 |
 |
 |
lou harrison: grand duo for violin and piano In a fine Japanese restaurant in Philadelphia one day in 1988 I told Dennis Russell Davies that I was going to compose for him and his friend Romuald Tecco a polka. We had been talking for a while about my composing for the two of them a largish concert piece. The polka turned out to be the finale. In Portland, Oregon I began a richly rhapsodic section that became Movement Four, and that consciously, though quite naturally, contains an Ivesian Hymn-tune like section which is repeated. I say "consciously", because when the part appeared out of my material I thought "oh, this is very Ivesian" but saw no reason to abjure it, any more than I have abjured passages that remind of other composers. Since I was writing for Dennis who is a very dear and long-time friend, it occurred to me to include, as Movement Three, a developed version of a "round" that I had composed in his home in Stuttgart for his two daughters to play on violins. Then I thought to ask Romuald whether he had a tune or melody that he liked that I could also weave into this composition for two good friends. He suggested the Barcarolle from Tales from Hoffman. This will be found - just the beginning of it - in the opening bass of the first movement. In two movements the pianist needs to play with a padded bar which exactly depresses all the keys of an octave. It makes for brilliance and gives two tone-colors - both the white-key set, and the black-key set - thus enriching the texture. Naturally Dennis immediately christened the bar a "piano-banger.".The original artists have recorded the work, many others have played it, and I am happy that the choreographer Mark Morris has created a massively powerful ballet for it. Lou Harrison
|
|
 |
 |
|
|
