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The Clarinet Concerto was written in 1986-87 for the jazz virtuoso Eddie Daniels. Eddied has an active interest in many kinds of music and performs the classical repertoire as well as improvising brilliantly. In writing this piece I have used material from both traditions. The Concerto is structured in a familiar format of three movements, with numerous elements of jazz and big band sounds - harmonies, rhythms, riffs, and some improvisation. The first and last movements, both lively, frame an Elegy, written on the death of a friend.
Summit Records CD, Black Dog
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When two violinists get together to perform with orchestra, it's usually a friendly celebration; a chance for colleagues who value each other's talent and skills to enjoy making music together. It doesn't happen very often, and there isn't a lot of literature to choose from. So, I began to think... if I were one of the players, I would want the piece to be grateful and warm, with lyricism and a sense of playfulness. This is what I have attempted to write.- K. Hoover.
The opening movement, after a slow introduction, focuses on two ideas; in the first the strings (or the piano), led by the soloists echoing and chasing each other, build a cluster of sounds by adding on notes above and below. In the second the soloists answer back and forth with arpeggiated chords. The rest of the movement grows out of these ideas, with a harmonic and rhythmic debt to jazz.
The second movement contains an extended lyric duet for the soloists, accompanied by a muted countermelody and plucked bass notes. The third is more virtuosic with a driving, uneven theme in the solo violins propelled forward by the bass. It also contains a cadenza for two.
Parnassus CD, Night Skies: Orchestral Music of Katherine Hoover, Double Concerto: Mvmt. 1-3
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Double Concerto, Mvmt. 1.
Double Concerto, Mvmt. 2.
Double Concerto, Mvmt. 3.
It delighted our soloists, orchestra, and audience alike.
After intermission the second highlight was presented; the premiere of a new work by Katherine Hoover...The composer...said she wanted the piece to present two fine violinists who value each other's talents and friendship, playing with lyricism and a sense of playfulness. This intention was delightfully fulfilled. Of particular beauty is the second movement, the adagio - a sustained, singing duet for the violins with a rather Schubertian accompaniment in the violas, the cellos, and the sonorous pizzicato of the basses. The composition is a most interesting wedding of atonality and more traditional sounds, and was very well received by the audience.
Considerable Orchestral Imagination.
The chamber music composer-flutist Katherine Hoover has been well-known for quite some time, but that she is an accomplished orchestral composer may come as news to many. It is good news, for the works presented on this CD are strong, assertive compositions written with considerable orchestral imagination.
… The Double Concerto is a mettlesome work, combining the two solo violins with the string orchestra in a variety of ways. The solo parts weave in and out of each other's space, creating an ever-changing texture the is supported, interrupted, and answered by the string orchestra.
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A tone poem, based on Nicholas Gage's moving book Eleni; combining Greek folk themes and contemporary writing.
In 1948, toward the end of the Greek Civil War, Eleni Gatzoyannis was tortured and executed by Communist partisans for smuggling her children out of Greece to join their father in America. Her son, Nicholas Gage, who was eight at that time, became a reporter for The New York Times, and in the early 1980's he returned to Greece to trace the events leading to her death. The result was the extraordinary book, Eleni. I was extremely moved by Mr. Gage's book. Eleni was a heroine, and, like many in the old Greek dramas, an archetype as well.
To construct this piece, which is both a lament and a tribute, I turned to Greek folk music, in particular from the northwest area of Epiros where Eleni lived. Much of this music is based on intonation and harmony that are foreign to Western ears. Melodies move in a rhapsodic manner, flowing freely between the notes we recognize, while harmonies change little, following the melody closely. Rhythms based on 5 and 7 are common. The clarinet, played in a style resembling that of "klezmer" music, is a constant presence. The folk materials, the dances and songs of the first section eventually dissolve into an area of growing tension, climaxing with the full orchestra. Out of this climax the clarinet reappears, followed by an alto completing the "moirologhia", or funeral lament, which was begun by a solo cello in the first section. The piece ends with an orchestral lament based on motives drawn from the earlier materials.
