Agnegram for
Orchestra
Instrumentation
Piccolo
2 Flutes (1st dbl. Picc. 2, 2nd dbl. Picc. 3)
2 Oboes
English Horn
Clarinet in Eb
2 Clarinets in Bb
Bass Clarinet
2 Bassoons
Contrabassoon
4 Horns in F
3 Trumpets in C (3rd dbl. Piccolo Trumpet in Bb)
2 Tenor Trombones
Bass Trombone
Tuba
Timpani (4 drums + Picc. Timp.)
Percussion, 4 Players: Triangle
Suspended Cymbal
Crash Cymbal
Pair Cymbals
Hi-hat
Anvil
Low Brake Drum
2 Cowbells (low & high)
Whip
2 Wood Blocks (low & high)
Ratchet
Tambourine
Snare Drum
Side Drum
Alto Lion’s Roar
Bass Drum
Crotales
Chimes
Glockenspiel
Xylophone
Vibraphone
Flexatone
2 Cencerros (B3 and F4)
Harp
Piano (dbl. Celesta)
Strings
Duration: approx. 7'30"
COMPOSED: 1998. Revised, 2016, 2022
WORLD PREMIERE: May 15, 1998. Michael Tilson Thomas, San Francisco Symphony
Please note that the recorded version that appears on “Grace – The Music of Michael Tilson Thomas” was recorded in 2016 and differs slightly from this score, which was revised in 2022.
Composer’s note
Agnegram was written to celebrate the 90th birthday of Agnes Albert and is a portrait of her sophisticated and indefatigably enthusiastic spirit. Agnes led a remarkable life. As a vital member of the San Francisco Symphony’s Board of Governors for half a century, she was the symphony’s friend, mentor, patroness, and muse. She grew up performing music and connecting with musicians of all ages. She appeared as a piano soloist with Pierre Monteux on his last concerts as Music Director of the San Francisco Symphony. She loved young people and one of her enduring legacies is the SFS Youth Orchestra.
The piece is composed of themes derived from the spelling of her name. A G E are obviously the notes that they name. B is B-flat (as this note is called in German). S is E-flat, also a German musical term. T is used to represent one note, Bnatural, the “ti” of the solfege scale. From these arcane but not unprecedented manipulations (Bach, Schumann, and Brahms, among others, enjoyed this game), a basic “scale” of eight unusually arranged notes emerges, from which all the themes are drawn. The piece itself is a march for large orchestra and should be performed with the up-tempo spirit of fun that Agnes represented.