SUMMER INCIDENT, Opus 34A
SUITE NO. 2, Opus 46
FESTIVAL SYMPHONY (Symphony No. 1), Opus 51
J.D.C. MARCH (Corley's March), Opus 54
SPRING FESTIVAL OVERTURE, Opus 56
SUITE NO. 3, Opus 60
CONCERTANTE NO. 2, Opus 65
"BAND OF THE YEAR", Opus 66
"CAROLINE'S DANCE", Opus 67A
SYMPHONY NO. 2, Opus 70
"FANTASY", Opus 74
CONCORD BRIDGE, Opus 85
CONCERTO FOR CLARINET & WIND ENSEMBLE, Opus 87
CONCERTO FOR TUBA & CONCERT BAND, Opus 101
CANTO III, Opus 104
REMEMBRANCE OF JDC, Opus 120
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Copyright © 1996-2005
Festival Symphony was commissioned by the MIT Concert Band and was premiered at MIT on
November 6, 1965. Mr. Bavicchi has recounted the circumstances surrounding this commission:
When John Corley asked me to write a symphony for the MIT Concert Band, he made several specific
requirements which made the idea extremely interesting to consider. He wanted a major work, one with
antiphonal brasses which would be suitable for festivals; a work that exploited the textural possibilities of a
concert band in such a way as to avoid the all-too-familiar concept of the “band sound”; and, to speak
euphemistically. a work which was very brilliant and which had an emphasis on extremely strong rhythmic drive.
I have tried my utmost to fulfill these specifications.
The first movement is in a fairly strict sonata form including an introduction and coda. The rhythmic A theme is first presented
by the clarinets; the broader B theme by the flutes and bassoons. This second theme serves as the principal basis for the
development section. The recapitulation is announced by the antiphonal brasses. The coda is a retrograde presentation of the
main ideas of the introduction.
The second movement combines the slow and scherzo movements of the traditional symphonic form, creating a pyramid
construction. A slow chorale melody is first presented in the French horns and is harmonized by other instruments of dark
timbre. Against this darkness, a dramatic trumpet solo develops the chorale tune. Further development serves as a transition
to the scherzo, whose melody is fragmented and tossed about many of the instruments in the band. After the scherzo, the
trumpet melody returns in fragmented form, and the movement closes with the beginning of the original chorale melody.
The third movement involves alternating variations of two basic ideas. One of them is a combination of five melodies, as in the
last movement of Mozart's “Jupiter.” Each melody is presented singly, then in varying combinations, and finally with ail five
together late in the movement. These melodies are in duple meter, marcato, and dominated by the brasses (though the first
melody is stated by the reeds). The second idea is the gradual building up of a two-part, double counterpoint complex, with a
presentation similar to that described for the first idea. This group is in triple meter, legato, and dominated by woodwinds. All
this is preceded by an introduction started by the antiphonal brasses and followed by a long coda. The coda uses 3 wave
construction found in many of the composer's works to increase the rhythmic activity while fragments of the many melodies are
tossed around the brasses, all leading to a characteristically sonorous conclusion.
Corley’s March was composed by John Bavicchi in 1967 in tribute to John Corley for
his dedication to contemporary music for band. Is is published by Oxford Press and has
been played by bands throughout New England and the United States for over thirty
years. Different from a Sousa march which would be played in street parade, Corley's
March is a concert march. The Contrapuntal interlude and slight tempo changes makes it
more appropriate in a concert hall.
The degree to which this march is traditional is a rare departure
for this fine composer. The amount to which it is still fresh
and unusual is a tribute to his integrity and the humor inherent
to the piece tells his good nature and his skill. It is a simple
little tune, almost in an aeolian mode, but not quite, that gets
interrupted from its placidity with quick outbursts of roughshod
counterpoint and diatonic exercise. It is not an ordinary march,
and that is good.
The Suite for Band was written during the summer of 1969 on commission from the MIT
Concert Band. This, as well as Mr. Bavicchi’s other major work for band, the Festival
Symphony was dedicated to the band’s conductor, John Corley. The Suite was given its first
performance at Symphony Hall in Atianta two years ago on our winter tour.
The general organization of the Suite points toward the last movement. The first
movement has a continuous wave-like construction. The second movement is based on a
piece from the Mikrokosmos of Bartok. Mr. Bavicchi has been greatly influenced by the
Bartok style of writing and has used the Phrase structure and general texture of a Bartok
piece in this movement. He has also been influenced by one of his teachers, Walter Piston,
and has used a tune from the last movement of Piston’s fourth symphony as the basis for
the Scherzo. The Suite culminates in the last movement which is developed as a toccata
based on a fantare-like motif.
The Concertante was composed at the request of two
Boston area virtuosi: flutist Carole Epple and clarinetist
Barbara Brewer. Mr. Bavicchi‘s basic intention was to
demonstrate the abilities of the performers in a composition
cast in one of his favorite media, that of the wind
ensemble or concert band.
