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In 1990 my friends Kari Kriikku and Anssi Karttunen asked a dozen of Finnish composers to write a piece for clarinet and violoncello. Anssi had played me a fantastic recording of an arrangement of Pulcinella by Strawinsky for violin and cello. These instruments were capable of reproducing a quite astonishing version of the ballet despite of the rather limited resources. The imagined presence of the orchestra interpreted by two musicians created, like the top of an iceberg, a strange and wonderful tension. I decided to make the basic concept of the piece based on a harmonic layout, a rather paradoxical starting point for writing a duo for clarinet and cello. I composed huge chordal successions out of which the music followed meanderlike paths alternating between many layers constantly. I imagine the feeling for the musician to be much like playing multiple chess turns simultaneously.Duo concertante is a continuation of the same processes, except that more of the iceberg is now visible. The most important path is outlined by the soloists, whereas the ensemble articulates deeper levels in the musical material. The instrumentation of the piece can be viewed as an extension of the duo idea; flute-oboe, mandolin-guitar, vibraphone-harp, viola-double bass in addition to the soloists.Style is an aspect of musical writing I have been focusing a lot of intention to during the last years. Duo concertante includes odd scherzo characters, puristic serial music, spectral music affects, even minimalistic approaches are recognizable. Pluralism 'an sich' is not necessarily very interesting, for me it has been more a question of a kaleidoscopic writing based on a maximal variety brought out from a rather limited musical material. © Magnus Lindberg(Chester Music Ltd.)Duo concertante is a second version of Steamboat Bill Jr. In the new piece, the clarinet and cello are accompanied by a small ensemble, whose instrumentation is determined by that of the Nieuw Ensemble of Amsterdam. The concept of Steamboat Bill Jr. included a dimension of harmonic thinking which remained below the surface when it was performed by only two instruments. In Duo concertante much of the iceberg is audible, with the ensemble articulating the deeper aspects of the musical material. The ensemble, made up of eight musicians, reinforces the idea of a duet formed by family: flute and oboe, mandolin and guitar, vibraphone and harp, viola and double bass.Written in Helsinki during the winter of 1992 following a commission from the German radio station WDR in Cologne, Duo concertante was first performed by the Nieuw Ensemble at the end of April 1992, at the Witten chamber music festival in Germany.© Risto Nieminen, 1993translated by © Nick Le Quesne© Ircam - Centre Georges-Pompidou, 1993(From Magnus Lindberg, Helsinki 1996)Duo concertante est une deuxième version de Steamboat Bill Jr. Dans la nouvelle pièce, la clarinette et le violoncelle sont accompagnés par un petit ensemble, dont l'instrumentation est dictée par celle du Nieuw Ensemble d'Amsterdam. Le concept de Steamboat Bill Jr. était doté d'une pensée harmonique, que la réalisation avec seulement deux instruments avait laissée sous-jacente. Dans Duo concertante, une grande partie de l'iceberg est audible, l'ensemble articulant des aspects plus profonds du matériau musical. L'ensemble, composé de huit musiciens, accrédite l'idée d'un duo se formant par famille : flûte et hautbois, mandoline et guitare, vibraphone et harpe, alto et contrebasse.Ecrite d'après une commande de la chaîne de radio allemande WDR à Cologne, pendant l'hiver 1992 à Helsinki, Duo concertante fut créée à la fin d'avril 1992 au Festival de musique de chambre de Witten par le Nieuw Ensemble.© Risto Nieminen, 1993© Ircam - Centre Georges-Pompidou, 1993(From Magnus Lindberg, Ircam 1993)

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Abbreviation	Instrument
Woodwind
acl	alto clarinet
afl	alto flute
arec	alto recorder
asax	alto saxophone
barsax	baritone saxophone
barhn	baritone horn
bcl	bass clarinet
bfl	bass flute
bob	bass oboe
bsax	bass saxophone
bsn	bassoon
cbsn	contrabassoon
cl	clarinet
ehn	English horn
fl	flute
hn	French horn
ob	oboe
pic	piccolo
rec	recorder
sax	saxophone
srec	soprano recorder
ssax	soprano saxophone
trec	tenor recorder
tsax	tenor saxophone
Brass
ahn	alto horn
atrb	altotrombone
barhn	baritone horn
btrb	bass trombone
cornet	cornet
euph	euphonium
fhn	flugelhorn
hn	French horn
tba	tuuba
thn	tenor horn
trb	trombone
trp	trumpet
Percussion
dr	drums
glock	glockenspiel
mar	marimba
perc	percussion
timp	timpani
vibr	vibraphone
xyl	xylophone
Strings
db	double bass
gamba	viola da gamba
str	strings
vla	viola
vlc	cello
vln	violin
Other
acc	accordion
cel	celesta
cemb	harpsichord
chords	chords
elbas	electric bass
elg	electric guitar
elorg	electric organ
elpno	electric piano
guit	guitar
harm	harmonium
hca	harmonica
hp	harp
instr	instrument
kantele	kantele
keyb	keyboard
live electr	live electronics
mand	mandolin
mel	melody
org	organ
pno	piano
synth	synthesizer
tape	tape
Vocal
alto	alto
baryt	baritone
basso	bass voice
ch	choir
chc	childrens choir
chf	female choir
chm	male choir
chx	mixed choir
cten	countertenor
mezzo	mezzo-soprano
sopr	soprano
speaker	speaker
ten	tenor
voc	vocal

Symphony orchestra
2222 4331 11 1, str = 2 flutes, 2 oboes, 2 clarinets, 2 bassoons, 4 French horns, 3 trumpets, 3 trombones, tuba, timpani, one other percussionist, harp and strings
Wind band
2252 3 423 21212 3 = 2 flutes, 2 oboes, 5 clarinets, 2 bassoons - 3 saxophones - 4 French horns, 2 trumpets, 3 trombones - 2 cornets, alto horn, 2 tenor horns, baritone horn, 2 tubas - 3 percussionists
Big band
221 4 4, pno, guit, db, dr = 2 alto saxophones, 2 tenor saxophones, baritone saxophone, 4 trumpets, 4 trombones, piano, guitar, double bass, drums
Additional codes
+	fl+pic = flutist doubles on piccolo
/	pno/org = can be played on either piano or organ
lib	ad libitum
obl	obligato
str	str: 65432 = specified number of string players
str min	str min: 65432 = at least 65432
str max	str max: 65432 = not more than 65432
solo	vln solo = violin is the solo instrument in a work not obviously for solo violin