"Concertante 314" (2004/2012)
Concerto for Double Bass
and an Orchestra of 7 Double Basses

by Samuel Headrick (USA)
Written for Edwin Barker

I. Allegro - Soloist's Recitative - Allegro
II. Elegy 8:42

Premiere Performance

Samuel Headrick, conductor
Edwin Barker, double bass solo

Trio (double basses):
Yi-Jung Su
Christian Gray
John (Bebo) Shiu

Quartet (double basses):
Brandon Mason
Alexander Edelmann
Zach Camhi
Ben Green

Performed live at Boston University's Tsai Performance Center
685 Commonwealth Avenue, Boston
on February 1, 2012

During the
ALEA III concert:
"BU Composers Conduct their Own Works".

More information is available here

This is a live archival recording.
Copyright ©: 2012 by ALEA III, Inc. and Samuel Headrick
All rights reserved

Program Note: 

"Concertante 314" for eight double basses is a re-writing of a piece I composed in 2004
that was premiered by Edwin Barker, Theodore Antoniou, and seven students from Professor Barker's studio. It was commissioned in memory of our recently deceased Boston University colleague, John Daverio.

It was Professor Daverio's dedication to teaching that provided me, in part, with the conceptual spark to write the piece. I would not write a composition for Double Bass Octet, but rather for a Master Teacher and his 7 talented students, presenting them with musical and technical challenges that double bass students might not normally have the opportunity to try. The Master Teacher is the soloist, while the 7 students are divided into a Quartet and a Trio. Loosely stated, they form a “Double Bass Orchestra,” and the Quartet is placed in a semicircle in front of the conductor where the string section of the orchestra would normally be located, while the Trio forms a second row, located where the winds or brass might be. The visual score itself is organized with the same “roles” in mind - Solo in the middle, Quartet below, and Trio on top.

The composition has two movements which are connected without pause - an Allegro, which was completely re-cast for this performance, followed by a lyrical Elegy, which remains basically unaltered from the 2004 version. The duration of the complete work is approximately 12 minutes.

I would like to thank Mr. Barker and the students in his 2012 studio for providing me with the opportunity to re-write and “re-premiere” this composition. (-- S. H.)

The info above is available here