Bassoon and Piano

For Bassoon and Piano, this is a nice and traditional setting of Amazing Grace. It will work for a recital, church service or really any concert setting one can think of. Learn More

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with Piano; This beautiful piece radiates a sensuous lyricism and and nostalgic mood. The structure of the work is A-B-A-Coda, the A section is melodious, flowing, and expressive. The B section is more animated and has a playful nature. This is a “must” for your next recital or competition. Learn More

with Piano; "Concerto for Bassoon" for bassoon and piano by Howard J. Buss was composed during 2016 and 2017 and is dedicated to Arnold Irchai. This work was created in two versions – one for bassoon and piano, and the other for bassoon and orchestra. (The bassoon and orchestra version will be published at some point in the future.) Cast in two movements, "Reminiscences" and "Excursions", the music spans a wide range of moods and timbral atmospheres, ranging from lyric tenderness to forceful, aggressive sections. The piano score and solo part is included. (19’) Grade V-VI. Learn More

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with Piano; This is a contemporary work that will be a nice challenge for a High School student and a perfect recital piece for a College student. It is audience friendly and the piano accompaniment is not too difficult. Learn More

with Piano; 3 movements Learn More

with Piano; Queen Hatshepsut was one of the most enigmatic and interesting figures in ancient Egyptian history. She was the only woman to ever rule as "pharaoh" at a time when only males were allowed to hold that position. For this reason she is often depicted in carvings and drawings of the period wearing a beard or a man's clothing. She also had a secret love affair with an architect named Senmut, who designed many beautiful buildings in her day, including the dramatic Deir El-Bahari temple carved out of a jagged cliff in Thebes. Since no music of that period survives, this work is an imagining of a secret chant and private dance Hatshepsut may have performed for Senmut. The work begins with strange and beguiling chants in the bassoon, including exotic "multiphonics." (Bassoon fingerings for the mutiphonics are included with the score and part.) These are accompanied in the piano with musical gestures reflecting the closing of large, stone,tomb doors, marches of the temple priests, and amagical sprinkling of ancient chords. The dance that follows is in the spirit of the infamous "Dance of the Seven Veils," in which, during each section the female dancer sheds another layer of covering and increases the pace. beginning slowly, each of the seven sections build in peed and motion leader both the dancer and her audience into a furious, wild, spinning finale. Learn More

with Piano

Commissioned by Tainan Symphony Band for Prof.Chia-Chu Hsu 

Sponsored by Cultural Affairs Bureau Tainan City Government 

for 2021 Asia and Pacific Band Festival 

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with Piano; Originally for Tuba, this piece was adapted for Bassoon. It is a nice recital piece for a High School or College student. It is fun and flashy. Learn More

Variants on “Our God Almighty”

Trombone or Bassoon or Oboe Solo with Organ

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Trombone/Bassoon Duet and Organ

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Oboe and Trombone/Bassoon Duet and Organ Learn More

with Piano; Sonata della speranza “Sonata of Hope” for bassoon and piano by Howard J. Buss was written for Dr. Ann Shoemaker and is dedicated to the memory of bassoonist Dr. Eric Van der Veer Varner. When work on this sonata began in the autumn of 2019 it was being composed for Eric, a friend of the composer. After Eric’s sudden, tragic death shortly thereafter, the project was shelved. Work resumed in the spring during the global Covid-19 pandemic. At the time, Italy was the epicenter of the crisis and the composer, having friends living there, was deeply concerned with their welfare. As the composition developed, Italy overcame the worst of the ravages of the disease, and the pandemic took firm hold in the United States. The composer wrote much of Sonata della speranza while at home in Florida adhering to governmental shelter-in-place orders.

The three movements address an array of emotions the composer experienced following the death of his friend and during the pandemic. The optimistic character of “Auspicious Sunrise” radiates the hope imbued in the morning glow of a new day. The musing nature of “Introspective” reflects the inner dialogue often experienced during the extended periods of social isolation. The buoyant, and at times whimsical third movement, “Serendipitous,” combines elements from the previous movements with new material: The music exudes an optimistic, forward thrust, while incorporating feelings from the daily experiences of living through the pandemic. Learn More

with Piano

This piece for bassoon and piano was written for my daughter, Megan Potter, for her Senior Recital in Bassoon in 2002. As I tend to write “concept” pieces, this Sonata was designed to be very personal and to revolve around my daughter and our immediate family.

The first movement depicts the “happy family” of her childhood, when we were all together. The second movement expresses some of the tender feelings she was then having for the young man whom she eventually married.

The third movement is one of my “Matthew” movements. I find that I often have my son in mind when I write some of my most cheerful and lively pieces and this one displays a certain jauntiness and irrepressible jocularity that Matthew always had as a young child. 

Notes by Barbara York

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