dance and a bittersweet anthem (“cantabile”). All mallet percussion instruments now join in a melodic role, building to a “wall of sound” with the return of the brioso theme. After a brief violin cadenza, the skins (drums) rise energetically to the foreground for the first time. Concerto for Violin and Percussion Orchestra is dedicated with gratitude and appreciation to Frank Epstein, Nicholas Kitchen, and the New England Conservatory Percussion Ensemble. - Kati Agócs, 2018

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