For Fred Lerdahl Cover Image

For Fred Lerdahl: Mixed Ensemble; Book

$15.95 USD
$15.95 USD
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For Fred Lerdahl Cover Image
For Fred Lerdahl: Mixed Ensemble; Book

For Fred Lerdahl: Mixed Ensemble; Book

for Viola, Piano and Two Vibraphones

By Antonio Maria Abbatini

Item: 98-EP68789
$15.95
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Description

Commissioned by the Los Angeles Philharmonic Association for a world premiere by the LA Phil New Music Group in January 2019, Tyshawn Sorey's gently tolling chamber work For Fred Lerdahl is dedicated to the elder composer on the occasion of Lerdahl's retirement. Sorey credits Lerdahl as one of two teachers who helped him to find his own voice as a composer. A single, 13-minute movement, it features a highly lyrical, muted viola solo over gentle, softly rhythmic dissonances from the two vibraphones and piano. This edition is a performing score, one of four required for performance.



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Additional Details
Series: Edition Peters
Publisher: Edition Peters
Page Count: 12
ISBN10: 0-30-076235-6
ISBN13: 979-0-30-076235-7
SKU: 98-EP68789
Instrumentation: Viola, Piano and Two Vibraphones

More about this title

Why we love this

Sorey's chamber writing here is restrained and purposeful, letting a single muted viola voice carry the emotional weight while the vibraphones and piano create a floating harmonic bed. This is the kind of piece that rewards close listening from both players and audiences, demanding real ensemble maturity and offering performers a chance to work with genuinely contemporary music that doesn't resort to extremes.

What to expect

Gentle and introspective, with the muted viola singing a lyrical line that never rushes. The vibraphone and piano create soft, shimmering dissonances that hang in the air like distant bells or metal tones, giving the piece a contemplative, almost ethereal quality across its single 13-minute span.

Who it's for

Chamber ensembles with strong contemporary music literacy and violists comfortable with extended techniques or unconventional sonorities will find this piece rewarding. It suits programs exploring recent American composition, especially ensembles working with living composers or preparing for new music festivals.

How to get the most out of it

  • Balance the viola solo so it emerges clearly from the vibraphone and piano texture without the accompanying instruments retreating entirely; Sorey's dissonances need presence to register.
  • Coordinate mallet choices on the vibraphones with the pianist to achieve unified soft tone colors; a gentle, bell-like quality across the ensemble serves the work's meditative character.
  • Establish a flexible approach to rhythm between the viola and rhythm section, allowing the solo line to breathe over the gentle ostinatic figures rather than locking into strict metric alignment.
  • Shape the 13-minute arc carefully by tracking dynamic contours across the single movement; small crescendos and diminuendos become structural markers in a piece without traditional sectional divisions.

How to use it

Pair this with other contemporary chamber works in a concert focused on recent American composition, or program it as a standalone work when you want to give audiences an intimate encounter with living composition. Its modest instrumentation and meditative quality also make it suitable for recital contexts or special events honoring distinguished composers and teachers.

Skills your students will build

  • Playing in muted texture across multiple instrumental families
  • Balancing a solo line against soft, dissonant harmonic accompaniment
  • Performing contemporary chamber music with flexible rhythmic coordination
  • Sustaining lyrical musicality in extended single-movement forms

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