String Triptych

Description

Ulysses Kay was a prolific composer, whose catalog comprises a wide variety of works, including five operas, twenty large works for orchestra, numerous pieces for varied vocal forces and chamber works. His early training was auspicious, working with such distinguished pedagogues as William Grant Still, Howard Hanson, Paul Hindemith and Bernard Rogers. His music received attention and acclaim when the composer was only in his twenties. His numerous honors and awards in his early years include a Guggenheim Fellowship, an American Prix de Rome prize and a Fulbright Scholarship for studies in Europe. Later in his career he was awarded honorary doctorates from Lincoln College, Bucknell University, the University of Arizona and Illinois Wesleyan University.Kay favored neoclassical tendencies in his works, featuring lyricism, contrapuntal textures, clear formal designs and a tonal, yet chromatic harmonic vocabulary, all of which are evident in his String Triptych from 1988. Composed for the Missouri All-State High School String Orchestra, the piece features three contrasting movements, identified as “Lyric, “Cadence,” and “Finale.” The first movement is composed of two melodies, the first of which is presented in m. 5 in violin 2, the second (an inexact inversion of the first) in m. 27 in the viola. The second movement is a brief twenty-two measures that introduces without pause the third and final movement. Note that the composer provided cues for significant viola passages in several instances in the score (e.g., mm. 27–30 of movement 1) in violin 2 or cello parts. These can be left to the discretion of the conductor. Ulysses Kay favored neoclassical tendencies in his works, featuring lyricism, contrapuntal textures, clear formal designs and a tonal, yet chromatic harmonic vocabulary, all of which are evident in his approachable and elegant String Triptych from 1988. Composed for the Missouri All-State High School String Orchestra, the piece features three contrasting movements, identified as “Lyric, “Cadence,” and “Finale.” Ulysses Kay was a prolific composer, mentored by such distinguished pedagogues as William Grant Still, Howard Hanson, Paul Hindemith and Bernard Rogers. His numerous honors and awards include a Guggenheim Fellowship, an American Prix de Rome prize and a Fulbright Scholarship for studies in Europe, and honorary doctorates from Lincoln College, Bucknell University, the University of Arizona and Illinois Wesleyan University.