Solo and Piano Reduction. A notable Czech composer, Jaromir Weinberger achieved sudden fame with the production of his opera, Svanda dudâk (Schwanda, the Bagpiper), written in a popular Bohemian style, at the Czech Opera, in Prague in 1927. Weinberger fled Europe under the growing Nazi threat and took up residence in New York in 1939, where he enjoyed a number of major orchestral performances and commissions of all kinds. One of these came from renowned saxophonist Cecil Leeson, who aske Weinberger to compose a concerto for alto saxophone and orchestra. Due to the outbreak of World War II, the premiere would not happen until 1946, six years after the completion of the concerto in piano score. The work was revised following the premiere and it is only now that those revisions have been incorporated into the solo saxophone and piano reduction with this performance edition by Weinberger scholar, publisher and saxophonist Tristan Willems.

André Jolivet (1905-1974) established his love for composition from a young age. This remained throughout his life and he held the post of Professor of Composition from 1966-1970 at the Paris Conservatoire. Fantaisie Impromptu for Alto Saxophone and Piano was published in 1953 and remains highly regarded. Jolivet himself a cellist wished to explore composition for all instruments and therefore has a considerable number of works in all fields. The composer's style is also known for its spirituality and the desire to associate the everyday with the magical and the human with the universal.Jolivet draws on acoustics and atonality as heard in hisFantaisie Impromptu. The piece requires advanced skills due to its use of complex rhythms and harmonics. For all advanced saxophonists Jolivet provides an exciting alternative piece for the instrument's repertoire.

Par THORNE PETER. / Date parution : 2023-03-11/ Répertoire / Saxophone Alto et Piano