Music and Texts of GARY BACHLUND
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Jiddische Melodien - (2010)
for flute, viola and harp
i.
The first movement sets Oyf'n Prip'chok (אױפֿן פּריפּעטשיק), "On the hearth." The text sings of a warm fire burning as children are taught their alphabet alongside the lesson that beginnings can be difficult, but with the guidance of Torah, life is worthy. The flutter tongue of the flute and parallel triads in the harp (arpa and non arpa) decorate the melody in both the right hand of the harp and viola's pizzicato.
[ 4 pages, circa 2' 00" ]
ii.
The less well-known Wäldchen melody comes from the German-Yiddish tradition, "Im Wäldchen, am Bächlein haben sie gewachsen." Viola and harp introduce the theme in the flute, and flute and viola thereafter trade gestures from it.
[ 3 pages, circa 1' 55" ]
iii.
The third movement is a medley of several themes, the best known being the Russian-Yiddish "Tumbalalaika" (טום־באַלאַלײַקע ), as the flute sings out a melisma with the characteristic augmented second, a first theme is introduced in the slower tempo and 2/4 meter.
Thereafter, the tempo increases with the meter change, as the viola singing out the second theme. Additional melodies are introduced, with a final, virtuosic recapitulation of "Tumbalalaika."
[ 13 pages, circa 6' 15" ]
[ Total duration - 20 pages, circa 10' 10" ]
The score for Jiddishce Melodien is available as a free PDF download, though any major commercial performance or recording of the work is prohibited without prior arrangement with the composer. Click on the graphic below for this chamber score. Parts are available as noted below.
