Fantasy in F-major, for Viola and String Orchestra

The Fantasiestück for viola and orchestra has now been published, but it is one of Alexander Presuhns works with the most uncertain source: there exist two Din A5 notebooks with staves, in which Presuhn entered sketches for this work, mostly written in pencil. It was intended to be scored for a large orchestra including woodwinds, brass and timpani accompanying the solo viola. However, throughout the entire work, only the solo viola part is completely represented, and that in both booklets. Just as the articulations in the two surviving solo parts are not completely entered, but could be completed from each other, the orchestral parts are (very) incompletely executed in both booklets. Fortunately, the gaps in both representations occurred at different places, so that it was possible to put both versions quasi on top of each other and thus to obtain a complete orchestral part. However, it was too "thin" for the extensive original scoring, so there was only one way to make the work performable: to reduce the orchestration to string orchestra. Thus, with the solo part in completeness and the string parts, except for a few notes that were necessary to join the surviving passages, the musical text is almost entirely original from Presuhn's hand, but the instrumentation was created by the editor for given reasons. This is a pity insofar as Presuhn was an ingenious instrumentator, which he proves in his "Geiger von Gmünd" Fantasy for viola and large symphony orchestra (currently not published, but possibly available from the publisher if interested).
Now, however, the F major Fantasy is also available for performance by small ensembles. The very effective first performance in Karlsruhe in 2022 was very well received by the musicians, the audience and also by the publisher as solist.
The editor Gerhardt Löffler wishes you much pleasure with the "Micro Viola Concerto". The Fantasiestück for viola and orchestra has now been published, but it is one of Alexander Presuhns works with the most uncertain source: there exist two DIN A5 notebooks with staves, in which Presuhn entered sketches for this work, mostly written in pencil. It was intended to be scored for a large orchestra including woodwinds, brass and timpani accompanying the solo viola. However, throughout the entire work, only the solo viola part is completely represented, and that in both booklets. Just as the articulations in the two surviving solo parts are not completely entered, but could be completed from each other, the orchestral parts are (very) incompletely executed in both booklets. Fortunately, the gaps in both representations occurred at different places, so that it was possible to put both versions quasi on top of each other and thus to obtain a complete orchestral part. However, it was too «thin» for the extensive original scoring, so there was only one way to make the work performable: to reduce the orchestration to string orchestra. Thus, with the solo part in completeness and the string parts, except for a few notes that were necessary to join the surviving passages, the musical text is almost entirely original from Presuhn's hand, but the instrumentation was created by the editor for given reasons. This is a pity insofar as Presuhn was an ingenious instrumentator, which he proves in his «Geiger von Gmünd» Fantasy for viola and large symphony orchestra (currently not published, but possibly available from the publisher if interested).
Now, however, the F major Fantasy is also available for performance by small ensembles. The very effective first performance in Karlsruhe in 2022 was very well received by the musicians, the audience and also by the publisher as solist.
The editor Gerhardt Löffler wishes you much pleasure with the «Micro Viola Concerto».

Fantasy

• ViolaViva, 2023

Fantasy F-major
for Viola and String Orchestra
Score and parts‍‍‍‍