Concerto in E-flat "Dumbarton Oaks"

Music#

Composed in Stravinsky’s neoclassical period, the piece is one of Stravinsky’s two chamber concertos (the other being the Concerto in D, for strings, 1946). It is scored for a chamber orchestra of flute, B clarinet, bassoon, two horns, three violins, three violas, two cellos, and two double basses. The three movements are: They are performed without a break, totaling roughly 12 minutes. The concerto was heavily inspired by J.S. Bach’s set of Brandenburg Concertos, and was the last work Stravinsky completed in Europe, started in spring 1937 at the Château de Montoux near Annemasse, near Geneva, Switzerland, and finished in Paris on March 29, 1938.

Adaptations#

Stravinsky himself created a reduction for two pianos. Leif Thybo’s 1952 transcription for organ laid the foundation for his investigation of the possibilities of the modern form of the instrument. A ballet, choreographed by Jerome Robbins, was premiered by the New York City Ballet on June 23, 1972, calling for one principal and six corps dancers of each sex. The score was arranged for marimba and tuba by Peter Welsh, and performed in Philadelphia in 1993.

Further reading#

• Rogers, Lynne. 1992. “Dissociation in Stravinsky’s Russian and Neoclassical Music”. International Journal of Musicology 1:201–228.
• Straus, Joseph. 1982. “Stravinsky’s ‘Tonal Axis’”. Journal of Music Theory 26, no. 2 (Autumn): 261–90.

External links#

• Ledbetter, Steven. 1995. “Igor Stravinsky: Concerto in E-flat for chamber orchestra ‘Dumbarton Oaks, 8.v.38’”. Pro Arte website (archive from 12 March 2007, accessed 16 September 2011).
• Strugnell, Stephen. 2007 . “Stravinsky – Concerto in E flat ‘Dumbarton Oaks’ (12’)”. Scottish Chamber Orchestra website (archive from 28 September 2007, accessed 16 September 2011).
• Work details, Schott Music
• , United States Marine Band, Jason Fettig (conductor), March 2021 – Program notes
• , Northern Chamber Orchestra, Nicholas Ward (conductor)