Arizona Friends of Chamber Music
Commissioning program

GERARD SCHURMANN
Composer's website: http://www.gerard-schurmann.com/

1.) Piano Quartet No. 2 Premiered by Los Angeles Piano Quartet, March 1998 Commissioned and sponsored by AFCM

The work was commissioned by the Arizona Friends of Chamber Music in honor of its 50th Anniversary Season and 5th Festival.

Performances: After a number of performances in the US by the Los Angeles Piano Quartet, the work was performed three times in England by the Newbold Piano Quartet, in London and in Chichester, and by the Faure Piano Quartet in Germany. Further performances were given at the Royal Academy of Music in London, and by members of the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra in Prague.

The composer writes: "In contrast to my Quartet No. 1 played at the 1st Tucson Winter Chamber Music Festival, No.2 is more lyrical. The first movement begins without preamble by stating a broad melody destined to become the foundation for the work, undergoing many transformations through inversions, retrogrades, and contrapuntal variants. The brisk tempo of the opening alternates with more reflective slower sections, one of which brings the movement to a quietly expectant close.

"The second movement initially combines a short scurrying passage of two bars based on an inversion of the main melody, with an extended Adagio cantabile. The same phrase returns three more times, acting as a bridge to more lyrical sections. On its last return, the scurrying motif is extended and followed by a summing up of the slower music.

"The exposition of the final movement takes the form of a fugue, introduced by the viola, and followed by the violin, cello, and piano. As the music progresses, the develop.m.ent never strays far from the material of the fugue, except for a reflective return to the first movement."

2.) Trio for Clarinet, Piano and Cello

Premiered by Richard Hawkins, Christina Dahl, Peter Rejto, March 2004

Commissioned by AFCM

Sponsored by Jean-Paul Bierny and Chris Tanz

Performances: This work was subsequently performed at the Liverpool Philharmonic Hall (UK) by Nicholas Cox (clarinet), Jonathan Aasgaard (cello) and Timothy Horton (piano), twice by another British trio led by Timothy Orpen (clarinet), also in England, and by pupils of Richard Hawkins in Oberlin College and in New York.

A true internationalist, Dutch-American composer Gerard Schurmann, who also worked for many years in England, discussed aspects of his composition in The Musical Quarterly (1990): “I am essentially an instinctive composer, although early on my main preoccupation was the manipulation of technique. When I write, I listen very intensely, and try to respond emotionally in the most direct way possible. I feel that living in the United States, now in Los Angeles, has had a liberating effect on me. The incomparable beauty of the scenery and the superb climate seem, on the whole, to generate energy and zest almost in spite of oneself.”

The composer writes: "The Trio was composed as an homage to Brahms and his masterful work in A minor, Opus 114, for the same combination of instruments. At the opening a strong declamatory subject marked “con passione” is introduced by the cello in its high register, accompanied by a repeated two-chord sequence on the piano. The clarinet enters, and a develop.m.ent of the material ensues that leads to the Allegro, which is based on a three-note figure distilled from the introduction. The second movement is a kind of chaconne with a steady tread, in which the lyrical qualities of the clarinet and cello are explored. By contrast, the last movement is fast and energetic. It features a playful little tune, as well as a return to the opening Largo. The piece ends with a full-blown tonal cadence and resolve, which I intended as a token of respect."

Publisher information The music of Gerard Schurmann is published by Novello and Co. Ltd. in the United Kingdom and is handled by G.Schirmer, Inc. in the United States and by Music Sales worldwide. Schurmann scores may be purchased online from Music Sales.