45 Original Piano Pieces

Schott Piano Classics

 

• 45 pieces ranging from the baroque to the modern era


• For intermediate to advanced players


• Contains a variety of composers presented in chronological order

 

The theme of this collection is the representation of people through music. The 45 original works for piano reflect the fascination composers have had over musical portraits for 4 centuries.

Portraits is part of the Schott Piano Classics series and provides the player with a wide range of composers including Couperin, Bach, Schumann, Heller and Debussy.

Realisation for string septet

Rudolf Leopold

 

• Realisation of Strauss’ late masterpiece, Metamorphosen


• Advanced level


• Chamber music setting for string septet

 

Rudolf Leopold prepared this septet performance version of Strauss’ Metamorphosen using elements from both the original short and final scores.

Discovered in 1990, Strauss’ short score of Metamorphosen was originally conceived for seven strings. He however changed his mind when he received a composition commission for a 23-piece string section from the Paul Sacher Foundation.

Leopold, a Concert Cellist and Professor of Cello at the University of Music and Performing Arts in Graz, had his realisation of Metamorphosen published in 1996.

The Passion of our Lord Jesus Christ according to John

James Macmillan

 

• Scored for Baritone solo, small chorus, large chorus
  and orchestra


• MacMillan’s first Passion setting, composed in 2007


• Divided into two parts, with 10 movements overall

 

One of the most successful composers of today Sir James MacMillan, dedicated his St John Passion to Sir Colin Davis for his 80th birthday. This ambitious setting of the Passion according to St John was premiered at the Barbican and performed by the London Symphony Orchestra.

This study score is part of the Hawkes Pocket Scores series, a range which has become synonymous with the best in 20th and 21st century music.

34 Original Violoncello Duets from 5 Centuries

Beverley Ellis and Rainer Mohrs

 

 

• Contains a wide selection of pieces from the Renaissance to the present day


• Covers 1st to 7th positions


• Easy to intermediate


• Equal voicing sharing the melodic themes

 

This great value publication contains 34 original duets for both students and amateur musicians. Featuring works from a wide range of eras, including well-known pieces by Dotzauer, Kummer, Lee, Offenbach and Reinagle, as well as some lesser-known works by Morley, Boccherini, Schönebeck and Hindemith.

Other editions from the Cellissimo series include Appassionato for intermediate players and Arietta for beginners, both of which are scored for cello and piano.

The complete singing resource for primary schools

Val Whitlock & Shirley Court

 

• Practical and easy-to-use resource for teachers of all
  musical abilities


• For children up to age 7


• Demonstration and backing audio tracks are provided


• Now available in a refreshed and repackaged edition

 

 

The updated text and newly engraved music is presented in clear and progressive steps, along with teaching notes suitable for those with limited musical experience.

Volumes 1-5 consist of enjoyable songs and fun vocal activities designed to equip and enable children ages 5-11 to sing to their full potential.

The new edition of Volume 5 is also available.

On 1 November, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and their chief conductor Riccardo Muti present the world premiere of Bernard Rands’ Dream in Chicago.

Rands’ music has a distinctive character that combines ‘plangent lyricism’ with dramatic intensity. His new work for orchestra is based on a melody he composed to amuse himself on a long flight between London and Sidney. The melody forms the DNA of the entire work, out of which everything else is derived.

Bernard Rands – Dream: The experience of dreaming

Though Rands calls his work Dream, the piece is not a musical representation of any specific dream but an attempt to describe in music the experience of dreaming. The musical form reflects this, exploring the unforeseeable, fantastic but also strange and mysterious converging pictures, the intense clarity, and the chaos of dreaming.

‘This landscape of the mind allows me to explore a post-Debussian formal aesthetic I have been developing over the years.’ (Bernard Rands)

Following the premiere, the Chicago Symphony will give two further performances of Dream on 2 and on 5 November. Later this season, Northwestern University Symphony Orchestra will perform Rands’ Concerto for English Horn and Orchestra on 16 April at Pick-Staiger Concert Hall Evanston.

