Serenade Op35

Serenade, Op35 for Flute, Harp and String Orchestra by Howard Hanson

Full score and parts

Instrumentation :  Flute solo (1), harp (1), 1st violin (8), 2nd violin (8), viola (5), cello (5), bass (5)

Duration: 6:00

“To Peggie”

Serenade, Op35 for Flute, Harp, and String Orchestra (1945), was composed by Howard Hanson (1896-1981) when he was in his late forties as a proposal/courtship gift to Margaret (Peggie) Elizabeth Nelson, whom Hanson had met at Chataqua in upstate New York.  The work was actually commissioned by the WHAM Radio Station in Rochester, NY for their Treasures in Music program series.  At the time, Hanson had served as Dean  of  the  Eastman  School  of  Music  for  over  twenty  years, actually having  been  appointed  by  George  Eastman,  of  Kodak-Eastman fame.  The work is a lyric and flowing song for the flute which courses through a series of typically warm string harmonies, energized with more rhythmic textures in the harp.