CVS newsletter readers will be familiar with fellow member Dr. Morris Kates' extensive catalogue of compositions, a good number of which feature viola. CVS is pleased to have received one of Dr. Kates' more recent works, Lament, which originated from his Symphonie Concertante (1997) for oboe, clarinet, bassoon and string orchestra.
Dr. Kates transcribed Symphonie Concertante 's middle movement, titled "Lament," for violin and piano because his son-in-law, National Arts Centre Orchestra violinist Edvard Skerjanc, was seeking a new recital piece. The composer later took the initiative of transcribing Lament for viola and piano, an instrumentation that he thought would be more apt for the work's musical materials.
In both the violin and viola versions each dedicated to Edvard and Ilona Skerjanc ("For Edi and Loni") the solo string instrument takes the parts of the orchestral version's solo winds, and the piano takes the materials of the orchestra's strings. The work is in passacaglia form, and each transcription presents beautifully expressive and idiomatic string writing, with some double-stopped passages and short cadenza-like moments. The violin version has been performed only privately; both versions have yet to receive their concert premieres. The scores of both transcriptions are computer-notated and are available from the composer (see contact information below).
Symphonie Concertante originated during a visit by Dr. Kates to a summer music camp in Bennington, Vermont, in 1995. That summer, during which he served as the camp's part-time composer-in-residence, he met oboist David Myers, who invited Dr. Kates to write an oboe concerto. This the composer did, and when he attended the premiere (performed by David Myers with the strings of the National Symphony Orchestra in Washington, D.C., in September 1996), three wind players from the orchestra, including Mr. Myers, invited Dr. Kates to write a concerto for oboe, clarinet and bassoon. This instrumentation was loosely inspired by Mozart's Sinfonia concertante in E-flat for oboe, clarinet, bassoon and French horn (Dr. Kates' Symphonie Concertante is sans French horn). The work was premiered in October 1997 by an orchestra made up of players from the National Symphony Orchestra in Washington, D.C., and conducted by Ulysses James as part of an annual fund-raising concert for Washington Children's Hospital.
Ottawa music lovers will have the chance to hear a performance of one of Dr. Kates' other recent works on November 10. The Cantata Singers of Ottawa under the direction of Laurence Ewashko will perform Dr. Kates' Water, Source of Life (2000) for four-part choir and string quartet. The work will be performed at Christ Church Cathedral in a program called "Venite ad Aquas Come to the Waters."
CVS newsletter number 27 (Spring 1991; p. 16) contains an article by CVS member Fred Lipsett on Dr. Kates' Elegiac Variations (1986), originally for solo cello and later rewritten for viola. A list of Dr. Kates' works held at the Canadian Music Centre, of which he is an associate member, is available at the CMCentre's Web site. Works by Morris Kates that involve viola include the following:
The violin and viola versions of Lament are not yet (Fall 2000) deposited at the Canadian Music Centre, however, readers can inquire about obtaining a copy of the score through the composer by mail, phone or e-mail:
Morris Kates
1723 Rhodes Crescent
Ottawa, ON K1H 5T1
Tel.: (613) 733-7552
E-mail: mkates@science.uottawa.ca
Ottawa composer Peter Amsel offers a new work for solo viola, Poème pour Alto . The composer states that this work is
the latest in a series of compositions for unaccompanied instruments that were inspired by my love for the works composed by Johann Sebastian Bach for unaccompanied flute, violin and cello. The desire to compose a work for each orchestral instrument is something that seemed to be a natural progression as the idea of the Poème became a single-movement work that was accessible to most performers and listeners, and fit easily into a recital program.
The composer continues:
This work came about as a commission for a performance at the Ottawa Fringe Festival, where it was premiered on June 17, 2000, and received five subsequent performances. It was a fortuitous time for me to compose a work for the viola, which I have always admired, and have felt that it has been sorely neglected by composers. When the request for this composition came I had just finished composing my first string quartet, and was beginning work on a second, so the idea of writing for solo viola was very intriguing. Before beginning work on the piece, while still looking for a particular ‘sound' that I wanted to represent in the composition, a new recording by Rivka Golani came to me to review from CBC. While it is a recording of works with piano, the sound that I was hearing from her instrument was locked into my ear, and it was what I heard as I composed this piece (the CD is ‘Fairies: Schumann,' CBC MVCD 1127)Poème pour Alto is dedicated ‘In Memoriam: Violet Archer (1913 - 2000).' In this composition there are essentially two main elements that contrast each other: the opening figure, which is a descending passage that expands as it descends, ultimately develops into a turnabout figure of even faster notes. This is contrasted by a rich sostenuto section that exploits the lovely resonance of the viola. Even when it returns, compressed in the upper register, it is a statement of defiance against death: the composer cannot be quieted by something as mundane as death, for as long as the music is performed, the composer lives.