Parnassus CD, Orchestral Music of Katherine Hoover, Night Skies, Eleni: A Greek Tragedy
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Eleni: A Greek Tragedy evokes clearly and powerfully the heroic story of a Greek mother who was murdered by the Communists during the civil war for smuggling her son out to join his father in America...It's a well-wrought, affecting work.
A powerful and brooding piece...Hoover contrasted the deceptive charm of folk music with her own contemporary harmonies. Her terse and often harsh sonorities drove the terror and tragedy of the heroine deep into the heart.
First standing ovation for a contemporary work in our orchestra’s history.
Considerable Orchestral Imagination
The chamber music composer-flutist Katherine Hoover has been well-known for quite some time, but that she is an accomplished orchestral composer may come as news to many. It is good news, for the works presented on this CD are strong, assertive compositions written with considerable orchestral imagination.
…To fully appreciate the music of Eleni it is necessary to read the program note by the composer. The music is anecdotal and descriptive, so that the listener has to begin by learning the story of the heroic Greek woman whose sacrifice was recounted both in book form and in a movie. The program note explains the use of Greek folkloristic elements and indicates the overall shape of the composition. That done, the listener will find that Eleni is a dramatic and moving composition.
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| Links: | |
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| Flute and Piano | |
| 496-00114L, Fl. & Orch. |
FOUR WINDS Concerto for Flute (sampler).
| Instrumentation, Flute with: | |
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| Piano, 1981 | |
| Small Orchestra | |
| Full Orch. lg. score | |
| Full Orch. sm. score |
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The Medieval Suite was inspired by characters and events described in Barbara Tuchman's A Distant Mirror, a history of fourteenth-century France. It was a violent, bitter century of extensive wars, and Ms. Tuchman sees it as something of a reflection of our own. The first movement, "Virelai", uses parts of a work in that form by Guillaume de Machaut, a French composer of that era. The "Black Knight" was a valiant, violent British prince, barred from his beloved fighting by a wasting disease. The fourteenth century was a low point for the Catholic Church with warring Popes in Rome and Avignon, and "the Drunken Friar" was apparently a common sight. In this movement I have freely adapted and embroidered a Gregorian chant and quoted a well-known round of the time, "Sumer is acumin in". "Princess Isabelle" describes a daughter of the King of France who was engaged at the age of six, sent to England to live permanently, and wed at twelve - a common fate for royal children. The "Demon's Dance" was a desperate marathon dance done by some in hopes of avoiding the Black Plague.
Koch Classics (KIC-CD-7566) CD, Pied Piper Fantasy
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Summit Records Voyage, On the Betrothal of Princess Isabelle of France
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Medieval Suite's Demon's Dance.
A fine new work...The Medieval Suite realizes (its) inspiration in the language of Katherine Hoover, a language not to be confused with that of Aaron Copland, Walter Piston, or George Crumb, but equally as American as these. This is a short, uncompromising, sympathetic contemporary work.
The highlight of the afternoon...Katherine Hoover's Medieval Suite is brilliant. Each of the five movements is exquisitely crafted, leaving the listener confident that a musical journey has taken place. Every note is placed with the same care exercised by an expert diamond-cutter, giving the work a discernable architecture which is very satisfying.
The writing is extremely imaginative and full of exciting instrumental passages displaying the composer's knowledge and skill...this is a major addition to the flute and piano literature, and every movement has a character and emotional impact that is rarely achieved in contemporary music.
The program began with Katherine Hoover's "Medieval Suite," a five movement work dating from 1983 that was originally written for flute and piano. Hoover is herself a distinguished flutist, and so the idiomatic scoring for her chosen instrument came as no surprise. The suite itself has a stylistic diversity that is never merely clever; this is limpid, honest, attractive and appealing music, full of graceful melodies and the subtle "touches" of a natural composer.
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This orchestral tone poem has grown from a fascination with a singular - and presently popular - watercolor by Henri Edmond Cross (French, 1856-1910), called Landscape with Stars. The Metropolitan Museum of New York, which owns this lovely work, has enlarged it for a poster and reduced it for a card; I particularly love it in its original size and setting. Something about the bold splashing of yellow in the sky renewed my fascination with how art can give us an intense sense of a familiar sight or experience. I began thinking of various ways that night skies affect me, and how I could portray these experiences in sound.
