Michael Blake
PIANO CONCERTO No.1 (Rain Dancing)
Bardic Edition BDE942
Edition for two pianos - the solo piano part (Piano 1) and an orchestra reduction for Piano 2 - copies for both are included.
Based on two interwoven cyclic forms, the single 22-minute sweep nevertheless has three discernible sections: a long opening movement, a quieter ‘slow’ movement starting about halfway through, followed by a faster and louder finale. The subtitle "Rain Dancing" with its double meaning gives some clues to the underlying inspiration for the work. It has been described as an example of so-called ‘African minimalism’.
The first performance was given by the work’s dedicatee Jill Richards, with the Johannesburg Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Nicholas Cleobury, on 17 October 2007 in the Linder Auditorium, Johannesburg.
Duration 22 minutes
Based on two interwoven cyclic forms, the single 22-minute sweep nevertheless has three discernible sections: a long opening movement, a quieter ‘slow’ movement starting about halfway through, followed by a faster and louder finale. The subtitle "Rain Dancing" with its double meaning gives some clues to the underlying inspiration for the work. It has been described as an example of so-called ‘African minimalism’.
The first performance was given by the work’s dedicatee Jill Richards, with the Johannesburg Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Nicholas Cleobury, on 17 October 2007 in the Linder Auditorium, Johannesburg.
Duration 22 minutes
