The Schubert of Children's Composers: American Composer, William Gillock and his 'Lyric Preludes'

'24 Lyric Preludes in Romantic Style' is an excellent preparation for more complex works of the great masters of 19th- and 20th- century Romanticism.

William Gillock was born in 1917 in LaRussel, Missouri, where he began formal piano training at an early age. He graduated from Central Methodist College in Fayette, Missouri, where he studied piano and composition with N.Louise Wright.

He simplified his guiding compositional principle by stating "melody and rhythmic vitality are essential to compositions that students want to learn," as written in Gillock's performance notes in Lyric Preludes in Romantic Style 50th Anniversary CD Edition, published in 2008 by Alfred Publishing.

William Gillock as a Music Educator

William developed into a noted music educator and composer of music. He was honored five times by the National federation of Music Clubs with an honorary Award of Merit for Service to American Music. Often called the 'Schubert of children's music,' Gillock composed numerous piano solos for beginning and intermediate students and their teachers to perform together. He also hosted numerous workshops for piano teachers, covering everything from interpretational ideas to performance practices for his pedagogical compositions.

24 Lyric Preludes in Romantic style

During the mid 1950's, while living in New Orleans, Louisiana, William Gillock wrote a 10 measure piece for his nephew, Jon. Jon, happy with playing it and Gillock impressed with composing it, decided to make it part of a whole new collection of original piano pieces. Numbering twenty-four, these character pieces are intermediate level repertoire intended for young pianists developing their technique and interpretive proficiency. Originally published in 1958, Lyric preludes in Romantic Style is among the most performed and well known works in Gillock's compositional repertoire.

Influenced by J.S. Bach's Well Tempered Clavier, Gillock composed each of the Lyric preludes in one of the 24 major and minor keys. The sequence of the preludes follows the circle of fifths and the major key followed by its parallel minor rather than the relative minor. This is correspondent with Gillock's estimation that there is an educational value in the audio-visual analysis of the parallel keys. As stated in his performance notes, Gillock advocated this sequence because he held the belief that this theory would help developing pianists conquer the challenge of moving confidently around the keyboard, regardless of the key signature.

Inspired by Chopin's Preludes, Gillock wrote the Lyric Preludes in, as self entitled, Romantic Style. Both collections emphasize singing qualities in the melody atop deliciously interesting harmonies. Gillock's Prelues correspond to those of Chopin's through their exploitation of one ot more pianistic problems, which are overshadowed by the musical content. The Romantic Style of the Preludes qualifies them as ideal preparation for more complicated masterpeices of the legendary composer's of Romanticism.

Ingredients for Effective Teaching Pieces

A piece that focuses on one or two pianistic problems while providing musical interest and interpretive insight, is what makes an excellent and effective teaching pieces. 24 Lyric Preludes in Romantic Style contain several complexities that must be solved by students. These pieces include technical and interpretive predicaments that induce intermediate students toward pianistic development.

Sources

1. Gillock, William. Lyric Preludes in Romantic Style: 24 Short Piano Pieces in All Keys; 50th Anniversary CD Edition 2008. Alfred Publishing; USA. 1958.