Work samples

  • Blues for Harp, Oboe, and Violoncello

    Blues For Harp, Oboe, and Violoncello (1986) was my first effort to create a blues-inspired work that could distill and express blues essence via classical instrumentation and contemporary compositional technique.  The mission to put blues on the serious concert music stage was the primary force leading me to composition;  I was hoping that this "experiment" would be successful. 

    The performance presented here (and on my CD) is the result of three extraordinary talents.

    Available for Purchase

About Larry

Baltimore City - Station North A&E District

Grammy-nominee Larry Hoffman is an award-winning composer whose works have been performed throughout the United States and in Europe. While earning his Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in theory and composition from the Peabody Conservatory, he received grants from the Fromm Music Foundation at Harvard and the American Music Center.  Upon graduation, Larry was the recipient of Peabody’s Gustav Klemm Awardmore

STRING QUARTETS

String quartets are to me the most intimate of ensembles. Homogenous, each instrument speaks exactly the same language, but yet each   unique in tone color and range. The possibilities are endless, as evidenced in the great works of  Mozart, Haydn, Beethoven, and modern masters such as Bartok and Carter.  
"In a letter to the composer Zelter​ in 1829, Goethe​ described the string quartet as a conversation between four reasonable, intelligent people, and no one fostered that conversation with as much wit and elegance as Haydn."

  • String Quartet No.10 : Blue Swoon

    This is my latest quartet (2023). Although many of my works are blues-oriented, this one was done especially in honor of my very first string quartet, which was one of the very first pieces that affirmed my goals.

    This one, however, is my favorite.

  • String Quartet No.9: Quolibet

    I came to the creation of this work from my studies of music in the 15th and 16th centuries. Quodlibets were enjoyable works featuring the combination of sometimes disparate elements. 

    Quodlibet, (Latin: “what you will”) musical composition in which several well-known melodies are combined, either simultaneously or, less frequently, sequentially, for humorous effect. Quodlibet can also refer to an amalgamation of different song texts in a vocal composition.

      

  • String Quartet No 1. The Blues Larry Hoffman

    This is the work that marked my return to composition after a long absence during which I became a blues journalist and record producer. It was a wonderful leap into a music that had meant so much to me earlier in my life and career. I traveled the country, hearing and meeting bluesmen and women, writing about them, and sometimes discovering them, helping them jump-start a career.

    Along the way I garnered a Grammy nomination, and awards for producing and writing about the blues internationally.

  • String Quartet No. 2

    In my second string quartet I presented the blues in four keys-- first separately, then simultaneously--coming together in a four-voice fugue in which each instrument presented a blues sequence in its own key. It is rigorously controlled, presenting dissonant collisions, each resolving in a unique way. In the center there is a development section that presents some wonderful opportunities.

    This recorded performance was executed perfectly and most expressively by the Dover Quartet, early in their career when they were the first resident string quartet at the prestigious Curtis Institute of Music. The extraordinary Dover Quartet has deservedly won the most impressive of awards, and been hailed by perhaps every major publication worldwide.

    Dover not only recorded the work but premiered it as well. That afternoon performance remains one of my most touching moments as a composer.

  • String Quartet No 3: Mo' Better Blues

    "String Quartet No.3: Mo'Better Blues" opens with a long set of bluesy variations, each unfolding in an improvisatory manner. Towards the center-end there is an atonal episode that is strong and declamatory , lending an air of strength and vigor to the affair. The closing unites both temperments.

    My friend, Milena, iconic violist of the Dover Quartet remarked how much she liked the piece.

  • Larry Hoffman : String Quartet No 4 : I. Dance II. Chill III. Get Funky

    In my fourth quartet I was interested in creating a string quartet that explored radically different moods. -- more free-form and exuberant than other of my works. The first movement is wild and exuberant - free and confident. The second movement, one of aching and pleading. -- bordering on the melancholy, and perhaps a reconsideration of the abandonment of movement I. In movement III a sweet consensus is reached: get funky and enjoy. And finally, a prayer.

