for the Portuguese Symphony Band and it’s conductor Francisco Ferreira
Instrumentation
Musical Category Band
Instrumentation (general) Symphonic Band
Premiere
Date 2009/Jul/12
Performer(s)
Portuguese Symphony Band
dir. Luís Carvalho
Venue Casa da Música
Town Oporto
Country Portugal
Program Notes
Fantastic Variations is, as the name suggests, a series of variations. More specifically it?s organized into an introduction followed by five variations, each one of which has its own designation, describing the individual mood. Hence, Variation 1 is subtitled batuque, referring to the African usage of groups of several drummers playing altogether in a frenetic and noisy way. The percussions are in the foreground and rhythm is the most important element. In Variation 2, lamento (or lament), small melodic fragments are presented upon a somewhat mournful ostinato on the basses. Variation 3, fanfare, is by contrast brilliant and sonorous, with predominating brass playing potent fanfares. For Variation 4, choral, a more intimate mood returns, and sequences of small "chorales" are presented by different groups of instruments one after the other. Finally in Variation 5, epilogue, several ideas of all the previous variations are merged into a continuous flow that serves as the conclusion of the piece. Fantastic Variations is subtitled "... homage à Duarte Ferreira Pestana", a reference to one of the most inspired Portuguese composers for wind band of all time, and in fact there are moments of allusion to his oeuvre (specifically to the one that is probably the most famous of his pieces, "Arco-Íris" or in English "Rainbow", a fantasy au goûte populaire). But Fantastic Variations is not based on any Pestana themes, nor is it even actually a traditional "theme & variations". Sure there are recurring thematic motifs going around, but the "variations" reference here goes more for the process than to the actual substance, since the continuous variation technique is the developing motor of the entire piece. (May 2009)
