Paris Sketches

From Program Notes

Noted British composer Ellerby calls this work "my personal tribute to a city I love." Each movement pays homage to a specific locale in Paris and to the composers who lived, worked, or passed through it. A theme of bells, a prominent feature of Paris life, runs through the entire piece. The first movement evokes the bohemian Latin Quarter with shades of Ravel. Pigalle depicts the Soho of Paris, with its car horns and police sirens. The third movement, which is named after the city's largest cemetery, recalls Satie's Gymnopedies and closes with a quotation from the Dies Irae. The fast, bursting finale reflects the old market area of Paris and contains themes from Berlioz’s Te Deum, which was first performed in 1855 in that district. --James Huff 06:48, 13 May 2008 (UTC) (from the program notes of The Claremont Winds, submitted with permission)