• Bernard Rands – profile


• Dream – work details


• Chicago Symphony Orchestra

On 26 October Wilhelm Killmayer’s Yolimba opens at the Theatre Münster in a new production directed by Ulrich Peters and conducted by Thorsten Schmid-Kapfenburg. Marielle Murphy and Gregor Dalal perform the principal roles of Yolimba and Moehringer.

Drawing on elements of musical comedy, operetta, pantomime and cabaret, Killmayer’s work flits liberally between styles, scenes and musical ideas, something which has allowed the work to remain free of associations with any particular genre.

Wilhelm Killmayer – Yolimba: Power of magic

The protagonist in the opera is Moehringer, an inventor who hates love. His hatred motivates him to create Yolimba, a creation that exists for the sole purpose of killing anyone who mentions the word ‘love’ but Moehringer’s apparently flawless plan is eventually foiled when Yolimba itself falls in love.

The work concludes with Moehringer’s demise as he is disposed of in a rubbish bin, a scene accompanied by the magical final piece “Great ode to the garbage disposal, the limits of magic and finale”.

In the comic genre, there is a style that has progressed to a limited extent, but by no means as explosive as that in the serious. My musical farce sees itself as an attempt to contribute to artificial entertainment theatre. – Wilhelm Killmayer

Following the first performance Yolimba will be performed six further times in Münster on 2, 8, 17, 28 November; 22 December; 8, and 24 January.

• Wilhelm Killmayer – profile


• Yolimba – work details


• Theatre Münster 

 

Photo: R_Yosha / Adobe Stock

 

On Wednesday and Thursday 16-17 October, Miller Theatre presents the world premiere performances of Hannah Lash’s chamber opera, Desire. The production is conducted by Daniela Candillari, directed by Rachel Dickstein, and features the JACK Quartet.

Desire is an opera about the artists' journey navigating both inspiration and doubt. The piece takes the form of a metaphor, set in a magical garden where flowers miraculously can be unearthed by the main character, an artist, and just as quickly die and turn to ash if the conviction of the artist is shaken.
We watch while the artist finds herself, finds trust in herself, struggling with her relationships to both doubt and inspiration, finally building both out of her world as she becomes wholly self-reliant. Hannah Lash

On November 14 and 16, the Naples Philharmonic gives the world premiere of Hannah Lash’s Double Concerto for piano and harp, featuring Jeremy Denk and Hannah Lash as soloists.

• Hannah Lash – profile


• Desire - work details


• Miller Theatre

Available in 3 colours

Richard Whitehouse

 

The best-selling diary returns for 2020 with a user-friendly portrait format, extra space for weekend appointments, and birthdays of hundreds of famous people in the world of music.

 

Listings of important musical events from 100, 50 and 25 years ago and forthcoming anniversaries up to 2025 are included, alongside a mini-directory of concert halls, opera houses, festivals, organisations and recording companies, plus a special article on Roberto Gerhard to mark the 50th anniversary of his death.

 

The cover design for 2020 includes an excerpt from Piano Sonata no 14 (1801) by Ludwig van Beethoven, marking the 250th anniversary of the composer’s birth.

31 Easy Concert Pieces from 5 Centuries

Charlotte Mohrs

 

• First book in the series


• Excellent for class teacher


• Very easy to easy pieces

 

This book offers a varied spectrum of very easy pieces from the Renaissance, Baroque, Classical, Romantic and Modern eras, including works by Beethoven, Charpentier, Haydn, Humperdinck, Mozart, Praetorius, Reinagle or Schubert, as well as easy folk tunes and Canons, which are excellent for class teaching. The repertoire enriches the daily exercises and any double bass tutor.

All pieces can be played in half and first position, using easy rhythms and meters, easily playable major and minor keys, easy bowing and articulation as well as easy dynamics from piano to forte, crescendo and decrescendo. All pieces are included on CD. This book is a treasure trove for beginners and can be used even earlier than the first book in the series “Easy Concert Pieces” (Schott ED 22551).