Aragon: Little Suite for Big Bassoon for Contrabassoon and Piano

Code: JP3026
ISMN: 979-0-3019-0136-6

The Little Suite for Big Bassoon for contrabassoon and piano was written for Susan Nigro. The piece is in five movements of varying lengths and styles. In the movement 1, Scherzo, the piano can't decide if it is in a major key or a minor key and the contrabassoon does its best to keep up. The next movement, Berceuse, is a lullaby that shows off the lyrical beauty of the contrabassoon. This movement actually began its life as a saxophone solo, but Miss Nigro convinced the composer that the contrabassoon would be a much better instrument choice for this music. Movement 3, Folk Dance, is in a rondo form with the A Theme in a lopsided 5/4 meter. In contrast to this aggressive Dance theme, there is a polychordal passage almost like a chorale as well as a neo-classical section complete with Alberti Bass. Movement 4, Aria, shows off, once again, the beauty that the contrabassoon possesses. This melancholy movement gives way to the last movement, a raucous Finale. The piano provides thunderous accents on the downbeats and upbeats while the contrabassoon tells a fierce story. The two instrumentalists share the melodies amongst themselves and the movement ends just as it began, with its harsh accents. The penultimate measure is filled with a furious piano screaming with all of its might and the two instruments seem to collapse out of sheer fatigue. Total duration: approx. 12 minutes

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