  • String Quartet No. 5 / Through A Glass Darkly

    2020 was a very challenging year for most of us. In the midst of the pandemic, the unrest leading to unspeakable violence, economic peril and joblessness, there was also the bright light of hope that showed through the cracks in the darkness. This, my latest work, is the result of that dichotomy.

  • Freight Train Variations : String Quartet No. 6

    When I was fifteen, my folk trio had the honor of opening for iconic folksinger/ songwriter/ guitarist Elizabeth Cotten.

    I learned to fingerpick on guitar by learning this famous song from her first Lp record. This was one of the first songs I sang and played on the guitar using her famous "Cotten pick" finger technique. As the years went by, and I began composing, I badly wanted to create an homage to her and that famous song that had meant so much to me--- a version that might take its place in the classical repertory. This was the inspiration for this string quartet. I hope that it communicates the beautiful simplicity and universality of the song written by the late Ms. Cotten-- it is without question a true American masterpiece. Currently it is expecting a premiere in Ms. Cotten's home state of North Carolina.

  • String Quartet No. 7 : SIMPLY BLUETIFUL

    In this quartet I tried to unite blues ambience with obvious romanticism--a  touch akin to a jazz ballad, or a sweeping nocturne. I extended harmonies in a traditional way, but one never found in blues. I particularly like this work in that I linked the ambience that might be found in ''World War II movies" with contemporary blues: at least that was the idea!

  • Chimera Rag / String Quartet No.8

    I have always loved ragtime. As a student in the conservatory I was awarded a large version of the Scott Joplin stamp-- an event presided over by the Postmaster General, in celebration of the work I was doing with black music and young black musicians. I know how Mr. Joplin felt when his musical gems were considered merely confections, despite the composer's creation of operas, and his studies at a conservatory. I felt the greatness of those works and of the composer's spirit. I composed this in veneration of Mr. Joplin and his many works.

    Ann Charters, celebrated ragtime pianist and ragtime expert-- the wife of icon Sam Charters wrote :

    “I especially enjoyed CHIMERA RAG because while it had the charming link in structure to classic ragtime, your melodies & arrangement made it an original work of your own. Don’t stop composing, Larry. You possess a unique talent & your listeners look forward to hearing more!”

ORCHESTRAL WORKS

These works are scored for full orchestra.   Each is my unique expression of an ideal.  To me, the orchestra is a sacred trust and should be lent the most important of the composer's visions.

  • New Blues For Orchestra

    One of my goals was (and is) to present the blues in a "classical" manner.  What is more classical than an orchestra!  I wanted to portray an excited, tight blues band in orchestral terms. Barry Dolins, retired CEO and founder of the Chicago Blues Festival, remarked that "it demonstrates the best in shuffle over the last thirty years!"

  • American Overture

    I was born to music, my brother tells me. At age 4 I began singing and noodling at the piano. I got a ukulele and wrote my first songs at age10. From then on it has been a veritable parade of instruments and styles that has been always the tenor of my life.

    American music is so powerful and hard, yet can be so sweet and loving. It can make you dance, sleep, drink, any number of things. But it is a music in and to itself. Other countries have borrowed, and Americana has done its share of borrowing as well.

    In this work I tried to create a celebration ... a montage.... of  various styles of Americana. The piece may not be perfect but I do believe it proudly sings and hails much of the music of America, which itself is perfect only in its own right!

     

  • MSD STRONG: IN MEMORY OF SEVENTEEN SLAIN

    1,459 views May 10, 2018

    This is my orchestral tribute to The Parkland Five -- in remembrance of the horrendous Parkland massacre.

    It is intended to be a dedication to the survivors' bravery and commitment -- as we remember and mourn the seventeen slain students at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, Parkland, Florida; February 14, 2018. This is a “programmatic work” intended to recreate my musical vision of the event, separated into six movements: I. Prologue and Routine / II. The Classroom / III. Heinous Monster / IV. Dead Silence / V. Endless Grief / VI. MSD!: March For Our Lives. What is not heard in this replication is the chant that the orchestra players will shout in the last movement : “MSD!…. MSD STRONG!, a rallying call of the school’s initials shouted to and from the groups of students who were marching.

