Frederick Maggio
Les Productions D’Oz: 4 pages
Here is a quirky, bouncy piece from this talented writer .You can find a fine performance of it on YouTube as played by his father Guy – Jean Maggio who is the dedicatee of this work.
Although this piece is marked Andante, make no mistake that at 76 crotchets a minute and with the piece consisting mostly of semi – quavers, that it does really move and it is no simple ride. The opening bar returns a number of times almost like a motif. The key is E Major, and the (mostly) two voices consist of generally a crotchet bass line, although that sometimes enters a semi – quaver earlier to give an off – beat feel to the dance – like rhythm, whilst the top line is mostly semi – quavers , but occasionally three triplet quavers, with a number of ties across the beat , and a lot of hammer- ons .This results in a style that is very flexible, very dance – like and, as the piece progresses and the time signatures change, with more than a hint of a modern folk – like feel to it. Gradually as the music develops, the key structure, initially built around E Major, moves in and out of other keys momentarily and one has to have a very quick response to some of the areas that fly around the fretboard almost constantly. A momentary slower speed intervenes, leading to a pause, before the coda enters in the first tempo, and a final run around the semi – quaver patterns for a final close on an altered E Major.
This is a nice piece, friendly in its harmonies, that , with work, falls well under the fingers, and does however need a decent player to do it full justice, but otherwise I can see this attractive little work being very popular with players who like a piece with a good melody and interesting harmonies in it .
Chris Dumigan
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