Music for a While (3 Sketches)

Ada

"Ada (Island)" is a captivating composition that was originally written in 2011 for the Turkish lute. This piece draws its inspiration from the tranquil and picturesque atmosphere of Büyükada, one of the charming islands in the Sea of Marmara. Büyükada, with its serene landscapes, historical architecture, and tranquil shores, serves as a perfect muse for the evocative melodies and intricate harmonies that characterize "Ada (Island)." "Ada (Island)" was later arranged for classical guitar. This adaptation allows the composition to reach a broader audience while retaining its original charm and depth. The classical guitar arrangement highlights the versatility of the piece, maintaining its delicate nuances and evocative melodies, while offering a new perspective through the guitar's distinctive tonal qualities. Whether performed on the Turkish lute or the classical guitar, "Ada (Island)" remains a poignant tribute to the enchanting beauty of Büyükada, capturing the island's essence and transporting listeners to its serene shores.

Sonata No. 2

"Sonata No. 2, commissioned by Bokyung Byun and composed in 2024, represents the most extensive solo guitar sonata I have created to date, comprising four movements. This sonata is characterized by its flashy, mysterious, dark, and highly virtuosic nature, making it an ideal piece for both competitions and concert performances. While the Scherzo and Finale can be performed independently, or the first, third, and fourth movements can be paired for time-constrained concerts, it is advisable to perform all movements together due to their interconnectedness."

5 Easy Studies, Opus 50

Louise Farrenc was a profoundly influential French composer, performer, professor, and author. Though she would ultimately become quite a sought-after performer, her potential as a composer was recognized quite early on. Women were not permitted to enroll in conventional composition classes at the Conservatoire de Paris at the time, but, she did receive private lessons from Anton Reicha, the professor of composition there. Years later she would receive a permanent appointment as Professor of Piano at the same institution, a position she held for thirty years. She was the only woman during the 19th century to bear that title. Her piano etudes possess pedagogical value as well as great beauty and character. These works lend themselves quite well to the guitar duo setting. While I have rendered all of Farrenc’s melodies quite faithfully, I have taken liberties with the accompaniments in order to make them more idiomatic to the guitar. Likewise, many of the effects of which the guitar is capable have been brought to bear in ways that deviate from the original intent of the etude. Alternatively, the challenges that some of these etudes were meant to address for the piano student are amplified by this adaptation. For example, etude 5 is intended to enable the piano student to improve the coordination between their left and right hands. It certainly presents a challenge in that regard to the guitar duo! These selections are entirely suitable for guitarists with limited experience, though they could, of course, be beautifully realized by players with a great deal more experience as well.

À vos guitares, prêts, jouez! Vol. 4

This fourth booklet is dedicated to ensemble playing through five trios and three quartets of various styles (tango, ballad, rock, etc.) appropriate for the end of primary school with a few years of experience and the beginning of secondary school. Some pieces are written in a homorhythmic manner and can constitute an introduction to ensemble music, while others are rather polyrhythmic. They can constitute a first contact with the following techniques and effects: staccato, pizzicato, accent, louré, natural harmonic, percussion or crossed strings. This volume is therefore intended for guitarists who already know the notes in first position. Two pieces include a more advanced part with an introduction to playing in 5th position. These are short pieces that do not present technical challenges other than those allowing you to achieve the effects and play expressively. You will find in the scores indications of nuances, timbre, attack and fingerings which constitute suggestions for work and not prescriptions. Teachers and students are therefore invited to make interpretation choices different from those proposed or to try to convincingly render those already written. The pieces were composed or arranged by UQAM music education students as part of a course aimed at equipping musicians for teaching guitar in the school system. Many of them are musicians from different backgrounds (composition, performance, world music, etc.), which explains the creativity found in the pieces. All the pieces have been the subject of an audio recording available on the Productions d’Oz website and on YouTube. Search for À vos guitares, prêt, joue! Vol. 4. Isabelle Héroux, editor, professor, Department of Music, UQAM. Louis-Edouard Thouin-Poppe, assistant editor, arranger and engraver.

Two Hymn Tune Settings

These two anthems are among my favorites. “Be Still My Soul” originates from the penultimate chorale section of the tone poem, Finlandia, that Jean Sibelius composed in 1899. Perhaps the best known work by him, Finlandia is a series of six scenarios drawn from the history of the composer’s homeland, Finland. The chorale section took on a life of its own as a vocal piece with patriotic lyrics supplied by the Finnish poet V.A. Koskenniemi. Sibelius created a version for choir in 1948. The religious words sung in English today in many Christian churches are from a translation by Jane Borthwick (1813-1957) of a text by German hymn writer Katharina von Schlegel (b. 1697). My setting is fairly straight forward with an intro, verse, interlude, verse, coda, and a recap of the intro. In contrast to the reflective tone of “Be Still My Soul,” “Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing” is to be played with more energy in keeping with the tenor of the lyrics that celebrate God’s grace and continually-outstretched hand. The melody is based on the hymn tune Nettleton, published by John Wyeth (1735-1790). In this setting, I present the exposition of this memorable tune over a persistent rhythm in the bass that is established in the intro. What follows is a series of variations of the melody, texture, and mood, being contrapuntal at times, homophonic at others, with forays to other tonal centers. Along with the introduction and coda, there are four sections that state the melody and then fragment it while following the original harmonization, but also departing from it at various points. For the final statement of the melody beginning in measure 81, the performer should feel free to play the recap more slowly and deliberately than the first time through. This is an especially effective approach heard in some choral renditions that bring a feeling of grandness to the final section.