As I worked on this piece I was also drawn to the nightscapes of Albert Pinkham Ryder (American, 1847-1917) with their mysterious and haunting moons and hazy, sensual forms. This influence is heard in the second section of the work. As I began the third and final area, however, I searched in vain for a similar visual reference, and turned instead to the immense, dramatic stormy sky as I have seen in the Southwest; whirling and churning, then erupting in sudden surges.
Parnassus CD, Night Skies: Orchestral Music of Katherine Hoover, Night Skies
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Considerable Orchestral Imagination
The chamber music composer-flutist Katherine Hoover has been well-known for quite some time, but that she is an accomplished orchestral composer may come as news to many. It is good news, for the works presented on this CD are strong, assertive compositions written with considerable orchestral imagination. Of the works presented here, I like Night Skies best. It is a tone poem of some 25 minutes duration, in a single movement with many contrasting episodes and several effective climaxes. Despite its length, the work maintains its momentum and holds the listener's interest from beginning to end…
A powerful and brooding piece...Hoover contrasted the deceptive charm of folk music with her own contemporary harmonies. Her terse and often harsh sonorities drove the terror and tragedy of the heroine deep into the heart.
Inspired by the painting "Landscape with Stars" by Henri Edmond Cross, Hoover's piece opens with a vibrant smattering of distinctive sounds against a deep, slow and moody background. An array of intriguing percussion sounds and shining brass blends into the composition's mystery-laden second section, heralded by the evocative sounds of a Japanese flute. Hoover also includes a lovely flute solo... The final part grows tumultuous, with whirling winds and rolling thunder. It's significant that Hoover chose not to end her piece in the midst of her magnificent storm. Instead she brings it back around to end calmly and beautifully with the ethereal Japanese flute. Hoover's music mixes elements of old and new, in a masterful blending of a variety of sounds into a cohesive whole.
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Centaur Records CRC 2585, Twentieth Century Works for Flute and Orchestra
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Psalm 23 has a very personal and unusual history. Written in February, 1981, when my mother was permanently disabled by illness, it was given its first performance on Mother's Day, directed by the Reverend Dennis Michno at All-Saints church in New York. Dennis then obtained a commission from the Episcopal Diocese of New York to orchestrate the work. In this version the piece was first presented at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine during the Fifth Annual Festival of Worship and Music on October 24, 1981, by a chorus of 400 and orchestra. My mother passed away quietly the next day.
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There are many ways of thinking about the world. Mathematics is one. Anyone who has learned a second language knows that not only do words differ, entire concepts do as well. Music has its own meanings and structures, which cannot be reduced to words. Native American stories are another means of perceiving reality. Calling them 'myths', or implying that they are untrue or insignificant blinds us to a rich world of meanings.
Stitch-te Naku is a story of creation, and of weaving; of Stitch-te Naku, the Spider-Grandmother who wove the world in her web, and all of its features and creatures. As for weaving - we weave cloth, stories, plans; we 'weave the fabric of our lives'. And the Spider, creating her web out of herself, has many resonances: about creativity, and persistence...about a single source of creation.
Native American storytellers prefer to tell the tale, and let their listeners ponder the implications.
In my 'tale' I have presented Spider the creator; the weaving-creation of many elements, including birds and animal, and descent into chaos with the sounds of guns. This is followed by a song of mourning, then by renewal, as Stitch-te Naku dances, joined by her creations. Various Native American musical ideas have influenced this work.
The highlight of the program...Based on Native American myths, the piece traces the spiritual journey of the world's creatures, who are given the gift of free will by Old Spider Woman, who creates the world with her web...Throughout the piece, Native American elements are woven in with unusual percussion, droning strings, and pitches that slip and slide... Hoover has captured the indigenous spirit without trivializing it. And she has created a work as silky and ethereal as a spider web itself.
Review of Long Beach Concert 04/29/2000.
