Malcolm Peyton Catalogue

Annotated List of Works (Chronological) (Updated 2/29/24)

Lyric Meditations (2008)
for voice and chamber music

Lyric Meditations was premiered in Jordan Hall by Gregorio Rangel and chamber ensemble.

Overture for piano (2005)

Overture for piano was premiered by pianist Katie Reimer.

Tango Steps (2005)
for violin and piano

Tango Steps was premiered by Cyrus Stevens, violin and Donald Berman, piano

Fantasies Concertante (2002) - 20 minutes
a concerto for orchestra

Fantasies Concertante was premiered by the Boston Modern Orchestra Project (BMOP) on January 18, 2003 in Jordan Hall. This work is published by APNM.

String Quartet No. 2 (2001, rev. 2005) - 19 minutes

String Quartet No. 2 has been premiered by the Ciompi Quartet (Duke University quartet-in-residence) in 2001 and has been performed subsequently by the Fibonacci Quartet (2005) and Monadnock String Quartet (2019).

Apostroph (1997)
for chorus and orchestra

Apostroph was premiered by the NEC Chorus and Orchestra on October 31, 1997, led by conductor Tamara Brooks.

Suite nocturnale for solo viola (1994) - 22 minutes

Suite nocturnale was premiered by violist Jonathan Bagg. This work is published by APNM.

String Quartet No. 1 (1991-93) - 30 minutes

String Quartet No. 1 has been performed by the Borromeo String Quartet. This work is published by APNM.

Songs from T. Sturge Moore (1989)
for soprano and chamber ensemble

Songs from T. Sturge Moore was premiered by Barbara Winchester, soprano, and Dinosaur Annex Music Ensemble, conducted by the composer.

Envoi (or Birthday Greetings) (1985)
for solo flute

Envoi by Malcolm Peyton is one of the sixty-two pieces written by NEC faculty composers in celebration of Gunther Schuller’s 60th birthday. These pieces were performed on the 'Enchanted Circle' birthday concert on November 19, 1985.

Two Fantasies for Winds, Brass & Percussion (1982) - 10 minutes
for wind ensemble

Two Fantasies was premiered by the Swedish Wind Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Larry Livingston. The work was featured on Bronze Music (2007), performed by NEC’s Jordan Winds, directed by William Drury. Charles Peltz conduct the NEC Wind Ensemble in a performance here.

Concertine (1981)
for chamber ensemble

Concertine was premiered by Collage New Music, conducted by Gunther Schuller.

Sonnets from John Donne (1967-1981) - 17 minutes
for bass-baritone voice, French horn, tenor/bass trombone, viola, cello, and contrabass

Sonnets from John Donne was premiered by bass-baritone Jesse Coston and the New England Conservatory Contemporary Ensemble, conducted by Gunther Schuller. This work is published by APNM. Boston University’s Times Arrow Ensemble performance recording is here.

Songs from Walt Whitman (1978) - 20 minutes
for soprano or mezzo-soprano, piano, and violin obbligato

Ideas based on poems and excerpts from Leaves of Grass have occurred to me as far back as 1965. At the time, the poetry, intriguing as it was, was too overwhelming and diffuse for me to handle. Several projects lie abandoned. These songs are therefore, for me, a coming to terms with Walt Whitman. - Malcolm Peyton

Songs from Walt Whitman was premiered by Bethany Beardslee, soprano; Malcolm Peyton, piano; Eric Rosenblith, violin. The songs were released on the Tribute to Bethany Beardslee and CRI’s O’Brien / Peyton. This work is published by APNM.

Elegie, Berceuse for solo viola (1978)

Incorporated into Suite Nocturnale for solo viola.

Cello Piece (1978) - 5.5 minutes
for solo cello

I always loved the cello–the queen of instruments. I tried to play it, but I snipped the end of my finger off at a cookout. That ended my cello playing, but I decided that I wanted to write a piece for it. The work flowed rather quickly. It contains memories that I had, such as a police car going by and various other things that were close to me at the time. The ending came very naturally to me, the A harmonic on the D string, and the piece just flowed. - Malcolm Peyton

Written and premiered by cellist Ronald Clearfield, Cello Piece was recorded by Rafael Popper-Keizer on Ibis Camerata’s Boston Diary (2010), released by Albany Records.

The Blessed Virgin compared to the air we breathe (1973) - 8 minutes
for mixed chorus a cappella

The Blessed Virgin was premiered by the New England Conservatory Concert Choir, directed by Lorna Cooke deVaron. This work is published by Mobart Music Publishers (via Schott).

Choruses from e.e. cummings (1967)
for mixed chorus a cappella

Choruses from e.e. cummings was premiered by the New England Conservatory Chorus, directed by Lorna Cooke deVaron. This work is published by Mobart Music Publishers (via Schott).

Four Songs from Shakespeare (1960) - 10 minutes
for mezzo-soprano, 2 B♭ clarinets, violin, viola, and cello

1. Music to hear
2. Orpheus with his lute
3. Blow thou winter wind
4. Lo, in the orient

Four Songs from Shakespeare was premiered by Shirley Suddock, mezzo-soprano and conducted by Gustav Meier.

Concerto for Violin and Orchestra (1960)

Malcolm Peyton’s Violin Concerto was premiered by the concertmaster Joseph Kovacs and the Princeton Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Nicholas Harsanyi.

Chamber Cantata, Part II (1959)
for soprano and tenor voices, and orchestra

Chamber Cantata, Part II was premiered by Bethany Beardslee, soprano, Ray DeVoll, tenor, and conducted by Gustav Meier.

Chamber Cantata, Part I (1958)
for soprano and tenor voices, and orchestra

Chamber Cantata, Part I was premiered by Susan Miller, soprano, Ray DeVoll, tenor, and conducted by Gustav Meier.

Elegy For Solo Clarinet (1955) - 4 minutes

Elegy for Solo Clarinet was premiered by George Jones and was recorded by Shirley Brill on the Donald Martino Memorial Tribute Concert. This work is published by APNM under the title Suite for Solo Clarinet, but is however listed as 8 minutes in length.

Two Pieces for String Orchestra (1955)

Two Pieces for String Orchestra was premiered by the Princeton Symphony Orchestra.