Bassoonist Elle Senn is leading a consortium to commission a new sonata for bassoon and piano from composer brin solomon! This new work, the Elsterliedersonate, will be a tribute to Peter Schickele/PDQ Bach, with movements stitched together from kaleidoscopic quotations from every corner of the standard repertoire. By joining the consortium, you’ll not only be supporting the creation of a new addition to the musical literature, you’ll also have your name printed in the score as well as exclusive access to the piece for a full year after delivery. There are three tiers available to join the consortium:

• Student Tier ($75). This is designed for performers who are still early on in their studies. We will be running a competition for student performers using this piece with a prize of $300!

• Professional Tier ($150). For established professionals looking to expand the repertoire and support today’s living composers.

• Studio Tier ($200). For teachers who would like to use the work with multiple students at no additional cost.

Timeline

The consortium will be open until 31 March, 2027 at 11:59pm ET. The final score will be delivered on 1 April, 2027, with the exclusivity period running until 1 April, 2028. Further information on the student competition will be released with the delivery of the score, but the deadline for submissions will be 11:59pm ET on 1 April, 2028, with the winner announced on 1 May, 2028.

More about the piece

Named after the eponymous bird in La Gazza Ladra (The Thieving Magpie), the Elsterliedersonate (Magpie-Song Sonata) picks the pockets of the standard repertoire, snatching melodies, chords, and gestures from iconic songs, symphonies, concerti, and more, braiding them together to fashion something new from their deconstructed pieces. The result is one part exorcism — a writhing evocation of the claustrophobia that comes from working under the weight of so much tradition, in the face of a canon comprised of works from such a small slice of humanity — and one part joyous romp — an exuberant celebration of all the richness this music has to offer. Even with all the old chestnuts, there are still plenty of things worth stealing!