Clarinet Concerto (Zwilich)

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The Clarinet Concerto is a composition for solo clarinet and orchestra by the American composer Ellen Taaffe Zwilich. It was commissioned by the Arlene and Dr. Milton D. Berkman Philanthropic Fund for the clarinetist David Shifrin, to whom the piece is dedicated. The concerto was first performed by Shifrin and twelve members of the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center in Alice Tully Hall on September 12, 2003. [1] [2]

Contents

Composition

In fall 2001, Zwilich had already sketched the first movements of her Clarinet Concerto and was about to begin work on the second movement when news of the September 11 attacks broke. The composer subsequently decided to transform the second movement into an elegy for that day titled "Elegy: September 11." The concerto has a performance duration of approximately 28 minutes and is cast in four—all, except the second, untitled—movements. [1]

Instrumentation

The work is scored for solo clarinet and a small orchestra consisting of flute, oboe, bassoon, two horns, cornet, percussion, and strings. [1]

Reception

Peter G. Davis of New York wrote, "Ellen Taaffe Zwilich's 'Clarinet Concerto' would surely have turned out to be quite a different piece had not the fatal date arrived just as she was about to start work on the second movement." He added, "It's all done with the most skillful application and development of its musical materials – a score truly inspired by a tragic event and one that is likely to transcend it." [3]

In 2023, a 2012 recording of the concerto by Chamber Music Northwest with clarinetist David Shifrin was selected by the Library of Congress for preservation in the United States National Recording Registry as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant." [4] [5]

Related Research Articles

Ellen Taaffe Zwilich is an American composer, the first female composer to win the Pulitzer Prize for Music. Her early works are marked by atonal exploration, but by the late 1980s, she had shifted to a postmodernist, neoromantic style. She has been called "one of America's most frequently played and genuinely popular living composers." She was a 1994 inductee into the Florida Artists Hall of Fame. Zwilich has served as the Francis Eppes Distinguished Professor at Florida State University.

Shulamit Ran is an Israeli-American composer. She moved from Israel to New York City at 14, as a scholarship student at the Mannes College of Music. Her Symphony (1990) won her the Pulitzer Prize for Music. In this regard, she was the second woman to win the Pulitzer Prize for Music, the first being Ellen Taaffe Zwilich in 1983. Ran was a professor of music composition at the University of Chicago from 1973 to 2015. She has performed as a pianist in Israel, Europe and the U.S., and her compositional works have been performed worldwide by a wide array of orchestras and chamber groups.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">David Shifrin</span> American classical clarinetist (born 1950)

David Shifrin is an American classical clarinetist and artistic director.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">National Recording Registry</span> List of sound recordings preserved in the U.S. Library of Congress

The National Recording Registry is a list of sound recordings that "are culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant, and/or inform or reflect life in the United States." The registry was established by the National Recording Preservation Act of 2000, which created the National Recording Preservation Board, whose members are appointed by the Librarian of Congress. The recordings preserved in the United States National Recording Registry form a registry of recordings selected yearly by the National Recording Preservation Board for preservation in the Library of Congress.

Aaron Copland's Clarinet Concerto was written between 1947 and 1949, although a first version was available in 1948. The concerto was later choreographed by Jerome Robbins for the ballet Pied Piper (1951).

The Concerto for Clarinet and Orchestra is a clarinet concerto in three movements by the American composer John Corigliano. The work was commissioned by the New York Philharmonic for the clarinetist Stanley Drucker. It was composed in the summer and fall of 1977 and was first performed in New York City on December 6, 1977, by Drucker and the New York Philharmonic conducted by Leonard Bernstein. The composition is dedicated to Drucker and Bernstein.

The Symphony No. 2, or 'Cello Symphony is a composition for orchestra by the American composer Ellen Taaffe Zwilich. The work was composed in 1985 on a commission from the San Francisco Symphony. It was first performed on November 13, 1985, by the San Francisco Symphony under the direction of Edo de Waart, to whom the piece is dedicated.

The Symphony No. 3 is a symphony for orchestra by the American composer Ellen Taaffe Zwilich. The work was commissioned by the New York Philharmonic to commemorate their sesquicentennial anniversary. It was first performed by the New York Philharmonic conducted by Jahja Ling on February 25, 1993. The symphony is dedicated "with love and admiration" to Kurt Masur and the New York Philharmonic.

The Concerto for Violin and Orchestra is violin concerto by the American composer Ellen Taaffe Zwilich. The work was commissioned by Carnegie Hall for the violinist Pamela Frank. It was completed on May 25, 1997, and was first performed by Pamela Frank and the Orchestra of St. Luke's conducted by Hugh Wolff in Carnegie Hall on March 26, 1998.

The Symphony No. 5 or Concerto for Orchestra is a composition for orchestra by the American composer Ellen Taaffe Zwilich. The work was commissioned by the Juilliard School in honor of Bruce Kovner and Suzie Kovner with support of the Trust of Francis Goelet. It was first performed by the Juilliard Orchestra conducted by James Conlon at Carnegie Hall on October 27, 2008.

