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Listen: Contrasts - A Concerto for Orchestra (3rd Movement)

Concerto for orchestra was commissioned by the National Centre for Orchestral Studies and was first performed by their symphony orchestra conducted by Adrian Leaper (under the original title of Greenwich Dances) in May 1983. A revised version, now under the title of Contrasts - a concerto for orchestra was given its premiere by the National Youth Orchestra of Great Britain in Philharmonic Hall, Liverpool, in 1989. A final revision of the work was made in 2001 for the recording by the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by Douglas Bostock, on the Classico label. As the original brief was to write a display piece for orchestra, the final change of title of the work I have now made seems entirely apposite.

The work is in three movements, and which to some extent all share common musical material. The first movement, lntrada, opens with a four-note horn call, soon joined by the rest of the brass and percussion. This fanfare-like introduction leads into an energetic 6/8 dance, the main theme of which is an extension of the opening horn call. The climax of this section is punctuated by a percussion 'break', leading into a slow, lyrical section, with solos for wind, which are eventually broken up by jarring muted brass. A short reprise of the first section ends the movement.

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