JAVS Spring 2022

better way to share the load and to share the joy of “shining” equally. It’s way more fun for everyone that way. A form of musical “OCD” seems to compel me to count the measures in which musical partners are doing whatnot. This Duo Sonata was commissioned and performed by David Brickman and Melissa Matson in 2009, principals of the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra. In my experience, this work’s creation is a wonderful example of the loveliest of composing situations, in which the piece is definitely shaped by the skill of the musicians. When a composer has the opportunity to directly collaborate with superb musicians, it certainly elevates the work to its best potential. In this piece, each instrument is alternately an engine

or a soloist, a melodist or harmonist, mix and match. “Oom-pahs” often don’t work for me; I’m happier with voice-leading-based counterpoint. The second movement I’ll leave up to the listener as to from which masters I borrowed, though Dvorak, Copland, and gestures and harmonies from Appalachian music come to mind. As for the third movement, the “Intermezzo: Polonaise,” I composed it last, and then inserted it as the third movement out of four. The Duo Sonata seemed to require a “breather” in that spot, a short, semplice dance—a respite to “come up for air” before the “tour-de-force” finale—in which I seem to have stolen primarily from Bartok and Vivaldi.

Figure 1: Marek Harris, Duo Sonata #3, I. Lento arioso—Allegro assai, mm.1-10. 2

Figure 2: Marek Harris, Duo Sonata #3, I. Lento arioso—Allegro assai, mm.19-25.

Figure 3: Marek Harris, Duo Sonata #3, II. Lento espressivo, mm. 33-41.

Figure 4: Marek Harris, Duo Sonata #3, III. Polonaise—Intermezzo, mm.1-4.

Journal of the American Viola Society / Vol. 38, No. 1, Spring 2022

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