Description
Recording sample from “Vibrant Colors: Brass Music of Douglas Hedwig” (MSR1811)
The title of this work, Heliodor, is derived from two Greek words: helios, meaning “sun,” and doron, meaning “gift”—hence, “gift of the sun.” In its current, common usage, “heliodor” refers to a mineral/gemstone with a golden-yellow color, similar to the color of most modern-day brass instruments. The composition utilizes style elements the composer describes as “Neo-Gothic”, employing modified composition techniques associated with the art music of Medieval and Renaissance Europe. These include the use of modes (rather than scales, per se), parallel fifths and imitative counterpoint, combined with flashes of contemporary harmony, meter and melody.
-Douglas Hedwig
Commissioned by the University of Louisiana Monroe Brass Faculty.
Douglas Hedwig:
The music of Douglas Hedwig (born 1951) has been performed throughout the U.S., Italy, Germany, England, Scotland, Belgium, South Korea, Thailand and Indonesia. Praised for the “coherent, yet adventurous character of his compositions” [Opus Klassiek, Netherlands), his music embraces “a wide range of musical styles…and showcases the eloquent sincerity of a contemporary American voice” [International Center for American Music].
Winner of both the Gaetano Amadeo Prize (Italy) and The American Prize in composition, Hedwig is recipient of awards and honors from the Siena Art Institute (Italy), Brush Creek Foundation for the Arts, and the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences. Prior to turning his full creative attention to composition in 2012, he was a trumpet player with the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra for 27 years.
Dr. Hedwig is Professor Emeritus at the Conservatory of Music at Brooklyn College of the City University of New York, and was formerly on the faculty of The Juilliard School (NYC).
https://www.douglashedwig.com/
