Eileen Pakenham (1914) 7 Colondene 8 Caprice for mandolin and Orchestra Solo mandolin: Paul Liklikuwata Instrument: Albert & Muller 1990

The Brithish composer Eileen Pakenham (1914) grew up in a music loving family. It is not strange, therefore, that she decided to specialize in music after she had determined to become a teacher. Besides experimental compositions for her own instrument, the piano, she wrote mandolin compositions, mainly didactical works. After she had met the mandolin player Irene Bone, daughter of Philip J. Bone, the well-known author of the book ' The Guitar and Mandolin,' she composed a great number of chamber music compositions for the mandolin combined with other instruments. later on she got composition orders from European mandolin groups. A few of those works were rewarded with prizes and were published, like 'Sea Pictures,' a four-part transparant composition for mandolin orchestra for which she received a bronze medal during the fourth Japanese Mandolin Union's composition contest for mandolin in 1985. The composition on this CD, 'Colondene', was written in 1979 for the Schevenings Mandoline Orkest (The Netherlands), conducted by Arie van Vuuren. The title of the work is taken from the name of a racehorse. This composition, which is full of contrasts, is in fact a waltz with a canon in 6/8 time as a centre part. The piece shows Pakenham's clear style of composing in which all parts are original and come out well. Her composition 'Caprice' was written for solo mandolin and orchestra and was dedicated to Robert Calcutt. It is a short virtuoso scherzando with a beautiful, solemn religioso which is suddenly broken off by a fierce 'con fuoco'. As a matter of course, this theme changes into the opening theme again, after which the solo mandolin seems to be escaping from the orchestra which concludes the composition three times.

Alex Timmerman ©2000

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