Virgil Thomson (1896-1989)

Nationality: American

Born: November 25, 1896, Kansas City, MO Died: September 30, 1989, New York, NY (age 92)

20th Century

Sonata da chiesa

(for clarinet, trumpet, horn, trombone and viola)

		I.	Chorale
		II.	Tango
		III.	Fugue

Duration: 15 minutes (approximately)

Composed: 1926 (age 29-30)

Revised: 1973 (age 76-77)

20th Century

Related Composers

Lou Harrison (1917-2003)

Student

Nationality: American

Born: May 14, 1917, Portland, OR Died: February 2, 2003, Lafayette, IN (age 85)

Nadia Boulanger (1887-1979)

Teacher

Nationality: French

Born: September 16, 1887, Paris Died: October 22, 1979, Paris (age 92)

glossary

chamber music, Kammermusik [G], musique de chambre [F], musica da camera [I], musica cameralis [L]—"Classical Music" for a small ensemble, generally 8 or fewer players with a canonical emphasis on 3-6 players. explore
chiesa [I], da chiesa, per chiesa—church. Used in "Sonata da chiesa" to distinguish a "church" sonata from a "chamber" sonata (Sonata da camera). A chamber sonata tends to include dance movements whereas a church sonata emphasizes counterpoint. Such distinctions are often quite blurry in practice.
chorale, choral—hymn; sacred tune; commonly, a hymn from the Protestant church
fugue, fuga, fuge [G], fuguette, fugen [G,pl]—a contrapuntal procedure (form) involving a musical subject (theme) that is successively imitated by multiple overlapping voices. There is a vast canon of rules (concepts) for creating elaborate and diverse fugues with an infinite variety of character based on fairly specific parameters. Fugues (or partial fugato) are found throughout classical music from the late Renaissance to the present.
quintet, quintette [F], quintett [G], quintetto [I]—an ensemble / work for 5 players, the typical examples being string quintet (with second viola or cello), piano quintet or woodwind quintet
sonata [I], sonate [pl], suonato—Originally, "sounded" rather than "sung" (sonar vs. cantar), i.e. instrumental music. According to historical period, sonata began to imply a formal plan of movements as well as the structure within a single movement, e.g. "sonata form" and applies to instrumental sonatas, string quartets, symphonies, etc., all examples of the sonata principle. In general usage as a specific work title (e.g. violin sonata), it designates a multi-movement piece for solo or duo instruments with one of the instruments enjoying a feature role. wiki
tango—Argentine dance and musical genre/style with characteristic syncopated rhythms, dramatic intensity and classically featuring the bandoneon for its distinctive timbre wiki.