Petite symphonie concertante

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The Petite Symphonie Concertante, op. 54 was composed by Frank Martin in 1944, and was the work with which he first gained recognition. Scored for harp, harpsichord, piano and two string orchestras, it received its premiere in Zürich on May 27, 1946, under the direction of Paul Sacher. The piece merges older techniques with portions of the twelve-tone system of music, and is in two sections played without pause. Each section is further divided into two parts. The first section begins with an adagio of forty-six bars in which all of the later thematic material is suggested. A brief transition connects to the following allegro section, constructed around symphonic lines. The second part begins again with an adagio in which the main subject is stated by harp and harpsichord for nineteen measures. This leads into the finale, which is in the form of a dance.

The piece was intended for the so-called "revival harpsichord", and is one of the few pieces in the sinfonia concertante genre to be composed in the twentieth century.

[edit] Reference

  • David Ewen, Encyclopedia of Concert Music. New York; Hill and Wang, 1959.