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Les Marsden |
'American' Symphony on New and Old Tunes
| Instrumentation | 2+1,2,2(+1),2--3,3,3,1--Timp+3(BD,Snare,Cymbals,Chimes-opt,)Harp,Organ,Harpsichord,(Chimes)-these last four may be synthesized as intended--Strings |
| Length | 45 Minutes |
| Difficulty | Very do-able by a community orchestra |
| Comments | Extremely accessible style; composed for and highly appropriate for Independence Day or Americana-type concerts. Patriotic without being jingoistic; the movements include such well-known tunes as 'Columbia, Gem of the Ocean,' 'America The Beautiful,' 'Yankee Doodle,' 'My Country 'Tis of Thee,' and 'Shenandoah' among others. The third movement ('Due Temi Simile e Variazioni Molto Insipide') is a Schickele-esque comic quodlibet parody of (among other pieces) the final movement of the Beethoven Ninth with numerous quotations from world nationalistic 'classical' works developed together under 'Yankee Doodle' and 'Pop Goes the Weasel' for an American melting pot movement. The entire work's original melodic material serves as the basis and structural underpinning for the entire piece and it and the 'Old' Tunes are reliant upon each for development. Has proven to be a huge pleaser for the orchestra in rehearsal; can't wait to get it before our audience. |
| Sources | Score and parts (Finale 2004 but VERY good) available from composer:
Les Marsden
The Mariposa Symphony Orchestra
7145 Snyder Creek Road
Mariposa, CA 95338-9641
209.966.6988
http://www.sierratel.com/mcf/nprc/mso.htm
http://arts-mariposa.org/symphony.html |
| Extras | Until actual performance audiocassette of Finale 2004 Midi version also available. |
| History | Scheduled July 3rd (2004) premiere with repeat scheduled for September 6th Labor Day concert. |
| Contributor | Les Marsden, Founding Music Director and Conductor,
The Mariposa (CA) Symphony Orchestra
Member, The Conductors Guild |
| Other | |
Concerto Burlesco for Trombone and Orchestra
| Instrumentation | Solo Trombone. 2+1,2,2+1,2/4,3,3,1/Timp+2/Strings |
| Length | 18 Minutes |
| Difficulty | Soloist: Difficult. Orchestra: Moderate |
| Comments | (From the Program Notes, Premiered April 23, 2005 by Thomas Ashworth, Trombone and the Mariposa Symphony Orchestra conducted by the Composer): In three connected movements (I. Allegro maestoso-andante melanconio-moderato; II. Andante disturbato; III. Rondo tarantella) totaling about 18 minutes, composed for and inscribed to Thomas Ashworth. I asked Tom what he wanted in a concerto and then composed exactly what I wanted! I wished to show some of the many great qualities of the tenor trombone: its lyrical nature, three-octave range, staccato attack, that unique glissando impossible for any other wind instrument, but more important: to show the skilled artistry of this trombonist: trills, flutter-tonguing, pp to fff volume changes, minor-third tremolos, huge leaps, slurred arpeggiation, the ability to maneuver through styles from farcical neo-classicism to blues in 5/4 time to a rondo finale which combines elements (perhaps) of the circus, na�ve dopeyness, pomposity... and burlesque, before a recap reminder of that first-movement motif with its passing tritone ('diabolus in musica') an interval which seems (for some reason) to pop up quite a bit in my music...to bring it all home. A tremendous crowd-pleaser and quite a lot of fun, containing elements of humor from subtle irony to out-and-out burlesque in addition to its more serious passages. |
| Sources | Contact the Composer:
Les Marsden
(209) 966-6988
7145 Snyder Creek Road
Mariposa, CA USA 95338-9641
mso@sti.net |
| Extras | CDs and perusal scores available. |
| History | Premiered April 23, 2005 in Mariposa, CA and repeated as a matinee the following day in Oakhurst, CA by the personnel as outlined above. |
| Contributor | Les Marsden |
| Other | |
Concerto in g minor for Violin and Orchestra
| Instrumentation | Solo Violin 2+1,2,2+1,2/4,3,3,1/Timp+2/Xylophone/Celesta/Strings |
| Length | 38 Minutes |
| Difficulty | Soloist: Difficult. Orchestra: Moderate |
| Comments | New York violinist Lewis Wong commissioned a piece for violin, and this is the result: a full-length, three movement work in a fairly serious, progressive, personal and perhaps even dramatic vein; tonal, very melodic and immediately accessible. VERY vocal positive audience reception at both premiere concerts. The entire work is built upon unified motifs and motivic melodies: three notes in descent; the collision of the fourth degree of a scale with its triad and more overt displays of bi– and poly–tonality; the constant struggle between violin and orchestra which is only resolved in the final measures of the piece—the first movement begins with a tortured orchestral prelude marked ‘gotico’ climaxing with hammered gm chords whilst the soloist finally enters on a sustained, quiet, but intensifying high ‘C’ (fourth degree) which gradually overtakes all peacefully. After laying out the material, development begins with constant confrontation between soloist and orchestra. The second movement is an unsettled pastorale—with a simple motif built upon (descending) minor thirds which finally enters only after much searching; that motif returns over and over, growing more 'mature’ with each reappearance. With the third movement, (“Rondo Morisco”) frenzy returns in the form of an at-times nearly-demonic finale featuring moorish or North African rhythms and romps through various 'moorish' sounding modes: double harmonic, algerian and even Hungarian minor. And perversely enough, the enigmatic tune of that movement incongruously incorporates the rhythm of the Scottish snap. After a worn-out lull, the tempo and mood slowly return to build again to a fierce rhythmic conclusion featuring some very demanding solo violin writing. |
| Sources | E-mail for information: mso@sti.net
Also:
Les Marsden
(209) 966-6988
7145 Snyder Creek Road
Mariposa, CA 95338-9641 |
| Extras | |
| History | April 14, 2007: FP by Lewis Wong with the Mariposa Symphony Orchestra conducted by the composer, Mariposa, California. Performed by the same forces April 15, 2007 as part of the inaugural orchestral concert of the Lakireddy Auditorium of the (new) University of California campus in Merced, California. |
| Contributor | the composer |
| Other | |
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