Program Note for Double Concerto (1985)
The title Double Concerto refers not only to the two soloists, and two orchestras, but also to the form. Within it are two concertos, one for each soloist. Both use similar harmonic material, but differ in context and mood. There are ten sections:
- introduction
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piano concerto
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piano cadenza
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episode and transition
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percussion concerto
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percussion cadenza
-
development (weaving all previous sections)
-
double cadenza
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simultaneous recapitulation (sections 2 and 5)
-
finale
Double Concerto was premiered by the Los Angeles Philharmonic in November 1987, with John Harbison conducting. The soloists, to whom the work was originally dedicated, were Daniel Druckman, and Alan Feinberg, who subsequently performed it with the American Composers Orchestra in New York.