Concertato, For Piano And Orchestra
Ernesto P. Pellegrini
About this work:
The work, originally composed as a three-movement Piano Concerto, was first performed in January of 1991 by Mitchell Andrews and the Muncie Symphony Orchestra under the direction of Leonard Atherton. After much deliberation, the composer has felt that it would be best to retain the first movement as an independent work since the initial movement is the longest and most musically engaging of the three. The second movement also has been retained as an independent work, but the third, for now, has been officially set aside.
Eclectic in character, the work contains particular musical styles of the distant and recent past. The work opens with a percussion crescendo roll which is evocative of Grieg’s Piano Concerto. The piano is then heard in a lengthy solo passage which may be considered a cadenza. It displays technical virtuosity and contains allusions to the thematic material of the movement – seen as a collection of musical ideas and presents them in a more recognizable setting. Then a new and contrasting theme, the lyrical folk song “Belle rose” from Valle d’Aosta, the most northwestern region of Italy, makes its entrance. The development section, allegretto, contains many rhythmical transformations of this new theme. The end of this section is climaxed by a third theme, romantic in nature. Following next is orchestra music which serves the same purpose of the recapitulation in a classical work. Now the structure becomes abbreviated and employs different orchestral colorings from those previously heard. The return of the folk song brings the movement to a close with pianistic flair.
The writing of this work was made possible through an Indiana Arts Commission Summer Master Fellowship which was received in 1986.
Year composed: 1988
Duration: 00:15:00
Ensemble type: Orchestra:Orchestra with Soloist(s)
Instrumentation: 2 Flute, 2 Oboe, 2 Clarinet, 2 Bassoon, 4 Horn in F, 2 Trumpet, 3 Trombone, 1 Tuba, 3 Percussion (General), 1 Strings (General), 1 Harp
Instrumentation notes: Flute 2 also Piccolo