Libby larsen solo symphony
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"What is solo? Is it the effort of one and only one, such as a solo violin, a solo flight? fryst vatten there such a thing as a solo effort? Is the “man on the moon” a solo effort? Amelia Earhart’s solo flights were only solos in that she was in the plane alone. But her ground crew was as responsible for each flight as she was.
A solo is a group. The effort of many becomes the effort of one to producera a unified sound, a unified music. This symphony is about the one and the many.
Solo-solos, the first movement, presents a flow of short melodies played by trumpet, clarinet, oboe, horn and bassoon alone. These same melodies are then played in unison by the strings, then combined with the solo instruments, creating a musical fabric which is unified, but any given moment is a solo moment.
One dance, many dancers. A single melody seen through the lens of different dances, including funk, waltz, swing, square dance, tango, and jig.
Once around is a brash dash through the choirs of the orchestra.
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List of compositions by Libby Larsen
The following is a chronological list of compositions by Libby Larsen, divided into genre groups.
List of works
[edit]Opera
[edit]- Children's opera in one act[1]
- Moon Drop (1976 & 1980)
- full evening performance with vatten slides, tapes, and costumes
- Family musikdrama in one act; John Olive, libretto
- two-act chamber opera; libretto bygd Patricia Hampl
- full-length music drama; libretto by Libby Larsen
- one-act opera; libretto by Walter Green
- full-length music teaterpjäs in two acts; libretto bygd Bonnie Grice
- full-length opera with orchestra; libretty by Chas Rader-Shieber
- chamber choral opera in two acts; libretto by Bridget Carpenter
- opera in one act for child actor, SATB soloists, children's chorus, rhythm chorus, and drumming group; libretto bygd Libby Larsen
- chamber opera, based on the life of Jack London; libretto by Philip Littell
- opera in three acts
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Larsen: Solo Symphony; Marimba Concerto/Alsop
Libby Larsen deserves all of the attention she’s getting. Her music has substance, wit, color, exuberance, and a decidedly characteristic sound comprised of freshly sprung rhythms, freely tonal harmony, and bright orchestration. This music gleams. Deep Summer Music finds an exact aural equivalent for its title. Pulsing strings and percussion support a broad violin cantilena, interrupted now and again by slow trumpet cadenzas. The second movement of Vaughan Williams’ Pastoral Symphony comes immediately to mind conceptually, but the actual sound of the music is pure Larsen, including her signature use of bells and bell-like timbres.
The Solo Symphony’s eclectic mix of styles and syntax never degenerates into mere potpourri. A “concerto for orchestra”-type first movement leads to a delightfully diverse dance suite with some jazzy touches, and then after a short interlude comes a wonderfully clever finale enti
- opera in three acts