CONCERTO FOR ORCHESTRA was commissioned by the Hamilton (Ontario) Philharmonic Orchestra and maestro Boris Brott under a grant from the Canada Council at the time when the composer was a member of its string section. The premiere performance took place in the Royal Botanical Gardens auditorium in Hamilton on May 14, 1981, followed by a CBC Radio Canada-wide broadcast. Another performance by the orchestra was also given in the following season.
The title hints at the underlying idea of showcasing all instruments and groups of instruments in the orchestra in a friendly musical competition. The form itself comes to us from the Baroque era, when the best composers had held to the ideal of creating entire compositions out of small, short, musical motives. This whole work is also based on one series of notes, arranged in such a way that it “unfolds” from a single note, or “folds into itself” when presented from the other end. From this series come all the melodies and harmonies in the piece.
Although in one uninterrupted movement, the Concerto for Orchestra is in five sections. An introduction which anticipates the moods and colours of the middle section is followed by the first movement proper, fast and motoric, with a strong rhythmic drive. The slow middle section begins in a nocturne-like vein, gradually turning into a quasi-chorale, occasionally interrupted by the improvisatory sounding soloistic cadenzas. Next comes a dance-like movement in which many rhythmic elements abound, kaleidoscopically shifting from one to another, eventually leading into a Latin-sounding concluding coda that combines a long note melody on top with a fast version of itself underneath.
There is a chance to shine in solo work for literally every member of the orchestra, right down to the individuals in each of the string sections, resulting in the fun and accessibility not always found in orchestral works of our times.
