Madras; Sonat for piano by Alan Hovhaness is a composition for piano. The work is written on behalf of the Academy of Music in Madras, nowadays Chennai. There was a music festival and Hovhaness was the first "western" composer (he has an Armenian background) to submit and play an evening-filled program. The music does not sound British or Indian, but more from the Middle East (halfway). The short piano sonate consists of three parts:
the third part lasts as long as the first two together.
Part 1 contains a melody above the percussional hit in the left hand. Part 2 is in the real sonata form ABA. A consists of a melody that looks so torn out of medieval motets. B is a Jhala (many repeating tones); A returns. Part 3 is as the title indicates.
The first performance of the reworked piece from 1946 took place on January 1, 1960, in a program dedicated to the composer. The program was then a work for piano and orchestra, which later took the title Symphony No. 8. Discography
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