#124– December 06, 2021

BRUCE YURKO (1951)
IN MEMORIAM KAREL HUSA For Wind Ensemble
https://soundcloud.com/user-642642570-907922214/sets/wasbe-composition-of-the-4

“In memoriam Karel Husa” by American composer and conductor Bruce Yurko is our Composition of the Week.
In memoriam… was written in 2017, after Husa’s passing in December 2016. The premiere performance took place on May 6, 2018, by the Eastman Wind Ensemble under Mark Scatterday.
The work is dedicated to the latter as well as to Donald Hunsberger. It has a duration of 15 minutes and calls for a standard wind ensemble instrumentation.

“It was in August 1973, at the Ithaca College School of Music Graduate Reception that I was introduced to Karel Husa. We sat down and had a conversation that lasted for over an hour. Karel was a very special person. To study composition with Karel was a privilege.
Throughout the years that have passed, the letters, the phone calls, and then the emails, Karel still had the warmth and caring of that very first conversation.
After I heard of the passing of Karel, I knew I wanted to do something. I read the heartwarming message that Mark Scatterday and Donald Hunsberger wrote concerning the passing of this great man. This pushed me in the right direction.
Here are my thoughts, in my music, concerning Karel. The words of Mark and Don motivated me in a way that the music just seemed to happen. They both understood. We who were extremely fortunate to study and maintain a wonderful friendship with this remarkable man are truly blessed.” (Bruce Yurko)

Bruce Yurko received his Bachelor of Science in Music Education from Wilkes College and his master’s in performance from the Ithaca College School of Music. While attending Wilkes College he studied horn with Douglas Hill and corresponded with Vincent Persichetti. At Ithaca College, he studied conducting with Thomas Michalik, horn with Jack Covert, and composition with Karel Husa.
He has attended Conducting workshops and has studied with Frederick Fennell, Donald Hunsberger, H.Robert Reynolds and Eugene Migliaro Corporon.

View the score here:
https://www.yumpu.com/xx/document/read/62738397/in-memoriam-karel-husa-bruce-yurko