  • In Memoriam: Uvalde, Texas

    America is rocked by its surplus of guns, and the scarcity of laws to prevent catastrophes such as this.   ...... .......the visions and cries of grieving parents and friends are as viciously sad as they are "other worldly"......and yet... it is our world, our country... sadly.....

    This work is a memorialization of the hideous child massacre in Uvalde, Texas; 2022— of lives cut tragically short. This, a song of despair, anger, and lingering sadness at such young lives taken.... as well as a wish for comfort to all survivors, parents, friends, siblings, uncles and aunts, teachers, and all others who will forever miss the departed —- the senselessly slaughtered — as well as to all the many others worldwide— who find it too terrible to forget. Nineteen children and two educators were killed at Robb Elementary School on May 24 2022, in the deadliest school shooting in Texas history.

  • Symphony No.1: A Prayer for Our World

     Symphony No.1 is my longest work; nearly 40 minutes in duration.

    The Coda is lengthy but represents everything I had been feeling and thinking for months.

    After composing I wrote the following:

    It has been a shocking stretch of time for us in America, and for our planet. Not to feel this is not to have been paying attention. The feeling of being on a treacherous precipice, and the hope that some force of good would await to deliver us from what seemed to be an inescapable conclusion is what made me choose the orchestra for expression.

    I was pleasantly surprised to find that this was my most - listened-to work of 2023! 

SOLOS, DUOS,& TRIOS, AND MORE

Every ensemble offers the composer new challenges and new freedoms.  Sometimes I am not sure which instruments I will use until I've begun working on a piece... It is what I hear.....

  • Colors for Trumpet and Percussion

    I was sitting outdoors at a coffee house in my Mt Vernon neighborhood , working on  the score of a new work for woodwinds. A fellow came by and asked about the piece. Turns out, he was Andrew Balio, the principal trumpet in the Baltimore Symphony. He wanted to see more of my music, and came by my apartment to do just that. He commissioned me to compose a work for him and his friend David DePeters, who was at the time a percussionist with the New York Philharmonic. We came to an agreement, and I began working on the piece. The two comments I remember were Andy saying it was the hardest piece he ever played, and David sharing that people were coming into his practice room wanting to know the piece he was working on! ( I immediately knew what section it was!) I offered to change parts of the work for either of them, but  they insisted that it be played exactly how I conceived it. 

    Available for Purchase
  • Trialogue for Clarinet, Marimba, and Violoncello

    The story behind this work is pure music :  I heard the combination of Clarinet, Marimba, and Cello in my "mind's ear," and began composing.

  • Antics for Oboe and Clarinet

    A few years ago, I was on my way to a music festival, and --as always-- I had brought my special pencils and blank manuscript paper (of various sizes)...to jot down some ideas. On the plane, I began sketching some ideas, and the concept of a "vigorous debate" came to my mind. On the plane -ride back home I had already finished the duet I was to name Antics for Oboe and Clarinet.  It was great fun composing this piece, and on the return flight I was thrilled to see a young lady onboard carrying a clarinet case! Turns out, she was a student at Eastman, and before too long she was looking through the  riddled score.  She said it was too difficult for her, which was disappointing; but I was not giving up.

  • Blues Suite For Violoncello Solo

    The cellist, Kristin Ostling is a longtime member of the Baltimore Symphony. I was happy to have her premiere and record this work.  Unlike many classical performing artists, she "gets" the blues, and is happy to play it! 

    She premiered this work at  An Die Musik , a venue in Baltimore in walking distance from my apartment  that features classical and jazz performances. Kristin invited me to choose the program, which was gracious of her and very exciting, because we enlisted the talents of a pianist that Kristin performed with to play one of my favorites:  Brahms' E minor Sonata for Violoncello and Piano. I also chose a Bach  unaccompanied cello sonata. Hearing my favorite pieces along with a very successful premiere of my work made a night I won't forget!

