Dedication [HL:1283364]

Dedication for chamber orchestra by William Bolcom was written in 2021-2022, especially for the ROCO Chamber Orchestra. The commission was the result of a meeting between Alecia Lawyer and the composer at a Great American Songbook concert, hosted by Arthurand Shelley Gottschalk. Dedication is a concise but dramatic work. Its threepart is determined by tempo and motif. The work begins with Intro: Moderato. After a very soft ostinato sounds from the depths of the orchestra, two melodies emerge: the first in the Piccolo and Eb Clarinet, the second in the English Horn and Bassoon. They are complemented by strings in close harmony and lyrical muted brass. This is followed by Feroce! which engages the tutti ensemble in a cascade of brilliant fortissimo block harmonies. The next section, Allegro molto, is characterized by agile, virtuosic passage work and brash chords. Tempo I returns with familiar motifs wrapped in six sharps. Marked espressivo e cantabile, tutti strings provide an incandescent conclusion. Then soft string glissandi allow the music to fade back from wherever it came. Dedication is orchestrated by his former student Edmund Cionek.