Sonata for Violoncello

Laugh of the day: just prior to writing this brief commentary, I went back and read what I wrote four years ago while introducing my second cello sonata. Among other things, "...should anyone in the future happen to observe me drafting a sonata-allegro movement for any combination of instruments in 9/8 time, please - please, please - ask me what in Debussy's name I think I'm trying to do." And, of course, the trio section of this current composition's scherzo movement is in ... 9/8 time. Old habits die hard.

Everything follows the tone row here, tonal centers included: (1)C-Db-E (2)G-Ab-B (3)Bb-D-Eb (4)Gb-F-A. Heck, the coda of the finale consists largely of two different approaches to simultaneous sounding of all four basic permutations of the row: base, retrograde, inverse, and retrograde inversion all squashed together into the same four hands at the same time, prestissimo and fortissimo. Never let it be said that I leave anything out of my compositions, including the proverbial kitchen sink.