The bulk of the musical material found in this piece comes from sketches for my Triple Concerto. These sketches were to be part of the proposed final movement for the concerto, a fast-paced scherzo to bring the piece to a wild close. However, for various reasons, this ending did not make it to the final draft. Not one to waste, I decided to mount this music on its own for orchestra.
The title comes from an amalgamation of the words “frenetic” and “energy” which were the two qualities I desired for the ending of the concerto. The tempo for this short concert opener is brisk and the pacing of melodic ideas is often a bit frantic as befitting the title.
It begins with a thunderous introduction by the percussion who establish the infectious 6/8 pulse. After an orchestral tutti, the winds introduce a chromatic melody that is quickly tossed back and forth from pairings of instruments. This quirky little melody often complements an ostentatious tune frequently performed by the brass. The third melody, introduced by a solo flute, is perhaps the most substantial tune of the piece and is strongly characterized by the 6/8 lilt of the piece.
A harmonically restless string passage leads into a return of the opening material and the piece concludes with a full force orchestral tutti along with the pounding drums of the opening.
John Estacio