Dances Old and New (2025)
(for solo cello)

It is always a challenge to write a work for solo cello, mainly because of the omnipresence of Bach’s timeless six suites for the instrument, one of the great achievements in Western classical music composition. However, with those suites in mind I wanted to write a work which looks back to Baroque dance suites in general as well as incorporating more modern dance forms, thus creating an amalgam of both old and new, hence the title of the suite.

However, the title also has a double meaning in that two of the dances are derived from music for the piano which I composed in 2011 - An Album for my Friends - also based on Baroque dance forms. Thus, the Allemande and Sarabande are ‘old’ whilst the others are ‘new’.

The suite is in six short movements: Praeludium (after Monteverdi), Allemande, Habanera, Sarabande, Tango and Gigue. There are brief references to two of the Bach cello suites in the Sarabande and Gigue, and to a famous French opera in the Habanera (no prizes for guessing which one!). The opening Praeludium is based on the opening Toccata of Monteverdi’s opera Orfeo of 1607, music which he also used three years later to open his Vespers, whilst the Habanera and Tango are the two ‘modern’ dances, both being un peu sexy!

Otherwise, in composing this suite of dances I have tried to exploit the full range of sonic and expressive qualities that the cello possesses, and above all have attempted to compose music that is, whilst being technically challenging, both fun to perform and to listen to. It is for others to decide if I have succeeded or not!

Edward Gregson 2025