Sonata No. 1
for piano
Sonata no. 1 is rather like a dramatic tone poem suggesting a hero’s journey (challenges, striving, uncertainty, searching, inner and outer struggles) — one which ends darkly, but with a glimmer of hope. The structure of this single movement work recalls classical sonata allegro form. Inspired by late 19th and early 20th century tonality, the exposition and recapitulation derive from functional, tonal harmony, while the modulatory development uses the overtone scale to explore earlier themes in new ways.
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Jazz Ground is a brief fairly simple piano solo, Gershwin-like in feeling. A third or fourth year student could manage it. It would serve as a break or change of pace in a heavier, classical recital. It is appealing and likable. Continued... | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
This impressionistic impromptu is a depiction of a slow, rain-filled day. It is a series of mostly still moments defined by the steady rhythmic fall of the rain on the trees and rooftops. The rich, accessible harmonies, simple melodic ideas and pace of the music combine within an unfolding form to depict this observational beauty. […] Continued... | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
These small doodles, or ‘paper improvisations,’ if you will, began as just that—scribbles that went down in one sitting, without the usual planning devoted to so much of my preceding music for solo piano. As such, they probably sound much different from the Aquarelles or even the more ‘open’ Piano Set, and the player may […] Continued... | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
A Piano Suite of five pieces that express something of the character and style of ancient dances, without adhering to their classical forms. The prelude establishes harmonic and melodic materials which are utilized throughout the suite. The following four pieces capture a generalized characteristic of their historical namesakes. A nine-tone scale is used in all […] Continued... | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Cast in the traditional three movements — fast, slow, fast — influence and indebtedness to Bartók is noticeable in the two outer movements. In the meditative slow movement, there are allusions both to Beethoven’s 3rd concerto, with its dialogue-like alternation between soloist and orchestra, and in the main body of the movement, a nod to […] Continued... | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Sonata for Piano was composed expressly for Beth Levin in the early weeks of January 2013 during a residency at the Edward MacDowell Colony in New Hampshire. Movement one is dominated by a satirical character of extreme contrasts in dynamics, abrupt gestures, and pauses. Its organization might be described as “quasi sonata form”, since […] Continued... | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||