T
wo by Three in Anza Borrego, by Joseph Michaels, is a suite of (mostly) bluegrass music composed and arranged for mandolin orchestra, two guitars, and contrabass. Two of the songs were written for the violin, “Rub-a dub Scrubjay” and “Quail Waddle,” when he was visiting the Anza Borrego desert in Southern California in the summer of 2021. “Raymond’s Song” is an arrangement of a melody written by his uncle, Bob Pryor, in 1998. The first and last movements were added in 2022 to fill out the suite.
Two brief movements set the scene at the beginning and end of the work: a dry wind softly blowing through string instruments sitting outside a desert home. Three bluegrass songs form the center: a scrubjay takes a dirt bath; a song in memory of a loved one; and a quail waddles in patterns of three against two.
Two by Three in Anza Borrego was written for the Louisville Mandolin Orchestra, who premiered it in Louisville, Kentucky, USA in 2023.
Joseph Michaels is a composer, performer, and curator. Originally from Oberlin, Ohio USA and now based in Stuttgart, Germany since 2008, his works feature influences from Western classical, experimental, folk, and popular music, combining unconventional tuning systems and moments of rhythmic complexity with tonal inflections, repetition, and a clear pulse.
SICILANA, OPUS 78
Siciliana is indicative of Raffael Calace’s typical late-romantic Italian style. It draws from the romantic phrasing, sweeping melodies, and harmonic content of Italian opera and art song, setting it expertly for mandolin.
Raffael Calace is one of the most significant figures in mandolin around the turn of the 20th century. He was a luthier, composer, and mandolin virtuoso.