Dauer 20 Minuten

The writing of this trumpet concerto stems from a sort of wager. I was tempted by the idea of applying to the string orchestra and in concertante form what I had experimented with a year earlier in my piece Masques for solo violin and cello. I was guided by the desire for a slightly archaistic modal simplicity to progressive/y introduce a counterpoint and richer, even intricate, harmonies whilst preserving the unity of style as far as possible. The main thread of the concerto is a very long, sweeping theme that proceeds by rising levels. Thanks to modal fluctuations, it attains peaks of intensity on several occasions before final/y becoming lost in the instruments low register. In contrast with this very slow tempo, the theme of the rhythmic central part is announced by violent, biting punctuations like cracks of a whip. Its nervousness and obstinate agitation, focussing on certain poles in an almost haunting way, create an ejfect of contrast. After an explosive climax, the first theme reappears, mixed with the second, which gradually fades, while the tempo slows down and dies out.