Hello Dr. Kalve,

The Toccata, the Palindrome and the choral works provide quite a musical feast, whose dishes I find interesting to considerably satisfying, with the Toccata being the main course. This strikes me as particularly dramatic and powerful. I'm not sure why, but the echos of themes that seem familiar, as they appear in the bass may have something to do with it. I can't place them, but at about 2m 25s I have the feeling that I am hearing a bit of a hymn. At any rate, I wouldn't have listened to the piece several times through if it hadn't been effective. I'd like to hear it with the annotations realized in performance, though the power of the work is evident as is.

I took the liberty of editing the palindrome according to the dynamic instructions. The changes made quite a difference in the impression of the piece--transformed it, I might say, from an interesting idea into a satisfying, if brief, musical experience. I find myself wondering if you might have been reading or looking at tapes of the Bernstein lectures of 40-50 years ago where he drew parallels between music and grammar.

Thanks for sharing the pieces.

all best,
mgj