The Red Violin Chaconne for violin and piano by John Corigliano
Published by Schirmer
John Corigliano (b 1938) is a significant American composer of contemporary classical music. He is known for his eclectic approach to composition, drawing in music from many sources to create complex, substantial, and highly expressive music that is nevertheless tonal and accessible to a wide audience. He is best known for his score to ''The Red Violin'' (1998), his opera ''The Ghosts of Versailles'' (1991), and his Symphony No. 1 ''Of Rage and Remembrance'' (1988), written in memory of friends lost in the AIDs epidemic.
''The Red Violin'' (1998) follows the fraught life-cycle and history of a single violin across four centuries. Corigliano's Academy Award-winning score unites the story with a haunting, recurring chaconne theme in the solo violin, performed by Joshua Bell. Corigliano wrote this "Red Violin Chaconne" in preparation for the film score, then reworked it into this dazzling concert piece. It is quite substantial, nearly on par with a concerto. It is technically demanding, emotionally expressive, and breathtaking-quintessential Corigliano. Master level, Grade 6.
