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The earliest published sonatas of Domenico Scarlatti (1685-1757), titled Essercizi per gravicembalo , were prefaced with a cautionary note by the composer. He wrote, "Do not expect any profound learning, but rather an ingenious jesting with art, to accommodate you to the mastery of the harpsichord." Within the restrictive confines of a bipartite structure, motivic connections abound in the resourceful figurations that add a technical dimension to much of the music. The triadic motive at the beginning of the Sonata in B Flat Major, L.39 subtly resonates in the perilous skips at the end of the first and second sections. The scalar imitation in the D minor, L.366 contrasts strongly with the arpeggiated figurations and segmentation of the E Major, L.430 . Unlike the previous works, the G Major, L.490 is in triple meter with repetitive, ornamented phrases with disjunct motion in both hands. The familiar E Major, L.23 with its suggestions of horn fanfares, and in the second part, a brief guitar-like strumming in the left hand, is a more expansive example of a more intricate two part design. The A Major, L.395 with its alternating motivic patter of fourths, thirds and seconds conveys an energy and joie de vivre that is infectious.
In the first movement of Beethoven's Sonata, Op. a ( Les Adieux or Das Lebewohlthe composer's preference) , the structural device used in the Sonata pathetique, Op. 13 , utilizing the slow first movement introduction in the main body of the sonata form, is affectingly employed. Horn fifths, descending intervals of a third, a fifth and a sixth, are poetically implied even in the coda of this highly personal masterpiece. The programmatic titles of each movement, Farewell, Absence and Return , are vividly presented. The coda of the third movement effects, with the slightly slower tempo indicated, transformation of the character of the principal theme in the sonata form that pre-dates similar usages in the symphonic poems of Franz Liszt.
Schubert's Moment Musical in F minor is the third of six character pieces, Op. 94. The consistently rhythmic quality of the accompaniment is minimized by pedal points that limit harmonic change. The alternation of major and minor sections contributes to the prevailing sense of poignancy.
My Sonata No. 1 for Piano , composed in 1953, has many of the elements associated with both baroque and classical forms. The first movement has an exposition that presents three strongly contrasting sections. There is a development section with the reappearance of the second theme, a recapitulation and coda. Distinctive elements include the use of quartal harmony derived from the fourths in the first theme and the extensive use of counterpoint. The second movement consists of six variations on an obscure Kentucky folk song, O Bury Me Beneath the Willow . The use of the interval of a fourth is again quite apparent in the harmonization of the melody of the folk song and in some of the variations. The principal theme of the third movement is in reality two themestwo part writing that is interchangeable (double counterpoint). The second theme is another folk song, Lisa . The final phrase of the melody of this song is reduced to alternating octaves in 7/8 meter.
The Barcarolle, Op. 60 of Chopin is infinitely more complicated than its title suggests, a song sung by Venetian gondoliers. In designating it as a ternary form, the musicologist, F.E. Kirby, in his Short History of Keyboard Music, fails to account for the section preceding the return of the principal theme. The improvisatory aspects of this intervening section are too significant to be regarded as transitional. The impassioned return of the quietly stated melodic and accompanimental material lead to an intense coda built upon a pedal point on F sharp . The turbulent climaxes in this music belie the tranquil implications of its title.
The Chopin Mazurka in F minor is the second of a set of three mazurkas Op. 63. The clear three part form is presented simply and is not elongated by a coda.
The characteristic warmth of Brahm's sonorities is apparent in the Waltz in A Flat Major, Op. 39 , the penultimate work in a group of sixteen waltzes.
George Walker was born in Washington, D.C. on June 27, 1922 of West Indian-American parentage. His first piano teachers were Mamie Pinkney Henry and Lillian Mitchell. Upon graduating from high school at the age of 14, he received a scholarship to Oberlin College, where he studied piano with David Moyer. Graduating from Oberlin College at age 18 with the highest honors, he was accepted at the Curtis Institute of Music for study with Rudolf Serkin in piano and Rosario Scalero (teacher of Samuel Barber and Gian-Carlo Menotti) in composition. In 1945, he was presented in a Town Hall debut recital by Mary Louise Curtis Bok, founder of the Curtis Institute and Efrem Zimbalist, director of the music school. The auspicious debut was described in the New York Times as, "notablean authentic talent of marked individuality and fine musical insighta rare combination of elegance and sincerityan understanding, a technical competence and a sensitiveness rarely heard at debut recitals." Two weeks later, George Walker's performance of the Third Rachmaninoff Piano Concerto with Eugene Ormandy and the Philadelphia Orchestra was received with 'thunderous applause" in a review by Max de Schauensee of the Philadelphia Evening Bulletin . Under the aegis of National Concert Artists Management, George Walker made his first European tour, playing in Sweden, Denmark, Holland, Germany, Italy and England with great success.
Illness forced him to cancel a concert tour arranged by the Harold Shaw Management. Enrolling as a doctoral candidate at the Eastman School of Music, he obtained his Doctor of Musical Arts Degree in 1956. After spending two years in Paris
on Fulbright and John Hay Whitney Fellowships, where he studied with Nadia Boulanger, he returned to the United States where he established his preeminence as a teacher at Smith College, the University of Colorado, The Peabody Institute of Johns Hopkins University and as a Distinguished Professor at Rutgers University, where he was chairman of the music department and the University of Delaware, where he was the recipient of the first Distinguished Minority Chair. During this period, he published over seventy compositions. His works have been played by virtually every major orchestra and chamber orchestra in the United States. The New York Philharmonic Orchestra has given the premiere of two works, one of which, the Concerto for Cello and Orchestra, was commissioned, in addition to three other works. Other commissions were given by the Cleveland Orchestra, the Boston Symphony, the Cleveland Chamber Symphony, the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, the Fromm Foundation, the University of Maryland International Piano Competition and many other groups. His music has been recorded on the Columbia, Desto, C.R.I., Orion, Mercury, Da Camera Magna, BIS, Centaur, GM, Serenus, College Music Society and Mastersound labels.
This recording is dedicated to the memory of Dr. George T. Walker and Rosa K. Walker.
Producer and engineer: George Walker
Recording equipment: Steinway D piano, Nagra D recorder, Neumann TLM-170 microphones, Baton cables (Yankee Audio)
Piano Technician: Sam Martine
Special Thanks to Dan Micelli of Steinway and Sons, New York
Recorded in May, 1994 in Montclair, New Jersey.
The Sonata No. 1 for Piano by George Walker is published by MMB Music, Inc., St. Louis, Missouri.
Cover design by Chris Tompkins
P.O. Box 5011, Albany, NY 12205-0011
Tel: 518.453.2203 FAX: 518.453.2205
Box 12, Warton, Carnforth, Lancashire LA5 9PD
Tel: 0524 735873 FAX: 0524 736448
Sonata in B Flat Major, L. 39 (3:41)
Sonata in D Minor, L. 366 (2:10)
Sonata in E Major, L. 430 (3:29)
Sonata in G Major, L. 490 (1:59)
Sonata in E Major, L. 23 (6:13)
Sonata in A Major, L. 23 (2:45)
II. Andante expressivo (3:58)
III. Vivacissimamente (5:54)
Moment Musical, Op. 94 (2:10)
Barcarolle, Op. 60 (8:45)
I. Allegro energico (7:19)
II. Theme & Six Variations (4:51)
III. Allegro con brio (3:41)
Mazurka, Op. 63, No. 2 (1:44)
Waltz, Op. 39, No. 15 (1:20)
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