Loading…
- White, Donald H.
Duration: 10 minutes
Description: Donald H. White (1921–2016) composed Divertissement No. 2 for String Orchestra in 1968, during the most productive period of his career as an American composer, educator, and longtime professor of composition at DePauw University. A student of Howard Hanson and Bernard Rogers at the Eastman School of Music, White combined the structural clarity of the American neoclassical tradition with a modern harmonic language that remained accessible, lyrical, and rhythmically vibrant. In keeping with the historical meaning of the term divertissement, the work is conceived as an entertaining concert piece rather than a large-scale symphonic statement, balancing energetic rhythmic drive, expressive melodic writing, and transparent textures that allow the string orchestra to display both virtuosity and warmth of tone. Today, Divertissement No. 2 for String Orchestra is appreciated by professional and educational string ensembles as a finely crafted example of twentieth-century American music, admired for its effective writing for strings, engaging musical character, and its reflection of White’s lifelong commitment to combining traditional craftsmanship with contemporary expression. Movements: 1. Prelude; 2. Nocturne; 3. Invention.