When first composed, in 1987, this major work was very influenced by the topography and changeable climate of my native Tasmania. In 2001, whilst working in the Australian Outback, the ending of this work was lengthened, to reflect the awe - inspiring vastness of my new environment.

Moon Cycles Concerto for Viola and Chamber Orchestra Michael Sydney Jones 1987 (revised 2001)

This concerto was originally six short movements. Four of them went into hibernation. 

After I wrote my second viola sonata, it seemed like a good idea to revisit the concerto... It was incomplete. I thought about basing the last movement on the "Prelude" from J. S. Bach's Solo Suite in D minor.

None of the ideas were worth putting into score. Planning to return to the project at a later date, something in the four orphan movements began calling to me (not on my cellphone😊... you'd think they would have at least left a message). 

Revisions began on the four (which I had called "Four Preludes for Viola & Orchestra"). I can't recall at the moment, what if anything remained of the second prelude. All I knew was that I was having a great time. 

Outgrowing its title of "prelude," it dawned on me that some of the Concerto's second movement might make a good second theme for the finale... An initial draft slimmed down from over 16 minutes to under 11.

The only problem is that now I can't call that other piece "Four Preludes🤣

Viola Concerto (2022, 2024) Mov. III

*Sheet music now available for purchase at www.danielerdmannmusic.com*

This is a recording of the Metropolitan Symphony conducted by William Schrickel featuring violist/composer Daniel Erdmann performing the world premiere of his Concerto for Viola & Orchestra at Roseville Lutheran Church in Roseville, Minnesota on March 29th, 2015.  

The composer had the following notes about the piece:

"I decided to write my Concerto for Viola and Orchestra in 2005 when I was a freshman at St. Olaf College.  During that time, I had fallen in love with Romantic era orchestral music from the 19th and early 20th centuries.  As a violist, I spent months searching for an inspiring Romantic viola concerto that I could learn to play.  Great composers I admire such as Tchaikovsky, Sibelius, Dvorak, Rachmaninoff, and Barber wrote many incredible concertos, but none for the viola.  I decided to thoroughly teach myself composition and orchestration so that I could take on the challenge of writing my own viola concerto. 

As my early attempts at writing the piece came to dead ends, I realized that I needed to allow the inspiration for the music as a whole to be completely honest and personal.  The concerto is structured in three movements following Classical and Romantic traditions with a slow middle movement surrounded by faster outer movements.  Though each movement is based roughly around classical music forms (sonata, song form, and rondo respectively), the music chronicles a personal story of depression, love, and overwhelming happiness.  My hope is that the music will speak for itself, and resonate with the listener on their own terms."

A video of the complete performance is also available on YouTube.

https://youtu.be/JbKQkWhi0oI?si=hEFX0HxJ6uJFp0m7

For more information on Erdmann's music visit www.danielerdmannmusic.com

For information on upcoming concerts with the Metropolitan Symphony visit www.msomn.org

Concerto for Viola & Orchestra

III. Grandly Euphoric - Presto

II. Adagio

I. Lento grave - Allegro

78th Concours de Genève, 3rd Prize
Lise Berthaud (Vla-Solo), Pierre Bleuse (Cond), L’Orchestre de Chambre de Genève
Youtube : https://youtu.be/wgudzNNVUAY?si=CxVuLUvQ0cuSHPfw
2024.10.20 - Victoria Hall (Genève, Switzerland)

『The Past Recaptured』 for solo viola and chamber orchestra (2024)

I’m Daniel Erdmann, a composer with a passion for Romantic and Neo-Romantic orchestral music.  Having been a violist for most of my life, I want to give prominence to the viola by creating works that showcase its depth, rich timbre, and expressive capabilities.  My formal education in composition began at St. Olaf College, but my deepest insights into music have come from self-led exploration.  After leaving St. Olaf in 2007, I began teaching myself orchestration through extensive reading and score analysis.  This led to the creation of my Concerto for Viola & Orchestra, which I had the privilege of premiering as the soloist with the Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra in Minneapolis in 2015.

I strive to write music that connects with listeners on a direct and emotional level while having layers of complexity.  Performing with ensembles like the St. Olaf Orchestra and the Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra has given me a deep understanding and comfort with the language of orchestral music. My compositional style is influenced by the depth and richness of Neo-Romantic and Romantic composers like Samuel Barber, Ralph Vaughan Williams, Jean Sibelius, and Gustav Mahler, as well as modern masters such as Arvo Pärt and Henryk Gorecki.  These composers have shaped my musical language, but ultimately my goal is to express myself in a way that is vulnerable and honest in all my music.

I’ve been fortunate to have my compositions performed by ensembles such as the Urthema String Quartet, the Lirica Chamber Ensemble, and the Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra.  

As a founding member of the Urthema String Quartet, I contributed numerous original pieces and arrangements for the group.  In 2023, my piece “The Second Coming” for a cappella choir was recorded by Composers’ Choir and is now available on YouTube and SoundCloud. 

After putting composing on hiatus for many years, I began writing again in 2022.  Since then, I have split my time between publishing past works and writing new music.  I am happy to finally share my short list of published pieces on this site. Thank you for visiting and I look forward to sharing future creations with you.

For more information on my music and to purchase sheet music visit my website at:

www.danielerdmannmusic.com

I’m a composer of Classical and electronic music. A father of two, and a retired trombonist and music teacher.

Kenneth Lieberson is a composer of symphonies, concertos, ballets, cantatas, tone poems, opera, chamber music, songs. His music has been heard on National Public Radio, at The Library of Congress, Lincoln Center, Queens College, NYU, Stony Brook, CAMI Hall, Merkin Hall and at high and middle schools. His B. M. and M. M. are from Juilliard. He also earned an M.B.A. at NYU's Stern School of Business.

Mr. Lieberson has also written two novellas, dozens of short stories and hundreds of poems.  He illustrated some of these.

Sang-Min Ryu (b.2000), Composer

- B.M. Composition / B.A. Philosophy / B.S. Mathematics in Hanyang University (Cum Laude) [2019.03 ~ 2024.02]

New tracks tagged #Viola Concerto