Hoiby Lee. Capriccio on five notes op. 23 for piano

London: Boosey & Hawkes, 1962. — 10 p.Lee Henry Hoiby was an American composer and classical pianist. Best known as a composer of operas and songs, he was a disciple of composer Gian Carlo Menotti. Like Menotti, his works championed lyricism at a time when such compositions were deemed old fashioned.
This piece is completely uncharacteristic of Hoiby's work, which was otherwise entirely tonal. He must have been in a terrible mood when he wrote it. It was commissioned by the first Van Cliburn competition, which requested a 'piece of maximum difficulty.' I think he took that to mean maximum ugliness. Although a pianist himself, he never performed it.