JAVS Spring 2001

Vm. 17 No.1

18

JOURNAL OF THE AMERICAN VIOLA SOCIETY

There are two movements and toward the end of the second movement the lyrical voice of the viola holds forth in a low elegiac episode. Henry Brant's Hieroglyphics 3 was written in 1957 and reworked in 1970. In its reworked form it utilizes solo viola, tympani, chimes, harpsichord, vibraphone, and adds an impro vising voice and an improvising pipe organ. (The organ and voice parts are optional.) The performers are separated throughout the per forming area and the solo viola functions as "conductor" with the application of purely musical signal cues. This piece is recorded on CRI SD 260 Music From Bennington. I played the solo viola part. The 59 Y2" For a String Player (1953) by John Cage was published by Henmar Press in 1960. It was dedicated to Claus Adam. Cage was concerned about the printed reproduction of this piece. There were small inkblots and smears that showed up that were not part of the composition and the composer had been meticulous with his original drafting of the score. He feared that they could be interpreted as actual sounds to be played-this due to the revolutionary notation he had adopted in this work in order for it to be feasible to be read by any four-stringed instrument player. Louis Calabro--a colleague ofmany years wrote several works involving viola which were always a joy to study and perform. His Dynamogeny (1958) is subtitled A Fantasy for Viola and Piano in One Movement. Dynamogeny is defined as "production of increased nervous activity; the reinforcing effect ofsensorial stimuli upon muscular activity." Other Calabro pieces involving the viola are his Double Concerto for Viola, Cello and Orchestra (1986); Isotrio for Viola, Cello and Bass (1983); Isoquarto for Viola, Cello, Bass andHarp (1984); and aTrio for Flute, Clarinet and Viola (1985) subtitled Thirteen W"ays ofLookingAt A Tone Row. Elliott Carter's Pastoralfor Viola and Piano, written in 1945 {New York: New Music, 1945} and revised in 1961, deserves to be heard more often. It's a bouncy piece that could be equated with the Ragtime (third violin dance) in Stravinsky's L'Histoire du Soldat. Carter's Elegy for Viola and Piano (1943; revised 1961) is a poetic lament and I have used it as a memo riam offering for a befitting occasion. [New York: Peer InternationaL, 1987}

In 1962, composer Barney Childs wrote Interbalances II for Viola and Any Other Instrument. Performances together with vibra phone, with piano, and with oboe, respectively, all enjoyed overwhelming success-inexplica ble-but the piece never failed. There are two staves in treble clef running above the viola part and two staves below the viola part in bass clef so that the "Any Other Instrument" may pick any of the accompanying material that is appropriate for its tessitura. [New York: American Composer's Alliance, 1962} An exciting work for viola and drums is the Variations for Four Drums & Viola by Michael Colgrass, written for violist Emanuel Vardi in 1959. In 1963 I gave a copy of this work to the great Russian violist Vadim Borrisovsky. He thanked me kindly, but showed up at the Tschaikovsky Conservatory where I was rehearsing the next day, curious about the dis crete pitches notated for the drums. I assured him that these tunable drums were capable of producing the pitches he saw in the music. This work in its original form runs about 21 minutes. The percussionist Ray DesRoches presented me with a version that had a rewrit ten percussion part for Variation 3 that he said Mr. Colgrass wrote to make the drum part more interesting. He also gave me certain cuts for other sections, which worked well in per formance. [New York: Music for Percussions, 1959} A short set of pieces with much vitality is the earthy Tres Mensajes Breves for Viola and Piano by Roque Coidero written in 1966. The entire work runs about 5%; minutes. It is pub lished by Peer International. The Hymn and Fuguing Tune #7(1946) of Henry Cowell draws its inspiration from some of the works William Billings wrote about two centuries ago. This was a musical tradition that was lost until Cowell revived interest in this form by writing several fuguing tunes for vari ous instrumental combinations. In the final section of the Fuguing Tune #7, Cowell trans forms mere scales into compelling music. [New York: Peer International 1953} A lesser-known composition, Divertimento for Viola and Piano (1948) by Ingolf Dahl (written for Milton Thomas) has one move ment based on the lovely Anglo-American folksong "The Mermaid," in which the viola

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