ALEXANDER SANDOR, PIANIST
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When I was young I used to imagine I'd be a composer, but after banging my head against the wall for too many years I realized I just didn't have anything worthwhile to say, so I quit after my sophomore year of college.  It was one of the smarter decisions I made in college, and one that I've never regretted.  Several years ago I began to think that it might be fun to write something just as a way of entertaining myself.  After all, I know a ton about the nuts and bolts of music!  I thought, even if I can't come up with a good melody, I could still craft a lousy melody into a workable, functioning piece of music.  I had so much fun doing this that I've continued this new hobby for several years now, and I like my compositions quite a bit.  I don't mind if nobody else does; I guess that's what so many trips around the sun does to a guy.  
Original compositions
  • Sonata (1992), piano solo (Winner - MTNA Composition Competition, Wisconsin; 1st alternate East Central Division)
  • Rhapsody (1993), piano solo
  • Viola Sonata (1994), viola and piano (Nope, this one was pretty lousy so I tossed it)
  • Weinstein Rag (1995), piano solo  [I'd like to clarify - my parents lived on Weinstein Road...]
  • Cadenza for the 3rd movement of Mozart's Piano Concerto in d minor (2011)
  • Northwoods Fantasy (2017), trio for two violins and piano
  • Norðurhólar (2017), for bassoon and piano
  • Slavic Dance (2017), for bassoon and piano
  • Joe Sandor Songs (2017), for baritone and piano
  • Impromptu - August 7th, 2018 (2018), for solo piano
  • Five Moments (2018), for violin and piano. 
  • Trio in f-sharp minor (2019), for two violins and piano
  • Trio in e minor (2020), for two violins and piano 
  • Responsorial Setting of Psalm 130 (2020), written for my Mom's funeral

                                Some projects that I'm currently working on:

  • Piano Concerto, for piano, string quartet, and a few woodwinds (in progress)
  • Elegy for violin and piano (in progress) 
  • Sonata for bassoon and piano (in progress) 

Arrangements
  • Great Scott!, a Rag by James Scott, arranged for two pianos, four hands
  • Frog Legs, a Rag by James Scott, arranged for two pianos, four hands
  • Brother, Can You Spare a Dime, arranged for piano, four hands
  • Panama, arranged for piano, four hands
  • ​Skye Boat Song, arranged for two violins and piano
  • ​Mendelssohn - Hebrides Overture, arranged for two violins and piano
  • Italian Folk Songs, arranged for piano, four hands
  • Excerpts from Verdi's Rigoletto, arranged for piano, four hands
  • Assorted Classic Rags, string orchestra with piano solo


A few notes on some of my compositions....
Weinstein Rag

During the summers of my undergrad years at UW-Superior I worked on the accompanying staff at the Interlochen Arts Academy.  It was a great gig, with tons of performance opportunities.  I accompanied many students in the concerto competitions and recitals.  My primary duty was to provide improvised music for modern dance classes.  I also had the wonderful experience of taking weekly piano lessons with Natalie Matovinovich, who was a brilliant, demanding but caring teacher.  I enjoyed my summers there, but they were long and every year I got a little homesick by August.  My last year there, I had a little free time the last week of camp and decided to write a rag, and since I was thinking about home I decided to name it after the road that my parents lived on, Weinstein Road.  

Contact:  bigdofred@hotmail.com
Copyright 2018 Alexander Sandor
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