The Concerto for Cello and Orchestra is a composition for solo cello and orchestra by the American composer Ellen Taaffe Zwilich. The work was written on a commission from the South Florida Symphony Orchestra. Zwilich composed the piece over a six-month period, completing the work in early 2020. It was given its world premiere by the cellist Zuill Bailey the South Florida Symphony Orchestra conducted by Sebrina María Alfonso on March 5, 2020, at the Broward Center for the Performing Arts in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. The concerto is dedicated to Zuill Bailey and Sebrina María Alfonso and written in memory of the cellists Leonard Rose and Mstislav Rostropovich.

The Concerto for Piano and Orchestra is a composition for solo piano and orchestra by the American composer Ellen Taaffe Zwilich. The work was written on a commission from Carnegie Hall, the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, and the League of American Orchestras. It was the first composition ever commissioned by either Carnegie Hall or the League of American Orchestras. The world premiere was performed by the pianist Marc-André Hamelin and the Detroit Symphony Orchestra under the direction of Günther Herbig at the Meadow Brook Music Festival in Rochester Hills, Michigan, on June 26, 1986. The piece is dedicated to Günther Herbig.

The Concerto for Violin, Violoncello and Orchestra is a double concerto for violin, cello, and orchestra by the American composer Ellen Taaffe Zwilich. The work was commissioned by the Louisville Orchestra for the violinist Jaime Laredo and the cellist Sharon Robinson and in memory of the sculptor Albert Wein. It was first performed by Laredo, Robinson, and the Louisville Orchestra under the direction of Lawrence Leighton Smith on December 5, 1991. The piece is dedicated to Lawrence Leighton Smith and the Louisville Orchestra.

The Concerto Grosso 1985 is a composition for chamber orchestra by the American composer Ellen Taaffe Zwilich. The work was commissioned by the Washington Friends of Handel in commemoration of the 300th anniversary of the birth of George Frideric Handel. It was given its world premiere by Handel Festival Orchestra conducted by Stephen Simon on May 9, 1986.

The Concerto for Oboe and Orchestra is a composition for oboe solo and orchestra by the American composer Ellen Taaffe Zwilich. The work was commissioned by the Cleveland Orchestra in honor of their principal oboist John Mack's 25th year with the orchestra. It was first performed by Mack and the Cleveland Orchestra under the direction of Christoph von Dohnányi on January 17, 1991. The piece is dedicated "with affection" to John Mack.

The Concerto for Bassoon and Orchestra is a bassoon concerto written by the American composer Ellen Taaffe Zwilich. The work was commissioned by the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra for their principal bassoonist Nancy Goeres. It was given its world premiere by Goeres and the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra under the direction of Lorin Maazel in Heinz Hall for the Performing Arts, Pittsburgh, on May 13, 1993. The piece is dedicated to Maazel, Goeres, and the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra.

The American Concerto is a trumpet concerto written by the American composer Ellen Taaffe Zwilich. The work was commissioned by the California Center for the Arts, Escondido, the San Diego Symphony, the Virginia Symphony Orchestra, the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra, and the trumpeter Doc Severinsen, to whom it is dedicated. The piece was completed in New York on June 12, 1994, and was given its world premiere by Doc Severinsen and the San Diego Symphony under the direction of JoAnn Falletta in Escondido, California, on September 24, 1994.

Millennium Fantasy for Piano and Orchestra is a piano concerto written by the American composer Ellen Taaffe Zwilich. The work was commissioned by the pianist Jeffrey Biegel in association with the Adele Marcus Foundation, the Abraham J. & Phyllis Katz Foundation, the South Florida Council of the Chopin Foundation of the United States, Isa and Marvin Leibowitz, the American Music Center, and a consortium of 27 American orchestras. It was first performed by Jeffrey Biegel and the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra under the direction of Jesús López Cobos in Cincinnati on September 22, 2000.

Peanuts Gallery is a piano concerto by the American composer Ellen Taaffe Zwilich, inspired by the characters of the comic strip Peanuts by Charles M. Schulz, who was a friend of Zwilich. It was commissioned for the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra by the Carnegie Hall Corporation, and first performed by the pianist Albert Kim and the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra at Carnegie Hall on March 22, 1997.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Zwilich, Ellen Taaffe (2003). "Clarinet Concerto". Theodore Presser Company . Retrieved July 27, 2020.
  2. ↑ Peleg, Ilan (September 11, 2003). "The clarinet takes center stage in fall concerts". The Morning Call . Retrieved July 27, 2020.
  3. ↑ Davis, Peter G. (November 11, 2002). "Renée's Way". New York . Retrieved July 27, 2020.
  4. ↑ "2023 National Recording Registry selections". Library of Congress. Retrieved 12 April 2023.
  5. ↑ "National Recording Registry Inducts Music from Madonna, Mariah Carey, Queen Latifah, Daddy Yankee". Library of Congress. Retrieved 12 April 2023.
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