FYDLE
A double violin concerto by Jenny M. Thomas
One trad fiddler, one concert violinist, one symphony orchestra
With veiled homages to blockbuster violin concertos, stolen harmonies from a famous Australian song, an appearance by the ancient and strange Welsh Mari Lwyd and a deeply unsettling Irish reel, this work is a joyful continuation of ancient Celtic culture that could only have been written by an Australian.
Solo violin parts played by Jenny M. Thomas
In 1779 Mozart wrote his Sinfonie Conertante for Violin & Viola K364. Jenny M. Thomas performed the solo viola part of this iconic work in 1990, emerging as a classical violist in Naarm/Melbourne. Since then she dreamt of writing her own double concerto and now she has become the first woman to do so. In summertime Ireland and Wales Jenny composed a concerto for orchestra and two violins: one folk and one classical violin.
Concerto for Two Violins and Orchestra by Jenny M. Thomas
Key: E Major
Composed: 2023 - 2026
Genre: Sinfonia Concertante
Movements: Three (Adagio/Allegro, Lento, Andante)
Length: Approx 28 min
Scoring: folk violin soloist, classical violin soloist, orchestra
2+pc 1 1 1+cb - 4 0 2+bt 1 - tmp +4 - hp - str 12/12/10/8/6
FYDLE was written on an epic solo journey funded by prize money and thrift. A quest into the mountains of Cymru/Wales, into the psyche of the Éireannach/Irish and the colonial power that lurks there still. Learning the languages her great-great grandmothers were forbidden to speak, Jenny studied Cymraeg/Welsh and Gaeilge/Irish at the same time as composing FYDLE. Her inspirations in these lands were many and included:
Tír Na nOg - a super natural place of creativity believed to exist offshore of the Atlantic Ocean.
Castell Caernarfon/ Caernarfon Castle- an immense medieval fortress built by British royalty to subjugate the Welsh and now owned by the Welsh people who charge English tourists a fortune to enter.
Visiting the concert halls of Europe and the Tithe Tábhairne/taverns of Donegal, Jenny found equal drama in both. This work is no sentimental homage to folk music. Rather it flips the bird to the folk police, the patriarchy and to colonial power in three sweeping movements.
