Date of Award

Spring 5-2009

Degree Type


Degree Name

Doctor of Musical Arts (DMA)



Committee Chair

Lawrence Gwozdz

Committee Chair Department



The music of Roman Palester (1907-1989) is little known outside his native Poland. Before World War II, he experienced a great deal of musical success, with many of his compositions being performed at prestigious music festivals throughout Europe. Palester completed his one solo work for the saxophone, the Concertino pour Saxophone Alto et Orchestre a Cordes, in 1938, but its scheduled premiere in 1939 never took place due to political tensions on the eve of World War II.

In 1978, Palester revised the work for saxophonist David Pituch, who premiered and recorded this version. A comparison of the original and revised versions has never been attempted until now. This dissertation shall examine and discuss the scope of the revisions and how they affected the 1938 version of the work. It will become clear from this dissertation that i • the basic musical elements of melody, harmony, rhythm, and form are used very differently in the 1978 Version than in its predecessor, as Palester's neoclassic compositional style evolved into a highly chromatic musical language towards the end of his life.

I shall also provide a brief biographical sketch of Palester and discuss the history and background of the work's origins. Scores of both versions and the translations of correspondence between Palester and the original work's dedicatee, Sigurd Rascher, will appear as appendixes.