Louis Anthony deLise - Balletto a Due Mani for Harp. From the composer: "Balletto a due mani is a concerto for unaccompanied harp composed in three movements. It is dedicated to the American harpist and pedagogue, Anne Sullivan. Movement I, marked Largo, is both melodic and straightforward, while Movement II, marked Largo e liberamente, is to be performed with a rubato tempo. I intend for Movement II to sound as if it is being improvised, for it to be mysterious and to coyly prepare the listener for the whirlwind that is the third movement. I have composed Movement III, marked Allegro, to be a tour de force! In it, I use several elements—quickly changing meters, heavily accented syncopated rhythms, and percussion effects—to craft melodic lines reminiscent of rock guitar solos and R & B horn lines. At several instances, I ask the harpist to “rap with the knuckles on the harp’s soundboard.” These percussive interjections culminate after the cadenza when the harpist is asked to reestablish the movement’s urgent pulse by drumming out the insistent 5/8 rhythm that undergirds Movement III."