Cello and Orchestra SKU: HL.14020990
Composed by Sir Peter Maxwell Davies. Music Sales America. 20th Century. Score. Composed 1999. 80 pages. Chester Music #CH58933. Published by Chester Music (HL.14020990). ISBN 9780711923904. 5.5x7.5x0.283 inches.
If Davies's Cello Concerto has already evoked comparisons with Elgar's, that is perhaps an indication not only of its wealth of solo melody (there is hardly a page where the cello is not singing, or if not that, then dancing), and of its predominantly slow tempos, but also of its musical stature. This second Strathclyde concerto is a virtuoso piece for the entire ensemble, which is used almost throughout as a clutch of soloists rather than as a tutti block. The general tone is one of passionate but interior dialogue, especially in the opening Moderato and the slow movement; and though the finale is more extrovert, the work ends back in quietness and rumination.
