Concerto for Percussion (Schwantner)

Joseph Schwantner

Joseph Schwantner (trans. Andrew Boysen, Jr.)

General Info

Year: 1994 / 1997
Duration: c. 30:10
Difficulty: VII (see Ratings for explanation)
Original Medium: Orchestra
Publisher: Schott Helicon Music
Cost: Score and Parts - Rental | Score Only - $59.00

Movements

1. Con forza – 5:25
2. Misterioso – 11:10
3. Ritmico con brio – 10:30

Instrumentation

Full Score
Solo Percussion
C Piccolo
Flute I-II
Oboe I-II
English Horn
Bassoon I-II
Contrabassoon
E-flat Soprano Clarinet
B-flat Soprano Clarinet I-II
C Trumpet I-II-III
Horn in F I-II-III-IV
Trombone I-II-III
Tuba
String Bass
Piano
Harp
Timpani
Percussion I-II-III, including:

Anvil
Bass Drum
Bell Tree
Brake Drum
Claves
Glockenspiel
Japanese Wind Chimes
Marimba
Mark Tree
Suspended Cymbals (2)
Tam-tam
Timbales (2)
Tom-toms (4)
Triangles (2)
Tubular Bells
Vibraphone
Wood Blocks (4)

Soloist requires:

Bass Drum
Bongos (2)
Crash Cymbals
Crotales (2-octave set plus a 1-octave set)
Marimba (amplified)
Rute (bundle of twigs)
Shekere (beaded gourd)
Suspended Cymbal
Tenor Drum
Timbales
Tom-toms (2)
Triangles (2)
Vibraphone
Water Gong
Xylophone

Errata

None discovered thus far.

Program Notes

The Concerto, cast in a three-movement arch-like design, opens with the soloist stationed near the other percussionists. A collaborative relationship develops between the soloist and his or her colleagues in an expanded ensemble that also includes the piano and the harp. The marimba and drums are most prominently featured in this movement.

Throughout the second movement, In Memoriam, a slow, dark-hued elegy, the soloist is placed center stage while the other percussionists remain silent. Two principal ideas appear: a pair of recurrent ringing sonorities played on the vibraphone and an insistent “heartbeat” motif articulated on the bass drum.

The second movement leads directly into the fast and rhythmic third movement, which begins with an improvisatory section for the soloist. While continuing to improvise, the soloist walks back to the initial performance position of the first movement. As in that movement, the amplified marimba is again prominently featured. The final section, drawn from the drum motives of the first movement, proceeds to a high-energy cadenza and conclusion.

The score bears the dedication “To the memory of Stephen Albert,” and was commissioned by Philharmonic-Symphony Society of New York. The premiere was given by the New York Philharmonic, Leonard Slatkin conducting. Christopher Lamb was the soloist. The wind transcription was done by Andrew Boysen Jr.

- Program Note by composer

Media

Audio CD: North Texas Wind Symphony (Eugene Corporon, conductor).
Audio CD: United States Marine Band (Michael J. Colburn, conductor; Christopher Rose percussion) - 2004

State Ratings

None discovered thus far.

Performances

To submit a performance please join The Wind Repertory Project

University of West Georgia (Carrollton) Wind Ensemble (Josh Byrd, conductor; Emma Eddleman, percussion) - 12 November 2021
DePaul University (Chicago, Ill.) Wind Ensemble (Cliff Colnot, conductor; Evelyn Glennie, percussion) – 10 November 2018
Shenandoah Conservatory (Winchester, Va.) Wind Ensemble (Timothy Robblee, conductor) – 10 November 2018
Eastman School of Music (Rochester, N.Y.) Wind Ensemble (Mark Scatterday, conductor; Michael Burritt, percussion) – 25 September 2017
Texas Christian University (Fort Worth) Wind Symphony (Bobby R. Francis, conductor; Luke Vogt, percussion) – 25 April 2017
Ohio University (Athens) Wind Symphony (Andrew Trachsel, conductor; Roger Braun, percussion) – 27 February 2017 (Carnegie Hall, New York)
Ohio University (Athens) Wind Symphony (Andrew Trachsel, conductor) – 6 November 2016
University of Texas (Austin) Wind Ensemble (Jerry Junkin, conductor; Thomas Burritt, soloist) – 1 May 2016
Truman State University (Kirksville, Mo.) Wind Symphony (Curran Pendergast, conductor; Michael Bump, percussion) – 22 April 2016
Temple University (Philadelphia) Wind Symphony (Emily Threinen, conductor; Phillip O'Banion, percussion) – 27 March 2015 (2015 CBDNA National Conference, Nashville)
California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, Wind Ensemble (Anna Binneweg, conductor; John Astaire, percussion) – 18 June 2010
United States Marine Band (Washington, D.C.) (Michael J. Colburn, conductor; Christopher Rose percussion) – 15 December 2004 (2004 Midwest Clinic)

Works for Winds by This Composer

...and the mountains rising nowhere (1977)
The Awakening Hour (2017)
Beyond Autumn (tr. Miles) (2006)
Concerto for Percussion (tr. Boysen Jr.) (1997)
From a Dark Millennium (1980)
In evening's stillness... (1996)
Luminosity: Concerto for Wind Orchestra (2015)
Music of Amber (1981)
New Morning for the World (tr. Pilato) (1982/2007)
Recoil (2004)
Sparrows (1979)

Resources

Higbee, Scott. (2003). "Joseph Schwantner" from A Composer's Insight." Galesville, MD: Meredith Music.
Joseph Schwantner website
Pilato, Nikk. (2007). A Conductor's Guide to Wind Music of Joseph Schwantner Doctoral Dissertation.
Renshaw, Jeffrey. (1991). Schwantner on Composition. Instrumentalist, 45(6).