Programme Note
Composer Note:
This work was commissioned by Hudson Valley Philharmonic Music Director Imre Pallo under a National Endowment for the Arts consortium commissioning grant involving the Hudson Valley Philharmonic, the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra and Philharmonia Virtuosi. For many years, my work has been greatly inspired by the music of Ludwig van Beethoven, and it is for that reason that the Piano Concerto is subtitled “Homage to Beethoven” and dedicated to his memory. Three sonatas of Beethoven were particularly influential to me, and are reflected in the Piano Concerto. The concerto is a one movement work divided into three sections. In each section there is either an idea or melodic quote inspired by these three sonatas: The first section is an idea inspired by
The Tempest, Op. 31. For myself, what impressed me about the first movement of
The Tempest sonata is its unusual (even for Beethoven) alternating slow and fast pacing. In my piece, I alternate between slow and fast pacings, although not as abruptly as Beethoven does. In the piano cadenza of the second section is a quote from
Op. 111, the last piano sonata Beethoven ever wrote. In the piano cadenza of the third section there is a theme taken from the third movement of
Op. 53, Waldstein, which is developed and provides the climax of the last section of the concerto right before the final coda.
The
Piano Concerto encompasses the use of two flutes doubling on one piccolo, two clarinets doubling on one bass clarinet, one bassoon, two horns, one trumpet, one trombone, percussion, strings and solo piano.
I would like to extend my warmest thanks and appreciation to Jacquelyn Helin for the dedication and good spirit with which she approached this work.
—Joan Tower