Katherine Hoover's Stitch-te Naku was performed by the Long Beach, CA Symphony under the direction of Gustav Meier and by the Womens Philharmonic under the direction of Apo Hsu (04/29/2000). Both orchestras featured Sharon Robinson as cello soloist.
The main interest of the concert was a most ingratiating cello concerto by the West Virginia born composer Katherine Hoover called "Stitch-te Naku" a spider-grandmother of Native American lore who weaves all kinds of things into existence. Hoover introduces her soloist ingeniously, setting a wild pastoral scene and having the cello quietly play weird microtonal glides as part of the landscape until the full-blooded solo line bursts into view. Woodwind birds chatter with the cello, rhino-like brasses wail, and an insistent Indian dance dominates the last portion. The 18 (and) 1/2 minute piece works as a unified fresco of creation-with reminders of Ravel's "Daphnis and Chloe" now and then- and cellist Sharon Robinson handled it with real flair and a warmly reverberant tone.
Review of Women's Philharmonic 02/27/2000.
...another significant 'nature' piece animated the program: "Stitch-te Naku" for cello and orchestra, a 1994 composition by Katherine Hoover. Meant to tell the Native American tale of Spider-Grandmother who wove the world, with all its features and creatures in her web, it brimmed with orchestrated bird calls and chirps, animal voices, and American Indian-sounding themes...the melody lines...were intensely descriptive, but wordless ballads.
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The flute and horn are a rather mismatched pair in many ways. To let their individual qualities sound, I began with a short soliloquy for each. This is followed by a slow dance which grows out of the soliloquies, and then a lively one, as the instruments (or characters, or thoughts) meet and interact.
Leonarda CD LE-327 or Cassette LE-327CS, Journeys
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Summer Night.
Summer Night.
Summer Night, Op. 34.
Summer Night for Flute, Horn and Piano.
SUMMER NIGHT is an apt description of what Katherine Hoover evokes in her lyrical, bucolic work that spotlights the horn and flute. It is engaging and thoroughly accessible.
This is a really good American piece, and its sound is open and pleasing.
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Both of these pieces were begun in 1985 and completed in the fall of 1989. They are extremely different in concept: one is quite visual and impressionistic, and the other is a musical game.
'Winter Sands' reflects the spare haziness of a winter's walk by the ocean, accompanied by a few seabirds and the sudden rush of waves flung on the beach.
'Turnabout' is a kind of musical puzzle that fascinates composers for it requires the construction of sounds that make sense forward and backward, as in a palindrome such as 'Madam, I'm Adam' or the word 'radar'. (Bach was particularly brilliant at this, and other such musical games.) The first section begins with march-like motives in the brass, then clusters in the winds and vibraphone, all set against a soft, agitated line in the strings. This string line suddenly grows to encompass the orchestra, passing quickly by like a whirlwind. Then the section grows to a climax and breaks off. The second section begins with a slow, erratic bass line; bits of the first section appear above this and begin to build up to a large climax. As the climax finishes we find ourselves at the end of the first section, and the entire piece proceeds backward note-for-note from that point, whirlwind and all.
Parnassus CD, Night Skies: Orchestral Music of Katherine Hoover, Two Sketches: Winter Sands, Turnabout
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Hoover's Two Sketches scored with immediate accessibility and an impressive combination of depth, maturity, and power...its title notwithstanding the pieces emerged as substantial and engrossing, and strongly contrasted compositions. The atmospheric nature depiction in "Winter Sands" was painted in highly specific and deeply saturated orchestral colors. "Turnabout", a palindromic exercise, is so deftly scored that its intellectual challenge is softened by its sensuality.
Katherine Hoover is far too skilled an orchestrater to be creating mere sketches; I've heard major prizewinners who have lacked her expressive flair.
The chamber music composer-flutist Katherine Hoover has been well-known for quite some time, but that she is an accomplished orchestral composer may come as news to many. It is good news, for the works presented on this CD are strong, assertive compositions written with considerable orchestral imagination.
…Two Sketches. Full of striking sonorities and rich orchestral invention, this highly accessible work would fit well on many an orchestral program.
