Mel Powell (1923-1998)

Introduction
Mel Powell is a Pulitzer Prize-winning American composer who began his career in music as a jazz pianist performing professionally in New York City by the age of 14. He is noted for his work with Benny Goodman in the early 1940’s. Powell was drafted into the army and played with Glenn Miller’s Army Air Force Band from 1943-1945. He then moved to Hollywood after the war to provide music for television and movies, most notably for Tom and Jerry. After developing muscular dystrophy in the late 40’s, he shifted his focus from performance to composition and studied under Paul Hindemith at Yale University.

Work Analysis
Duplicates: A Concerto for Two Pianos and Orchestra - The piece is scored for two pianos and an orchestra comprised of piccolo, two flutes, two oboes, cor anglais, two clarinets, Eb clarinet, bass clarinet, two bassoons, contrabassoon, four horns, three trumpets, three trombones, tuba, two harps, three percussionists, and strings. It is composed of three movements, Onta, Three Interludes (“Madrigal”, “Immobile”, “Mobile”), and “Onta” Variants. Although I could not find any complete recording, I felt compelled to provide as much as possible about the Pulitzer Prize-winning work. After listening to the only samples I could find from each movement, I was able to grasp at least some sense of its compositional direction. The music is very dense and complex as a result of its atonality, and the Onta movements certainly detail this style at a great length by taking duplicate musical ideas and producing from them a myriad of variations and contrasts. Clarity and purpose is, presumably, more easily gained by the listener in the second movement during each interlude.

Comparisons
There are several other composers and concepts which come to mind when studying and listening to the music of Mel Powell. Hindemith is an outstanding example to draw comparisons from, especially in consideration of the key concepts we studied from the neoclassical perspective.

Observations
The career and works of Mel Powell were interesting to study and read about to say the least. Regardless of my personal taste and preferences, Powell's transformation from stride-pianist to neoclassical composer, exploring atonality and serialism, is something I can certainly admire. Although I cannot say much about how I feel subjectively about his music, I can definitely see the value and contribution that Powell made on the music community throughout his life.