Program Notes
ConcertScherzo,AlexanderArutiunian(1920-2012)
Alexander Arutiunian was an Armenian composer. He studied composition at the Komitas Conservatory in Yerevan, Armenia and at the the Moscow Conservatory. Afterwards, he was music director of the Armenian Philharmonic and taught at the Yerevan Conservatory while composing. Arutiunian is most well known for his Concerto in A-flat Major for trumpet, written in 1950. The Concert Scherzo was written in 1955 for trumpet and symphony orchestra. It is a playful presto featuring articulated moving phrases and a typical ABA structure.
ConcertoinEb,JohannBaptistGeorgNeruda(1708-1780)
Johann Baptist Georg Neruda was a Czech composer, violinist, and cellist of the classical era. He performed and conducted in Prague and Germany until becoming music director of the Dresden court orchestra. Neruda's compositional output included a number of symphonies and instrumental concertos, most notably, the Concerto in Eb for trumpet. In the modern era, this work is consistently performed on Bb or Eb trumpet, being more idiomatic for the latter. The work itself adheres strictly to its tonality, due to the capabilities of the instrument at the time, and the "proper" treatment of music for the era. It is highly contrapuntal and often features ornamentation that is characteristic of the time period.
CantabileetScherzetto,PhilipeGaubert(1879-1941)
Philipe Gaubert was a French flautist, conductor, and composer. He studied at the Paris Conservatoire and had a prominent career performing in and conducting the Paris Opera, and teaching at the Paris Conservatoire. Cantabile et Scherzetto is Gaubert's only work for cornet and is split into two movements, though it is only one work. The cantabile features delicate leaping lines and emphasizes dissonance to embolden the phrase. The Scherzetto features rushing articulated triplets with a a brief lyrical intermission.
ConcertoinFMinor,OskarBöhme(1870-1938)
Oskar Böhme was a German composer and trumpeter. He studied these professions at the Leipzig Conservatory of Music and pursued performance in the Budapest Opera Orchestra and the Mariinsky Theatre. Bohme composed forty six works and the Concerto in F Minor is his best known piece. He wrote in the Romantic style of music and primarily wrote for trumpet and other brass instruments. The first movement of the Concerto in F Minor features a moderate tempo with vast leaps and a high degree of technical demand. The constant sextuplet descents, two octave arpeggios, and the double tonguing passages are a few facets of the challenge in this work.
ConcertinoClassico,JosephHorovitz(1926-2022)
Joseph Horovitz was born in Austria, but was quickly relocated to England where he became a British composer and conductor. He studied at New College, Oxford and the Royal College of music in London. Horovitz studied under Gordon Jacob and Nadia Boulanger and became music director at Bristol Old Vic in 1950. Afterwards, he taught composition at the Royal College of Music. Horovitz output consists of orhestral works, wind and brass band works, chamber music, film and television scores, and various ballets. The second movement of the Concertino Classico features beautiful counterplay between two flugelhorns in the layered lyrical work.
TheMaidoftheMist,HerbertL.Clarke(1867-1945)
Herbert L. Clarke was a prominent cornettist and bandmaster at the turn of the twentieth century. Though his formal education was limited, his performance career is vast, featuring a number of positions as cornet soloist. Such groups include the Citizen's Band of Toronto, Patrick Gilmore's Band, and John Philip Sousa's band. Clarke temporarily held a position in the New York Philharmonic and as principal of the Metropolitan Opera as well. Following these, he briefly became leader of The American Band, but spent most of his years performing with Sousa's band. The Maid of the Mist is a show piece that Clarke wrote for himself and is named after the sightseeing boats at Niagara Falls. The playful polka presents a floaty andantino and a bouncy theme that utilizes repeated articulation to increase the technicality of the piece.