https://www.redlandssymphony.com/gulda

About Gulda's Cello Concerto

Composed in 1989, the charming and popular Concerto for Cello and Wind Orchestra exemplifies Gulda’s blurring of boundaries between musical genres. Scored for a modified eighteenth-century Harmoniemusik wind ensemble with the addition of a jazz rhythm section of guitar, bass, and drum set, the work alternates seamlessly between what Gulda described as “jazz, a minuet, rock, a smidgen of polka, a march, and a cadenza with two spots where the star cellist must improvise.” The Ouverture launches the concerto with a smooth rock feel, which then alternates with lyrical sections that sound like they could have been written by Mozart. The second-movement Idylle opens with a beautiful hymn-like chorale, first in the brass choir and then in cello, before a lilting Ländler breaks the repose.

The third movement is a six-minute cadenza for unaccompanied solo cello that calls for extended techniques and improvisation and segues directly into the Menuett. Cast in ABA form, the outer sections sound predictably like a Renaissance dance -- complete with tambourine -- but the middle section surprises with a beautiful tune that evokes Appalachian folk music. The Finale -- part march and part polka -- recalls classical and rock genres from earlier in the concerto before drawing to a thrilling close, complete with a screaming high note from the lead trumpet.

- Program Note by Travis J. Cross for the UCLA Wind Ensemble concert program, 10 March 2015