Concerto for Flugelhorn

Daron Hagen

Daron Hagen (arranged by composer)

This article is a stub. If you can help add information to it,
please join the WRP and visit the FAQ (left sidebar) for information.

General Info

Year: 1993 / 1994
Duration: c. 21:00
Difficulty: (see Ratings for explanation)
Original Medium: Flugelhorn and chamber orchestra
Publisher: Schirmer
Cost: Score and Parts (print) - Rental | Score Only (print) - $32.50

Movements

1. Precise funk – 3:00
2. Slow sing – 7:00
3. Driving bop – 4:30

Instrumentation

Full Score
Solo Flugelhorn
C Piccolo
Flute I-II-III
Bassoon I-II
E-flat Soprano Clarinet
B-flat Soprano Clarinet I-II-III
B-flat Bass Clarinet
E-flat Alto Clarinet
B-flat Trumpet I-II-III
Horn in F I-II-III-IV
Trombone I-II-III
String Bass
Percussion (2 players)

(percussion detail desired)

Errata

None discovered thus far.

Program Notes

The second movement was composed at the Virginia Center for the Creative during August of 1991. Marked 'slow swing,' it consists of an extended vocalise for the soloist which evolves into a traditionally unfolding 32-bar chorus. Hagen writes that it is 'an homage to the great film noir soundtracks - think Bogart in a trenchcoat, night-time, and falling rain.'

The final movement was composed in New York City during May of 1992. Marked 'driving bop,' it is a series of written-out choruses based on an eight bar 'head' from Stanzas, Book IV, by Hagen's first composition teacher, Les Thimmig. Hagen writes, 'The genesis of this movement goes back to when, around Christmas of 1983, Les' son Adam was born; I sketched them as a congratulatory gift then under the title Merry Christmas, it's a Boy' and included them as the final movement of a Divertimento for viola, harp, and vibes.

During April of 1994, Hagen arranged the concerto for flugelhorn and wind ensemble. The original version, for flugelhorn and string orchestra, was first performed on 28 February 1993 at the Woodstock Concert Hall in Woodstock, New York by Donna Hagen and the Woodstock Chamber Orchestra, led by music director Luis Garcia Renart. The version for wind ensemble was first performed on 21 May,1994 at the Olympia Concert Hall by the Northwest Washington Wind Orchestra in Olympia, Washington. The soloist was Donna Hagen.

- Program Note from publisher

All in good fun, the concerto is a composer's holiday which takes a wry, affectionate look at three pop idioms. The first section is marked "precise funk" and rings some new changes on the sort of punchy rhythms favored by such so-called "crossover" talents as the Michaels Torke and Daugherty during the early eighties. (It uses as a core idea a four-bar groove from Torke's infectious Adjustable Wrench.) The second section is marked "slow swing" and consists of an extended vocalise for the soloist which evolves into a traditionally unfolding 32-bar chorus. It's an homage to the great film noir soundtracks – think Bogart in a trench coat, night-time (again) and falling rain.

The final section is marked Driving bop. It is a series of written-out choruses based on an eight-bar "head" from Stanzas, Book Four, by my first composition teacher, Les Thimmig. The genesis of this movement goes way back to when, around Christmas 1983, Les's son Adam was born. I sketched them a congratulatory gift under the title Merry Christmas, It's a Boy!

- Program Note from liner notes for Arsis CD Night, Again

Media

State Ratings

None discovered thus far.

Performances

To submit a performance please join The Wind Repertory Project

Northwest Washington Wind Orchestra (Olympia) (Carolyn Vian, conductor; Donna Hagen, flugelhorn) – 21 May 1994 *Premiere Performance

Works for Winds by this Composer

Agincourt Fanfare (2007)
Bandanna (1998)
Bandanna Overture (1999)
The Banner of My Purpose(2006)
Concerto for Flugelhorn (1994)
Forward! (1998)
The Heart of a Stranger (1999)
Light Fantastic (2004)
Night Again (1997)
Prelude and Prayer (from Bandanna) (1999)
Sennets, Cortage, and Tuckets (1989)
Suddenly (1999)
Wedding Dances (orch. Spede) (1999)

Resources

Daron Hagen website – Accessed 1 September 2022
Hagen, D. (1994). Concerto for Flügelhorn and Wind Orchestra [score]. ECS Pub.: Boston, Mass.