A short introductory movement, based on the composer's
first and only conscious use of the Fibonacci series of
numbers, provides a slow and reflective setting for the
main movement which is in great rhythmic contrast. It
consists of a fast introductory section, not related to the
opening movement, and an extended series of free variations
on a fairly active and well-defined theme. Several
of the variations are involved in a long ostinato buildup
of textures that leads to a huge climax midway through
the movernent. In keeping with Mr. Bavicchi’s normal
compositional approach, a long, involved, and powerful
coda concludes the work.
“Some time in 1973, Joseph Phelan, a lobbyist in Washington, approached me in regard to writing a work in
commemoration of his daughter, Caroline, who had died at age 3 1/2 from a brain disease. He listened to a lot of my
music via cassettes I had given him to take home. One movement from my Suite for Orchestra, Op. 19, intrigued him
immensely and he insisted that I incorporate it into the piece—apparently it made him recall the child dancing when he
came home in the evening. We agreed that I would write a one movement piece in two versions, one for orchestra and
one for band, with the orchestra one to be finished first because he thought he could arrange a performance in
Washington.
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“The orchestra version was begun August 27, 1974 and completed June 13, 1975. The band version was begun June 1,
1975 and about half done by fall (while I was making a fair copy of the orchestra score) when I discovered that Mr. Phelan
had died suddenly. This, of course, ended the whole thing for a while, at least. Several very important commissions came
up at that time and I stopped work on the band version (and score and parts of the orchestra version) for the time being.
“Last summer when John Corley and I were discussing the 1982 tour, we decided it was about time to finish the band
version so that we could perpetuate my practice of writing pieces for the MIT Band—and so I did, finishing October 20,
1981. The important thing is that this is a piece written for band, not an arrangement of an orchestra piece. In my
sketches I notated both versions as I went along.”
John Bavicchi’s Opus 70 was begun in July, 1975 and finished in Paris in August,
1977 during which period a number of other compositional requests were met. It is his
second composition in symphonic form, the first being his Festival Symphony Op. 51
composed for the M.1.T. Concert Band and dedicated to John Corley. Like the earlier
symphony (1965), Opus 70 embodies tremendous energy and virtuoso-solo-like playing. _
The Fantasy, dedicated to John Corley, was premiered by the Band on January 28, 1980 at Cleveland
State University, Cleveland, Ohio, under the direction of Paul Husby and is receiving its Boston
premiere tonight. It is Mr. Bavicchi's third composition for Band: the first two works, Festival Symphony,
Op. 51 (1965) and Suite No. 3, Op. 60 (1969) are among the finest works written for the Band over the
past twenty years. As in these earlier works, Mr. Bavicchi has constructed his own scalic patterns to
produce original harmonies and sonorities; however, the Fantasy is less sparsely scored and gives
increased importance to chordal structure. The work is in a free form, with a passage of pyramid-like
orchestration setting off several large sections. Many of the characteristics of the Fantasy are typical of
Bavicchi's style of composition. These include the wave-like construction of various passages, the use of
complex rhythmic patterns and rhythmic transformations of motives, and the use of a powerful coda to
conclude the work.
On the morning of January 28, 1986, the MIT Concert Band was traveling to Astronaut High
School in Titusville, Florida, during its annual winter tour. On that trip the band witnessed
the explosion of the Space Shuttle Challenger. Upon the band’s arrival, with the smoke of
the explosion hanging in the otherwise blue sky, the high school officials requested the band
make no changes in its scheduled concert that evening so that the local people could have some
normal event in their day to relieve their minds of the tragedy. The Concerto for Clarinet and
Wind Ensemble received its premiere that evening with Sherman Friedland, for whom the piece
was written, as the soloist and with John Corley conducting. The composer has provided the
following notes: :
Although in three movements the Concerto has no breaks because the solo clarinet
connects the movements with relatively short cadenza-like passages. This is
intended to aid the inner cohesiveness of the piece and also to smooth out the un-
evenness of the shorter movements, which are fairly necessary in a wind concerto.
“The overall shape is fast—slow—fast, and although there is much flexibility of
tempo within each movement, the divisions are clear because of the interconnecting
cadenzas.
During preparation for a performance of Concertino for Tuba and Brass Quartet, Op. 88,
an idea emerged that the piece might adapt well to an expansion into tuba solo with
wind band. This Concerto, which resulted from that idea, represents a considerable
change from the initial concept. The original five short movements have been expanded,
short transitions have been added between each movement. The result is a large,
single movement work in five main sections. The composer believed that this format
would allow a more continuous performance, aiding the flow of the music.
The Concerto was written for Gregory Fritze, and as with the original work, the intent
of this piece was to demonstrate Mr. Fritze's virtuosity.
Most recent revision, August, 2005