Sonata Per Due Organi

SKU: PR.110406720

UPC: 680160001316.

I have always been fond of writing works for specific people or organizations. It has been my good fortune during most of my creative career to be asked to compose for many extraordinary performers. The Sonata for Harpsichord Solo is such a case in point: it was written in 1982 for Barbara Harbach, a superb performer, close friend, and collaborator on many musical projects. The Sonata was premiered on March 2, 1984, in a recital given by Dr. Harbach at Nazareth College in Rochester, New York. During my formative years as a composer, one seldom heard of the harpsichord as a modern instrument, though while I attended undergraduate school at Boston University, some of us banded together to construct a small harpsichord from one of the first do-it-yourself kits which began to appear in the late '40s. It was also during this time that I heard the Sonatina for Violin and Harpsichord by my teacher Walter Piston and consequently specified that the accompanying instrument for my second violin sonata could either be a piano or a harpsichord. It was not until recently, however, that my interest in the harpsichord as a solo instrument for new music was aroused. This was because of the emergence of so many young virtuosi, such as Barbara Harbach, who are interested in the performance of new music besides the great harpsichord music of the Classical, Baroque, and pre-Baroque eras. The keyboard music of Domenico Scarlatti has always intrigued and fascinated me. The brevity, excitement, and clarity of this sparkling music is charming as well as exhilarating. It is this type of Baroque sonata that inspired the conception and form of my harpsichord sonata. The entire work is loosely based on the musical translation of Barabara Harbach's name, especially the conflict of the B (B-flat) and H (B-natural in German notation). This secondo rub or dissonance especially pervades the first movement, which is in a modified sonata form, pitting jagged and tense melodic elements against most lyrical and smooth lines. This second movement is a song-like melody accompanied by rolled chords which may be played on the lute stop of the instrument if this sonata is performed on a two-manual harpsichord. The final movement is an ever-driving joyous toccata which brings the work to an exciting close with a coda made up of accelerating repeated chords. --Samuel Adler.

SKU: SU.80101343

Solstice Sonata (2013) for trumpet and organ was commissioned by the American Guild of Organists for its 2014 Biennial National Convention in Boston, Massachusetts. It was premiered on June 24, 2014 at the Memorial Church, Harvard University, by trumpeter Chris Gekker and organist Christian Lane. At the solstice (summer in the Northern Hemisphere and winter in the Southern), the sun is directly aligned with the tropical latitude lines, and the longest day of the year occurs (marking the start of summer). This sonata is music of celebration and contemplation, taking the inspiration of the longest day as a starting place for both meditation both thoughtful and joyous. Take Flight soars and leaps with vigor-perhaps the image of a hang-glider's journey over a dramatic landscape under the late evening sun. The Dream of Peace is lyrical and passionate; it is perhaps night music of reflection and intensity. Glittering, Aglow begins with quiet, mystical music: a gradual awakening. A vibrant, syncopated dance breaks out, is interrupted by the quiet music again, and returns to push forward to a vibrant conclusion. The new season has begun.Instrumentation: Trumpet and Organ. Composed: 2013 Published by: Zimbel Press.

SKU: BR.EB-32105

ISBN 9790004186732. 9 x 12 inches.

Ulrich Rasches erste Orgelsonate entstand im Mai und Juni des Jahres 2011. Es ist ein Zufall, dass die acht Buchstaben des Namens ,,Schadach vollstandig in Noten umsetzbar sind. Diese Tonfolge beherrscht alle drei Satze der Sonate: Das Prelude, als erster Satz, ist formal in Sonatenhauptsatzform gestaltet. Das Achttonmotiv leitet den Satz quasi leitmotivisch ein. Ein toccatenhafter Ubergang fuhrt zum zweiten Thema, das als Ruhepol bitonal daherkommt. Immer wieder wird die Toccata-Uberleitung eingeschoben und entwickelt sich beinahe zu einem dritten Thema, das den Satz virtuos abschliesst. Die Canzone ist ein ruhiger und entspannter Satz, der als Achttonmotiv in Form von funf Variationen verandert wird. Dem Satz wohnt eine durchaus schmerzliche Gefuhlswelt (doloroso) inne, wird dann jedoch lyrischer und endet in spharischer Verklarung. Dieser Satz erfahrt vielfaltige Stimmungen, die vom Organisten sehr farbenreich registriert werden sollten. Die abschliessende Toccata ist hochvirtuos und von feurigem Charakter. Ein sehr leidenschaftlicher Mittelteil gipfelt in einen hochdramatischen Exkurs. Es folgt erneut der erste Teil, der in eine Stretta-Coda mundet, und den Satz fulminant beschliesst.