Peter Amsel's compositions include works for diverse solo instruments, chamber music, choral music and orchestral works. He has had numerous commissions, including works for Alcides Lanza and Robert Jones (piano duo) for a concert at McGill University in 1992 as well as the first Ottawa Chamber Music Festival in 1994. Currently he is working on a commission for the Eden Trio (Andrew Dawes, violin; Rivka Golani, viola; and Yehuda Hanani, cello) and a double concerto for viola and harpsichord with string orchestra and percussion, both of which are commissions by Rivka Golani.
Scores may be obtained by contacting the composer at the following:
Peter Amsel
874 Cahill Drive West
Ottawa, ON K1V 9A2
Tel.: (613) 260-9347
Fax: (613) 260-9347 (call first)
E-mail: pamsel@rogers.com
Deirdre Piper has been on the faculty of Carleton University since 1972, having previously held a faculty position at the School of Music, Huddersfield Polytechnic, in the United Kingdom. Dr. Piper was instrumental in setting up the electronic studios at Carleton University's music department, helped to found its contemporary music ensemble, and was Chair of the department from 1980 to 1984. A founding member of Espace Musique, Ottawa's new-music society, Dr. Piper was its president for two years. In 1989 90, she was awarded the Marston LaFrance Fellowship to aid in completing The Seven Questions , a 90-minute music-theatre piece for five performers. Active as both a composer and performer, Deirdre Piper has appeared regularly with Ottawa soprano Gloria Jean Nagy in the duo Cantabile, has been broadcast many times on CBC Radio, and has been organist and choir director at St. Matthias Anglican Church in Ottawa since 1989. Her De profundis for choir and jazz ensemble was premiered at St. Matthias Anglican Church on October 21.
Fantasy was premiered at the Ottawa Fringe Festival at a series of recitals of new music for solo viola last June. Fellow composer Peter Amsel, reviewing the concert for his electronic music journal For the Love of Music , commented on the work's attractive and engaging musical language as follows:
The first work of the program was the premiere of the Fantasy (1999) for solo viola by Deidre Piper (1943 ). This is a very difficult composition, but an immensely rewarding work that deserves to be listened to more than once . . . . [M]y first impression . . . was that it was a great work. There was no doubt from the beginning that it was something that had an enduring quality to it . . . .
The score of Fantasy will be deposited at the Canadian Music Centre shortly. Readers can contact Deirdre Piper by e-mail at deirdre_piper@carleton.ca.
Eldon Rathburn, born in Queenstown, New Brunswick, studied composition in Toronto with Healey Willan and is one of Canada's most frequently heard composers. He was a staff composer at the National Film Board from 1947 to 1976 and has written some 200 film scores and many concert pieces. His Labyrinth, a "multi-screen extravaganza" and one of his most important and successful works, was shown in a specially built theatre at Expo 67. Several of his compositions explore a railroad them. Since his retirement from the National Film Board, Mr. Rathburn has remained active as a composer. Crystal Records issued a CD of his music, "Mostly Railroad Music," in 1994 (CD520). He was invested as a Companion of the Order of Canada in 1999 and in October 2000 was named one of eight recipients of the City of Ottawa's inaugural Arts and Heritage Awards.
Soliloquy, a miniature for viola, explores primarily the low and mid-range of the instrument. Its thematic materials are lyrical and expressive. It was premiered at an Espace Musique concert in the auditorium of the National Gallery of Canada on April 23, 1999. A copy of the score may be obtained from the composer at the following:
Eldon Rathburn
Suite 2006 - 545 St. Laurent Blvd.
Ottawa, ON K1K 4H9
KJ