    Available for Purchase
  • Blue Mirror for Solo Guitar

    Being a self-taught guitarist from age 15 to age 26, it is to this day "my instrument."  I play folk, blues, and some jazz on it, and was a professional folk singer throughout the 1960's. As I became overcome by a desire to compose classical music, I wondered if I could join disparate techniques such as blues and atonal music. That was the catalyst to this work.

  • Pages of Anna

    This work was dedicated to a girl named Anna...architecht of a promising relationships that was never to be...a budding love gone awry. You will hear her name throughout.......

    It is scored for flute, oboe, clarinet, and harp-- all successfully sequenced by award-winner Goeff Knorr.

     

    Available for Purchase

Quartets, Quintets, Sextets, Septets, & Nonets

The timbral possibilities explode when one judiciously adds yet another--and then still another.... instrument to a developing work. The possibilities become endless.

  • Clarinet Quintet -Clarinet and String Quartet

    I was working on my tenth string quartet when I kept hearing a high-pitched wind instrument in my mind's ear.  After a while, I decided to re-conceive the work with clarinet added, and that was the answer. I got a great response to this work.

  • Emergence: Nonet No.1

    This was my first nonet.... a great experience to have a near-orchestral blend while being able to exploit the solos of the various instruments.

  • Fluid : Music for Flute, Trumpet, Piano, Percussion

    One of my works that just seemed to flow..... like water....

  • Emergence : Nonet No. 2 ; Music for Flute, Oboe, Clarinet,Bassoon, Horn in F, Violin, Viola, Cello, and Contrabass

    I composed my second nonet simply  because I enjoyed creating my first ! I wanted to revisit that ensemble with more of my thoughts. It is a wonderful group of instruments; one that offers tints and hues not found anywhere else .

  • Whistling in the Dark: Sextet forWinds and Strings

    One of my works that I can say just composed itself.......

  • From The Shadows : Music for Clarinet, Trumpet, Piano, Flute, and Percussion

    I conceived this piece to present various thematic ideas "from the darkness."

    It is one of the few works in which I use piano.

  • Stream : Quartet for Flute, Oboe,Clarinet, and Cello

    I grew up in a suburb of Baltimore, a neighborhood where new houses were being built, and there were few kids to play with.  Directly across from our house was a stream, which proved an endless fascination for me.  I can still close my eyes and see the water riding above and between the rocks of all sizes.. teasing the banks as it rose and fell.  It was a perfect setting for me and a friend to sit for hours and play music on our guitars, autoharps, and banjos.  And so, many years later, I decided to honor my memory with my music.

  • Old Time Music: Woodwind Quintet No.3

    When I was a young teenager, I was besotted by folk music, always striving to get to the most authentic performances, and then duplicate the music on my guitar, banjo, autoharp, harmonica, and any other instrument at hand that could accompany my vocals. The genre of music that was most exciting to me was "Old Time" or "Old Timey" music ( the genre that predated bluegrass). I loved the New Lost City Ramblers and through them the Skillet Lickers and other such groups that played and recorded music in the 1920's and 30's. The harmonies were infectious and the instrumentation was always a driving force. All this was before I "found" blues and jazz, and way before I had ever heard ANY classical music!  Much later in life I felt a  need to "consecrate" this music in the new techniques that I had learned in my classical training.  To my knowledge this had never been done before or after.  It is one of the things that I am glad I did!

  • Of Seabirds, Palms, and Waves:Music for Piccolo, Flute,Violin,Viola, and Percussion

    This piece is a dedication to South Padre Island, a barrier island along the Texas Gulf coast.  It is a very special place-- if you can find the times when it is less visited by tourists.  During those times one can be totally alone on the dunes, with the Laguna Madre Bay on one side  and the Gulf of Mexico on the other.  I was regulating my days so as to be with the sunrise on one side, and the sunset on the other.  It is known as "a tropical oasis located off the southern tip of Texas."

  • Continuum : Quintet for Piano and Winds