JAVS Spring 2020

Hindemith is praised for being a violist and therefore writing music that easily fits in the hand. Forsyth, also a violist, doesn’t ask for any potential injury-causing stretches either. For those who refuse to appreciate it as an excellent concerto in its own right, it should be considered an effective student piece used for preparing for the other three major concertos. 37 Additionally, as David Bynog writes, this concerto “holds up well in competitions against other string concerti. . . played well it can really impress judges, while conductors appreciate that the orchestra part is more manageable than other viola concertos from the twentieth century.” 38 This concerto is understandable from an audience perspective, and can stand up to its violin and cello counterparts. The Forsyth Concerto in G minor is an oft-forgotten piece of viola history. While the majority of viola music is modern because the viola didn’t really emerge as a solo instrument until the twentieth century, there were nevertheless people and works that paved the way for that to happen. It wasn’t just because of Tertis’s sheer determination to bring the viola to people’s attention. Émile Férir and others planted the seeds that helped Tertis grow. Cecil Forsyth’s concerto may have fallen under the radar in the last century, but it is a work with many excellent features that can and should be used for performances and for pedagogy. Chances are slim that it will ever have the renown of its contemporary counterparts, but Lawrence Power’s 2004 recording helped begin the process of bringing it out from the shadows, and it deserves plenty more recognition. Devan Maria Freebairn is a freelance violist and viola/violin instructor in the Greater Salt Lake City area. Devan holds a Master of Music degree from the prestigious New England Conservatory and a Bachelor of Music degree from Brigham Young University, where she now teaches as adjunct faculty. Her primary instructors have included Dimitri Murrath and Claudine Bigelow. Devan recently published a book of commissioned viola/piano hymn arrangements that can be found on her website: www.devanmariaviola.com

Bibliography

ASTA String Syllabus Volume 1, e dited by David Littrell. New York: Alfred Music, 2009. Barnett, Rob. Liner notes for York Bowen Viola Concerto, Cecil Forsyth Viola Concerto, Lawrence Power. BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra. Martyn Brabbins. Hyperion CDA67546, 2004. Compact disc. Bernath, Victoria Marthe. “’Middle Fiddle no More’: British Viola Concerti and the Rise of Viola Virtuosity (1880 to 1910). PhD diss., “The University of York (United Kingdom), 2015. ProQuest. Bynog, David M. “Cecil Forsyth: The Forgotten Composer?” Journal of the American Viola Society 24, no. 1 (2008): 13-18. _____. “Get to Know Cecil Forsyth’s Viola Concerto.” Violinsit.com (blog). March 12, 2015. Accessed November 27, 2018. https://www.violinist.com/blog/dbynog/20153/16640/ _____. “The Vocal Music of Cecil Forsyth.” The Journal of the British Music Society 30 (2008): 6–15.

Forsyth, Cecil. Orchestration . London: Macmillan, 1914. https:// archive.org/details/cu31924022381440/page/n9.

Hale, Philip. “Twenty-third Rehearsal and Concert.” Program notes. Boston Symphony Orchestra. Max Fiedler. Boston: Symphony Hall, April 26, 1912. https://cdm15982.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/PROG/ id/110355.

Heimberg, Thomas. “Remembering Emile Férir.” Jorunal of the American Viola Society 17, no. 3 (2001): 21-23.

Hurwitz, David. “Forsyth, Bowen: Viola Concertos/Power.” Review of York Bowen Viola Concerto, Cecil Forsyth Viola Concerto, Lawrence Power, BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, Martin Brabbins. Classics Today. https://www.classicstoday.com/review/review-11938/ Kennedy, Michael. Portrait of Walton . New York: Oxford University Press, 1989. Liner notes for Piéces de Concours: Virtuosic Romantic Works by French Composers 1896-1938 , Jutta Puchhammer-Sédillot. Elise Desjardins. Navona Records NV6065, 2016. Compact disc. http://www.navonarecords.com/catalog/nv6065/biographies.html

“The Promenade Concerts.” Monthly Musical Record 33, no. 394 (1903): 193-94.

Pampulha, Francisco Ferreira, “‘The Viola: Cinderella No More!’ Lionel Tertis and William Primrose as Pioneers of Contemporary Viola Playing.” Master’s thesis., Universität für Musik und darstellende Kunst Graz (Austria), 2015. Google Scholar. https://fedora.kug.ac.at/fedora/get/o:17378/bdef:Content/get

The Royal Conservatory Viola Syllabus, 2013 Edition. Toronto: The Frederick Harris Music Co., Limited, 2013.

Journal of the American Viola Society / Vol. 36, No. 1, Spring 2020

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