Bertil van Boer reconstructed the orchestrations for this album, using surviving parts and documentary evidence to fill in missing instruments and passages.
Compositional Technique
The Medley overture, a popular genre in 18th-century America, was a collection of popular tunes linked with newly-composed transitions, often in a single extensive movement.
Composition History
The 'Federal Overture' genre became an expression of political or nationalist views in the young American Republic, reflecting the debate between Federalists and Republicans around 1794.
Historical Context
Despite European musical dominance, 18th-century America had a vibrant musical life with public concerts, theatre, and professional music-making in cities like New York, Boston, Philadelphia, and Charleston.
Performer Biography
Patrick Gallois, the conductor of Sinfonia Finlandia Jyväskylä, studied flute with Jean-Pierre Rampal and was principal flute in the Orchestre National de France under Lorin Maazel.
Composition History
Only seven of these 18th-century American overtures survive today: three by Alexander Reinagle, three by James Hewitt, and one by Benjamin Carr.
Recording & Production
Many of the works on this album, including Benjamin Carr's Federal Overture and James Hewitt's New Federal Overture, existed only as piano transcriptions and required reconstruction for full orchestra.
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