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Cello Sonata in C Minor
in Three Movements
TITLE
Cello Sonata in C Minor in Three Movements
DURATION
13 minutes
YEAR OF COMPOSITION
2020
INSTRUMENTATION
Cello & Piano
LICENSING
American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP)
PURCHASE
J.W. Pepper
COMPOSER'S NOTE
Cello Sonata in C Minor is my first sonata work. As in traditional sonata forms, there are contrasting themes developed in each movement. But there is also a cross-thematic unity that encompasses the entire work.
Movement I, Allegro moderato, is rendered in a minimalist musical language, comprised of repeating cycles of broken chords in the piano accompaniment. They reiterate a precise pattern of legato sixteenth notes from which the agitato cello melody emerges. A dialogue later develops between cello and piano, a playful call-and-response that heralds the closing of the movement.
Movement II, Adagio cantabile, is a mesmerizing interlude, characterized by an expressive, modal cello melody that swells into a tender exultation. The wistful mood alternates with rhythmically animated phrases, finally closing in a blissful reverie.
Movement III, Allegro energetico, begins with striking dissonant chords, jolting us from the preceding idyll. Fitful bursts of serial arpeggios juxtapose with melodic interludes. The cello starts a walking bass line that sets a more contemporary groove before handing it off to the piano and initiating a sultry new melody. Multiple musical arguments that incorporate themes from the first two movements lead us back home to conclude the work.