Virko's Face 2004

When Virko moved into his new house in the summer of 2001, he hired some friends and students - including myself - to help him pack up his s-t. When we were unpacking his s-t, we found endless boxes of a CD he recorded in the mid '90's. The cover is a picture of Virko, arms folded, looking away from the camera, with a facial expression of "Hey, Baby, check me out. I'm a pianist, conductor, and composer," Tim Bonenfant aptly dubbed this CD as "Virko's Face." Hence, for the remainder of moving Virko's s-t, that CD was - and still is - called "Virko's Face." That summer I developed a theme based on the famous Ukrainian carol, known to the rest of the world as, "Carol of the Bells." (Or as I like to call it, "Carol From Hell")

The piece is designed in a sonata allegro form in 15/16, with a dance-like first theme, and a subdued waltz-like second theme. A development follows, then a return of the second theme which segues into the cadenza for the violin as a coda.

This is my first attempt at a humoresque/parody piece, which I hope is as comical and fun as the moment when Tim Bonenfant said, "Oh s-t! Another box of 'Virko's Face.'"