About the Programme
Champagne!
The 50th anniversary of the US Air Force Band naturally deserved a celebratory new composition. Symphonic Overture by the American composer James Barnes was the perfect work to mark the anniversary. Barnes wrote the work in 1922, especially for this joyous occasion. From start to finish, Symphonic Overture is one big party. It opens with a proud fanfare, with the trumpet calls announcing the festivities. As more instruments join the trumpets, the fanfare develops into a swinging accompaniment. The solo oboe plays a dance-like melody, after which the revelry really gets going. The rousing dance then subsides, giving way to a romantic slow section. It's almost impossible not to drift away dreaming to the silky-sweet melody of the middle movement. An alto sax sings for us, accompanied by soft harps – the ideal formula for this idyllic interlude. But it's not long before the party is back in full swing again. Champagne music, including the sound of a popping cork, provides a sparkling finale to an effervescent affair.
Hard rock in a new outfit
Hard rock – more specifically that of Led Zeppelin – lies at the heart of Scott McAllister's Black Dog. Led Zeppelin's song of the same name is the source of inspiration for McAllister's rhapsody for clarinet and wind instruments. A musical ‘rhapsody’ is made up of contrasting sections in terms of its style and mood, and McAllister's Black Dog is a perfect example. The solo clarinet takes on the role of lead singer in a rock band. The work begins with a long solo in which the 'lead singer' shows off his virtuosity. The composer himself described this as an ‘exploration of extremes’. With its slow, soaring line, the contrasting middle section resembles Led Zeppelin’s Stairway to Heaven. The final section is again in stark contrast to what has preceded it. Here too, though, there’s a subtle reference to Led Zeppelin, who reworked their songs at each gig during their renowned improvisations. The basis for McAllister's virtuoso finale is a constantly recurring bass pattern. With an almost improvised cadenza, the clarinet shines out above it.
A new beginning
‘Nicht so traurig, nicht so sehr’ (Be not so sad, be not so troubled). That's the title of the chorale that forms the basis for the beginning of Traveler by the American composer David Maslanka. Maslanka wrote the work in celebration of the retirement of a close friend. Reflecting on his friend's retirement, Maslanka came to the conclusion that this chorale was highly appropriate. ‘This final phase of life’, he said, ‘doesn’t need to be a regrettable event.’ The composer considers it a huge gift of life to be able – based on all one’s experience – to look to the future. That's why Traveler starts off fast, full of energy, and bursting with joie de vivre. Halfway through, the work is transformed into a more tranquil, state of meditation. In Maslanka's own words, ‘life's battle has largely been fought, and the soul now prepares for the next big step.’
A speedy soldier
Samuel Barber referred to his work Commando March as his ‘little march’, although the large-scale instrumentation of this short, energetic work contradicts that assertion. Barber wrote Commando March in 1943 while on active duty in the US military. According to the composer, the music symbolises a ‘new kind of soldier’, one who ‘doesn't march in straight lines', but 'strikes unexpectedly and disappears again as fast as he’s come.’
A tribute to the march
The American composer Ira Hearshen says he has been fascinated by the music of John Philip Sousa since he was a child. Sousa – ‘The March King’ – is probably the most famous conductor, trombonist, and composer in the history of march music. And his name lives on forever in the ‘sousaphone’, an instrument derived from the older and smaller bombardon – a kind of tuba specially for playing while marching. ‘The March King’ composed an incredible amount of music for wind band. Hearshen dreamed of transforming Sousa's popular march music into serious works suitable for large-scale performance, and therefore wrote his Symphony on Themes of John Philip Sousa. After The Thunderer is the second movement of the symphony. Hearshen transforms Sousa's march The Thunderer by slowing it down and adding dramatic orchestration. The long lines and impressive instrumentation leave a lasting impression.
Major contrasts
Kerkrade is home to the World Music Contest, which draws musicians from all over the world to the Netherlands each year for this prestigious competition. In 1992, the American composer Alfred Reed wrote his Fourth Symphony for this celebrated festival. The symphony comprises three movements. In the first movement, Elegy, Reed makes full use of all the various timbres that a wind band has to offer: from gentle lamentation to powerful drama, Elegy has it all. An ‘elegy’ (from ancient Greek) is originally a melancholy poem or song. With its many dissonances, the movement embodies this melancholic mood. The second movement, Intermezzo, is a major contrast to the first. Amidst subtle Latin American sounds, a graceful melody develops. The southern atmosphere is enhanced by the warm melodies played by the woodwinds accompanied by the harp, which sounds almost like a Spanish guitar. The third movement is again a stark contrast to the preceding one. A lively dance brings Reed’s Fourth Symphony to an energetic close, with a virtuoso Tarantella moving the whole piece inexorably on towards a brilliant ending.
A golden combination
An American composer, African percussion, and Middle Eastern melodies; in Strange Humors, John Mackey brings all these together in a captivating whole. The opening cor anglais solo takes us straight to the Middle East, with the typically Arabic melody transporting the listener to an Egyptian sunrise. The exhilarating beat of a djembe drum then joins the melodious soloists. The djembe, which is central to the work, is one of the most important West African instruments. In countries including Mali and Guinea, it is frequently used in ceremonies and rituals. The solo wind instruments, still firmly in the Middle East, join the African percussion with rhythmic melodies. With Strange Humors, John Mackey manages to unite three continents in a way that will stay with the listener forever.
