Score & Part
Chamber Sonata : for alto saxophone, cello and organ / music by Brett McKern.
Library shelf no. 785.2413/MCK 1 [Not for loan]
Work Overview
This Sonata employs the standard three movement
form. The opening movement starts with each performer offstage, the saxophone and cello playing as they
walk onto the stage. Their search for tonality
and synchronicity, begins with just a few notes. A motive
develops for each instrument; the cello begins
with open strings, the organ part with a small diatonic cluster,
and the three instruments eventually come
together as an ensemble. Once they do, the search for a tonality
continues until A Major emerges at the end of
the movement. The Scherzo is lively and
light-hearted and is in triple time, albeit with a twist. The
movement is a palindrome. There is an æolian
feel to the tonality, but this varies as the movement progresses.
The final movement starts with a brief
Introduction. It moves from an understated opening with a short
four-note melodic motive through its
deconstruction to three notes, two and then one. As this
occurs the dynamics rise to an insistent
repetition of the final chord. This angular ending leads to a
more melodious five-voice fugue which uses the
æolian tonality of the second movement and eventually returns to the A tonal centre of the first
movement. Given the vast differences between
organs it is difficult to specify registration, thus adjustments
in dynamics and registration may need to be made
for the purposes of balance. The dynamics in the score are for a small organ but provide an indication of the
intended
sound.
Work Details
Year: 2016
Instrumentation: Alto saxophone, cello, organ.
Duration: 11 min.
Difficulty: Advanced
Contents note: I. Centratura (c.5 min.) -- II. Scherzo (c.1 min., 50 sec.) -- III. Introduzione e Fuga (c.4 min., 10 sec.).
Subjects
- In the form/style of: Sonatas
User reviews
Be the first to share your thoughts, opinions and insights about this work.
To post a comment please login.