Music by
DANIEL DORFF

STRINGS
Big Sky for Flute, Viola, and Harp

Duration: c. 12'

1. Montana Morning
2. Dancing Under the Stars

COMMISSIONED by Hat Trick (April Clayton flute, David Wallace viola, Kristi Shade harp).
PREMIERE tour through the greater Salt Lake City region, September 2023. PUBLICATION by Theodore Presser Company forthcoming in late 2024. RECORDING on Bridge Records, via YouTube:
1. Montana Morning
 2. Dancing Under the Stars

 
Deep Funk, Pt.2: Dance Sonata for Solo Viola
Duration: c. 15'
1. Salsa Grande
2. Romance
3. Agitato Swirl with Waltzes
4. Prelude and Free Form Viola Funk

COMMISSIONED and PREMIERED by violist Mara Gearman.
AVAILABLE from your favorite sheet music dealer, or direct from Presser.

AUDIO EXCERPTS from the premiere by Mara Gearman:
          from Mvt. 1
          from Mvt. 2
          from Mvt. 3
          from Mvt. 4
PROGRAM NOTES

FIRST PRIZE: Salsa Grande movement, in 2003 Hvar Music Festival composers' competition.
Desert Dusk for Alto Flute and Cello
Duration: c. 8½'

COMMISSIONED by Mélomanie, for flutist Kimberly Reighley and cellist Douglas McNames, premiered in May 2017.
AVAILABLE from your favorite sheet music dealer, or direct from Presser.

YOUTUBE of Agnieszka Bartoszewicz and Cecylia Stanecka, live at the Bydgoszcz Academy of Music, Poland
PROGRAM NOTES

Hot Spots for English Horn and Viola

Duration: c. 8'
Adaptation of the original English Horn & Clarinet duo, for Tim Haas clarinet & Mary Harrah viola
 1. Sunsplash
2. On the Beach
3. The Bee and the Horseshoe Crab

 

It Takes Four to Tango for String Quartet, String Quintet, or String Orchestra

Duration: c. 2½'

PERFORMANCES include Colorado Symphony's outreach concerts.
Quartet version: AVAILABLE from your favorite sheet music dealer, or direct from Presser.
Quintet version: AVAILABLE from your favorite sheet music dealer, or direct from Presser.
String Orchestra version: AVAILABLE from your favorite sheet music dealer, or direct from Presser.

AUDIO EXCERPT: Harmo Saxophone Quartet playing the sax version
PROGRAM NOTES
It Takes Four to Tango for Violin (or Flute) and Guitar

Duration: c. 2½'

PREMIERED by Mimi Stillman flute and Allen Krantz guitar, March 16, 2006, Philadelphia.
 Available from your favorite sheet music dealer, or direct from Presser.

 PROGRAM NOTES
Lamentations for String Orchestra  

Duration: c. 5'

COMPOSED for the Santa Monica Civic Orchestra, Frank Fetta, Music Director.
PERFORMANCES include Concerto Soloists Chamber Orchestra of Philadelphia, Marc Mostovoy conductor.
AVAILABLE on rental from Theodore Presser Company

PROGRAM NOTES
Online perusal score

"Worthy of the spotlight... the most interesting and sensitively performed on the concert... the composer should be heard from again."
            – Philadelphia Inquirer (Valdes), October 27, 1987.
 -

Midsummer Daydream for Flute, Viola, and Harp

Duration: c. 7'

COMMISSIONED by a consortium led by the Astralis Chamber Ensemble.
PUBLICATION by Theodore Presser Company forthcoming in June 2024.

YOUTUBE of a live performance by Faith Wasson flute, Adam Brotnitsky viola, and Rebecca Simpson harp
PROGRAM NOTES

 
Peaceful Journey for Cello and Piano  

Duration: c. 8'

AVAILABLE from your favorite sheet music dealer, or direct from Presser.

PROGRAM NOTES

Spark for unaccompanied Viola  
Duration: c. 3'

COMMISSIONED by Kirk Smith, for Yvonne Smith.
PREMIERED by Yvonne Smith, Shepherd School of Music, November 22, 2009
AVAILABLE from your favorite sheet music dealer, or direct from Presser.

YOUTUBE of Yvonne Smith performing Spark
PROGRAM NOTES

Sunburst for Solo Violin with String Orchestra

Duration: c. 3'

COMMISSIONED and PREMIERED by the Colorado Symphony's Up Close and Musical series for 20-30 performances (1998-2000 seasons), to demonstrate sounds and colors of the violin.
PERFORMANCES include Nashville Symphony
AVAILABLE on rental from Theodore Presser Company.

  
Sunshine Rondo for Violin and Piano  
Duration: c. 2'

AVAILABLE from your favorite sheet music dealer, or direct from Presser.

AUDIO EXCERPT from the premiere by Todd Reynolds
The Three Little Pigs  for Narrator, Violin, and Cello
Duration: c. 10½'
The familiar story is told with lots of special effects, and with leitmotives identifying each of the pigs and the wolf, to illustrate variations on recurring patterns. A perfect story for illustrating variations on a theme.

 COMMISSIONED by the American Composers Forum community partnerships for the Auricolae ensemble and Strings in the Schools.
PERFORMANCES have included outreach programs of the Concertgebouw Orchestra, Chicago Symphony, Philadelphia Orchestra, and Aspen Music Festival.
AVAILABLE from your favorite sheet music dealer, or direct from Presser.

RECORDED on New Focus Recordings by the Auricolae ensemble.
PROGRAM NOTES

 
Three Mysteries of Nagasaki for Violin and Percussion

Duration: c. 13'

PREMIERED by Terry Vermillion (perc) and Marion Judish (vn), St. Cloud, MN., February 2000.
AVAILABLE from your favorite sheet music dealer, or direct from Presser.

 PROGRAM NOTES
 AUDIO EXCERPTS from the premiere:
        from Mvt. 1
         from Mvt. 2
         from Mvt. 3

"The sentiment behind the genesis of the piece, and the pairing of both unpitched and pitched metallics with a string instrument, is intriguing. The sections that weave the vibraphone along with the unpitched instruments, with the violin are, … quite lovely.... For an advanced graduate student or professional looking for a percussion and violin pairing outside of the common marimba/violin fare, this piece would make an interesting addition to a recital."
         – Percussive Notes (Marilyn K. Clark Silva), September 2018

 Terry Vermillion's set-up for premiere
 

last updated June 22, 2024
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