Autumn Concerto
for alto saxophone and symphonic orchestra
2000
premier: April 24th, 2005
Holland Symfonia
Ties Mellema : alto saxophone
I wrote Autumn Concerto while studying in Strasbourg. I was impressed by the stained glass of the cathedral and began to think about ways to translate its beauty into music. Based on the proportions of the stained glass and its colours, I chose intervallic and harmonic material for the piece.
Some sections are played ad libitum. (The term "aleatoric music" indicates music based upon the principles of indeterminacy as evidenced by certain random and/or statistical procedures of composition.)The rest came from pure emotion.
The first bars (exposition of the saxophone) are molto esspresivo and almost con dolore (with pain). The soloist is alone, and only harsh ricochets of percussion are responding. After an exposition of orchestra comes an optimistic development. In a dance-like mood, the orchestra builds to two culminations, which lead to the neurotic pinnacle of destruction. In the cadence, the initial motives return, accompanied by a lullaby of
strings. It is a positive ending. Nature sleeps, but it will be reborn.
Performances:
*24 Feb 2004 Holland Symfonia, Beurs van Berlage, Amsterdam, Netherlands
Copy of the score and parts can be obtained at Donemus publishing www.donemus.nl
Listen to fragment
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