Gestural variations

Gestural Variations op. 43 is a trio composition by Graham Waterhouse , which he wrote in 1997 for the oboe , bassoon and piano . Later versions of the Variationswerk were written for clarinet , violoncello and piano (1999) and flute , cello and piano (2009).

construction

The composition with a playing time of about 14 minutes brings a theme with six character variations, framed by an introduction and a follow-up. Each variation expresses a mood through movement or gesture, similar to what a pantomime or dancer would illustrate.

1. Introduction
2. theme
3. Var. 1 (abrupt, jerky)
4. Var. 2 (slow, graceful)
5. Var. 3 (fleeting, breathless)
6. Var. 4 (thoughtful, hesitant)
7. Var. 5 (threatening, threatening)
8. Var. 6 (exuberant, bubbly)
9. Aftermath

history

Gestural Variations op. 43 was commissioned by the bassoonist Henry Skolnick and for the 1997 annual conference of the International Double Reed Society (IDRS). The work premiered at Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois by John Dee, Skolnick and José Lopez. G. Salter noted in the journal Double Reed News: "The composer's purposeful use of ambiguous, shifting harmonies and overlapping unisons sets these contrasts in miniature apart from much that is being written today, conveying the uncertainties of our times." targeted use of ambiguous alternating harmonies ... sets these opposites apart in miniature from much of what is written today and conveys the uncertainties of our time.)

A second version op.43a was written in 1999 for clarinet, cello and piano, a trio for which, for example, Beethoven wrote his Trio op.11 ( Gassenhauer Trio ), Johannes Brahms his clarinet trio op.114 and Alexander Zemlinsky his trio op. 3. This version was released in 2001 on a CD Portrait by Cybele Records, in a selection of the composer's chamber music, played by Markus Schön (clarinet), Waterhouse as cellist and Michael Wendeberg . A review by Hubert Culot mentioned strong contrasts and remarkable instrumental mastery ("highly contrasted variations display a remarkable instrumental mastery, that makes this work a feast from first to last). The two versions were published by Friedrich Hofmeister Musikverlag , Leipzig, in 1998 and respectively 1999.

Gestural Variations in a third version, Op. 43b for oboe, cello and piano was first performed in Weimar on March 31, 2000.

The British premiere of the clarinet version was on November 5, 2002 in a Composer Portrait Concert with the composer at St. Cyprian's Church in London . The first version opened the Welcome Recital 6 of the British Double Reed Society at the IDRS Conference 2009 in Birmingham , played by Richard Simpson, Julie Price and Janet Simpson.

A fourth version op.43c for flute , cello and piano was played for the first time in the Gasteig Munich on December 20, 2009 by Jens Josef , Waterhouse and Rudi Spring . This version was played again on April 11, 2010, this time with pianist Christopher White .

price

Gestural Variations op. 43b won a composition prize from Via Nova in Weimar in 2000 .

Web links

• Gestural Variations on the Graham Waterhouse website
• Entries for Gestural Variations on WorldCat

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Thursday Morning ( English , PDF; 192 kB) IDRS , Northwestern University . S. 5. 1997. Archived from the original on September 2, 2012. Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. Retrieved April 12, 2010.  
2. ^ Trios for clarinet - violoncello - piano . triospektren.at. Retrieved April 12, 2010.
3. ↑ Portrait Graham Waterhouse / Graham Waterhouse, Markus Schön, Michael Wendeberg, Agnès Marc . Cybele Records. Retrieved September 11, 2012.
4. ^ Hubert Culot: Graham Waterhouse ( English ) musicweb-international.com. 2004. Retrieved April 12, 2010.
5. ↑ ^{a b} World premieres (PDF; 46 kB) Via Nova. S. 1. November 11, 2008. Archived from the original on July 19, 2011. Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. Retrieved August 14, 2009.  
6. ^ Graham Waterhouse / World premieres on October 26th in Munich and November 5th in London . Robert Lienau music publisher . 2002. Retrieved April 12, 2010.
7. ↑ IDRS 2009 ( English ) IDRS. 2009. Archived from the original on January 10, 2010. Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. Retrieved April 12, 2010.  
8. ^ Concertante music for flute - cello - piano, played by three composers . Gasteig . December 20, 2010. Archived from the original on October 7, 2011. Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. Retrieved December 20, 2010.  
9. ^ Composers matinee: Graham Waterhouse . Gasteig . April 11, 2011. Archived from the original on September 10, 2011. Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. Retrieved April 13, 2010.