Description

Reduction for Violin and Piano of Three Dances Op. 7, originally composed for Violin and Orchestra. These Three Dances are charming miniatures, created in 1915 during a relatively carefree period of student life (relatively, as the Great War had already commenced a year prior, and Howells, due to severe health issues that nearly claimed his life in 1917, was exempt from active duty). The pieces were written for a fellow student, George Whittaker, a remarkably talented violinist who joined the College at the tender age of eleven. Undoubtedly, the music does not reflect the significant events that were beginning to unfold, which would profoundly impact one of his closest friends, Ivor Gurney, and result in the deaths of many others.