FRANK MORANA
AmerOrganist 32/6

Bios is a Greek word for life, an attribute which this piece

possesses in abundance. It consists of seven continuous

sections, in which the latter half of each section is subtly

varied so as to remain as a recognizable "refrain;" the

first halves of each section, meanwhile, proceed with

greater and greater independence, climaxing in the fifth

section. The sixth section is a transparent interlude that

only briefly suggests the refrain, while the seventh section

presents the refrain in cancrizans, and in a final variation

with coda. This piece recalls, in some respects, the

bipartite variation form that was a favorite with Haydn, but

which was rarely cultivated by later composers. (The

cancrizans section, of about a dozen measures, is just

humorous and flexible enough that it, too, would undoubtedly

have pleased Haydn.) The sections are entitled, in the

preface (but not in the score), Essence, Double, Bicinium,

Scherzando, Rotating Basses, Whispering, and Modo

Cancrizans. The pedal is withheld until the fifth section,

where "rotating basses" refers to the ostinato-like figure

that is employed. The outward stylistic impression of the

piece is epigrammatic rather than lyrical, and the

composer's harmonic pallette is wide-ranging without ever

seeming to draw attention to itself. It is remarkable, for

example, that the opening measures are articulated to

produce a striking and novel sound, though otherwise only a

straightforward passaggio in the lydian mode. Similarly,

when the refrain appears in transposed versions in sections

three and five, one really feels the effect of the "pull" to

the new key. Perhaps the only disappointing place in this

work is in the fourth section (Scherzando), where the line

between the two halves is not as sharply drawn as it ought

to have been. The difficulty level is not at all great, and

artists will find in this piece much satisfaction at every

level.