Concerto for Piano and Orchestra

The five movements of the Concerto, although played without pause, are distinct, the titles indicating the moods and impressions created in each. In the first movement, “Fantasia,” chordal sonorities in different rhythms and registers evoke the quiet pleasure the self-absorbed performer takes in himself. In the second movement, “Scherzoso,” the music combines tenderness and nervousness. The composer cautions (in fact, about the entire Concerto), "Don’t tell too much. The element of surprise will be lost." The music is very clear, however, as to whether or not this episode culminates successfully. The third movement, “Giocoso,” conveys the self-consciousness and the short concentration span of the performer, perhaps some frustration with the discipline of performing, and a surprising blue note.

The title of the fourth movement, “Clusteritis,” and the dominant musical technique employed herein constitute a musical pun. A “cluster” is a group of tones, usually dissonances or half-steps, played simultaneously; an “-itis” denotes an illness. Whose sickness is this? Contemporary composition cannot eschew this technique, a necessary stage in the development of harmony. Likewise the young performer at his stage in life seeks compulsively to spend his time in a group of his peers in the orchestra, no matter how awkward.

The first four movements are balanced by the much longer “Festa.” A "Festa" is an elaborate dance, and this is the most brilliant movement of the Concerto. The form is ABA with a Coda. The A section is the longest, the B section recapitulating material from the previous four movements, as though the youth in a moment of joy has integrated his entire personality, despite its troublesome parts. The Coda intensifies the A material and brings the whole to a climactic conclusion.

The composer demonstrates his affection and faith in the ability of the performer in the musical progression he creates, from “Fantasia,” through change and problems, to the celebration of the important final movement. The entire Concerto becomes a paean to life.

This piece uses materials from a solo piano suite.