Second Symphony (2012)
Second Symphony (2012) was written as a companion piece to Beethoven's Ninth Symphony at the request of Tania Miller, to whom the work is dedicated. It was commissioned by the Victoria Symphony throughout he generosity of the Canada Council. The symphony is in two movements. The first movement is both slow movement and first movement form simultaneously and (like traditional sonata form) concerns the interplay of two musical ideas and their variations. The second movement is a commentary on the traditional scherzo and finale. In these respects the work is in dialogue with Classical form. The piece has many technical references to all of Beethoven's symphonies, particularly the use of repeated motives, interrupted phrases, and (in the last movement) repeated notes. There is also an elaborate timpani part and parts for Wuhan gongs.
- Rodney Sharman