Peter Bloesch - Red Cedar Chamber Music

Commissioned Works for Red Cedar Chamber Music Overview
"A Holiday Suite"

"Spillville Variations on a Theme by Dvořák"Description
Program Notes
Sound Clips
Get the CD
Quotes & Reviews

Description of the "Spillville Variations"

The Red Cedar Trio: David Miller (viola),

John Dowdall (guitar), and Jan Boland (flute)

Seveal years ago, I was invited by Red Cedar Chamber Music to participate in a special group-commissioning project in which each composer was asked to write a variation in his or her own style based on the main theme from the Scherzo movement of Dvořák's "American" Quartet, Opus 96.

The entire work was named "Spillville Variations on a Theme by Dvořák" in honor of Spillville, Iowa, the place where Dvořák composed his famous quartet in 1893.

The "Spillville Variations" were premièred in Nashville at the National Flute Association Convention, with subsequent performances given in Cedar Rapids, Iowa; the Czech Embassy in Washington, D.C.; the Czech Center in New York City; and in the Czech Republic at both the National Museum (in Prague) and at the Janáček Academy of Music and Dramatic Arts (in Brno).

When considering what kind of variation I wanted to write for this multi-composer effort, I decided to write a fugue, since I thought this would make a unique contribution to the project as a whole. (And it turns out I was right... none of the other composers wrote a fugue! And probably never even thought of doing so!)

Program Notes for My Spillville Variation"Two fugal techniques, stretto and inversion, went into this fairly strict fugue (à la Baroque). However, my variation still has many 'Hollywood' elements and harmonies. In some pieces, such as this one, I enjoy trying to fuse together a sense of strict fugal writing with a sense of playfulness, harmonic freedom, and Hollywood drama. I think it's an attempt, psychologically, to reconcile my two 'worlds' into a cohesive whole — i.e., my pre-Hollywood strictly classical upbringing and my 'pull-out-all-the-stops' Hollywood training."

Sound Clips(Please note: These sound clips are being presented for demo purposes only. The following excerpts are copyright by Fleur de Son Classics, Ltd., with all rights reserved. Any unauthorized use or duplication of this music is prohibited.)

"Spillville Variations on a Theme by Dvořák"
(The following sound clips were performed by the Red Cedar Trio)

How to Obtain the CD

"Spillville Variations" appears in its entirety on Red Cedar's compact disc entitled "Czech-Inspired." You can order this CD from Amazon.com or from Fleur de Son Classics. (A complete track listing can be found here.)

Quotes and Review of the "Spillville Variations"

Gramophone Magazine:

"[The 'Spillville Variations' piece] has obviously struck a rich compositional vein. The composers gathered here rise to the occasion and do justice to both their honoree and their performers.

"From the respective canon and fugue of Peter Hamlin and Peter Bloesch to the dance inspirations of Lyle Dockendorff's 'Spillville Waltz,'... these miniatures balance distinctive gravitas with a certain lightness of touch.

"From beginning to end, this collection teases the ear but delivers the kind of musical pay-off that all light music should strive for."

— Ken Smith
Gramophone Magazine, September 2006

John Dowdall, Artistic Director of Red Cedar Chamber Music:

"Peter Bloesch's music is exhilarating and fun! The variation he provided us for 'Spillville Variations on a Theme by Dvořák' sparkles with a savory mix of Baroque fugal technique and a sense of Hollywood bravura and dramatic climax.

"Peter's ability to achieve a fullness of sound with the modest forces of flute, viola, and guitar — while also employing a broad palette of harmonic and contrapuntal elements — is really quite astonishing and totally satisfying!"

— John Dowdall
Guitarist and Artistic Director of Red Cedar Chamber Music