Emotional Response To Music.

[AwayWeGo]

Music Hath Charms To Sooth The Savage Breast.

Click here for 1 example.

-- Alan Cole, McLean (Fairfax County), Virginia, USA.​

 

[Rose Pink]

Was that you, Alan? I am not sure if that beast was soothed or agitated. Hard to tell.

 

[AwayWeGo]

You Calling Me A Donkey ?

Was that you, Alan? I am not sure if that beast was soothed or agitated.

Shux, the donkey was having so much fun that he joined right in with the music.

-- Alan Cole, McLean (Fairfax County), Virginia, USA.​

 

[AwayWeGo]

The Sound Of Beethoven's Piano. Also Mozart's & Schubert's & Brahms's & Debussy's.

Click here for an on-line article about the Frederick Historic Piano Collection, Ashburnham, Massachusetts.

-- Alan Cole, McLean (Fairfax County), Virginia, USA.​

 

[rosebud5]

Yeah, I get choked up when I hear "Paradise by the Dashboard Light" by Meatloaf. Reminds me of my younger years.

 

[ScoopKona]

I know that this is Alan's thread, but I thought I'd drop my favorite song in and see what you think:

Duke Ellington's "Don't Get Around Much Anymore," performed by Joe Jackson. Great freakin' arrangement. I saw him play this song live in Vegas, in a room with better acoustics than this video.

If you're a fan of the very, very old school, enjoy:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iiDmHRBwOtQ&feature=related

 

[AwayWeGo]

Everybody's TUG-BBS Thread.

I know that this is Alan's thread, but I thought I'd drop my favorite song in and see what you think:

Duke Ellington's "Don't Get Around Much Anymore," performed by Joe Jackson. Great freakin' arrangement. I saw him play this song live in Vegas, in a room with better acoustics than this video.

If you're a fan of the very, very old school, enjoy:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iiDmHRBwOtQ&feature=related

Great tune. Great performer.

BTW, the Potomac Brass Quintet (Of Virginia) has that tune in the play book -- an arrangement by Paul Chauvin of Brasswagon Music featuring horn on lead.

And, shux, even though I got the ball rolling on this particular TUG-BBS discussion topic, I can't think of it as "mine." Participants welcome. The more the merrier.

-- Alan Cole, McLean (Fairfax County), Virginia, USA.​

 

[AwayWeGo]

Fairfax Band 40th Anniversary News Story.

Click here to read all about it.

-- Alan Cole, McLean (Fairfax County), Virginia, USA.​

 

[AwayWeGo]

Prepare To Be Blown Away.

Over the years I have heard plenty of daring, virtuoso horn playing, none more than in these performances. Makes the hair on my arms stand up.

Click here, then click on any of the sound samples. Shux, click on all of'm.

Amazing playing -- would be even on state-of-art modern horns & just all the more so on those oddball Vienna horns.

Be sure to scroll down to the embedded U-Tube video so you can get a good look at those oddball horns in action.

Irreverent extraneous thought: Do you suppose John Williams listened to Korngold's "Kings Row" before writing "Star Wars" ?


-- Alan Cole, McLean (Fairfax County), Virginia, USA.​

 

[NWL]

Click here to read all about it.

-- Alan Cole, McLean (Fairfax County), Virginia, USA.​

Very nice article! I'll be visiting my parents in Fairfax in May. Wish I could stay for the big gala on June 5th. Don't forget to post a summary!

Cheers!

 

[AwayWeGo]

Spotlight On Women In The Arts -- The City Of Fairfax Band In Concert April 17, 2010.

Date: April 17, 2010
Time: 8PM
Place: Auditorium, Fairfax High School, Fairfax VA
Tickets: $13 (seniors $7) Click here to order.
-- Free Admission for students 18 & under --

Guest Conductor: Capt. Michelle Rakers, USMC
Associate Conductor, United States Marine Band ("The President's Own")
Washington DC​

The music . . .

Morceau de concert, in F minor, Op. 94 (Camille Saint-Saëns, 1835-1921). Saint-Saëns was 1 of the great child prodigies in the history of music. He began playing piano while still an infant, & at age 5 performed the piano part of a Beethoven sonata with a professional violinist. He began writing music at age 6 & completed his 1st symphony by age 15. Saint-Saëns was a versatile & prolific composer, conductor, & pianist, as well as the author of 11 books on music, plus collections of poetry & scientific studies in astronomy & archeology. As he matured, he chose to compose in the lyric forms of the Germanic tradition, rather than taking the more modern direction of his younger French contemporaries Debussy & Ravel. According to the French art historian and dramatist, Romain Rolland, writing in 1915, Saint-Saëns “has a clarity of thought, an elegance & precision of expression, & a quality of mind that make his music noble.” The composer's greatest contribution to the musical life of his time was establishing the importance of instrumental composition in France, where opera had long been supreme. Saint-Saëns wrote a large number of short instrumental works like his engaging Morceau de concert (“Concert Piece”) for horn, composed in 1887 during the middle of his career. It begins with a grandly dramatic musical gesture & a noble melody. Following it come 2 progressively livelier variations on the melody, then 2 sections of musical ideas distantly derived from it. The 2nd brief movement features a short cadenza-like passage in which the horn displays virtuoso pyrotechnics. Saint-Saëns dedicated this highly agreeable work to the horn virtuoso Henri Chaussier, winner of the 1st prize at the Paris Conservatory in the year of the work's composition. (Note adapted from CarnegieHall.org )

--oOo--​

Concertante for Alto Saxophone & Symphonic Band (Clare Grundman, 1913-1996). Clare Grundman earned his bachelor’s degree in 1934 from Ohio State University. He taught instrumental music in Ohio & Kentucky public schools before returning to Ohio State in 1936 to earn a master’s degree while teaching orchestration & woodwinds. At the Berkshire Music Center in New Lenox, Massachusetts, he studied under Paul Hindemith, whom he credited with providing him the practical techniques for composition. During WW2, Grundman served in the U.S. Coast Guard. He took a special interest in composing for school bands & has over 70 published band compositions to his credit. His arrangements brought the works of Leonard Bernstein & Aaron Copland to the band world. Grundman also provided scores & arrangements for radio, television, movies, & Broadway musicals. In addition to the Concertante for Alto Saxophone & Symphonic Band, some of his notable works include Fantasy on American Sailing Songs, Tuba Rhapsody, Irish Rhapsody & his American Folk Rhapsody in 4 movements. Concertante makes the alto saxophone alternately principal & subordinate to the symphonic band which accompanies it. While the introduction possesses some of the rhapsodic themes typical of most of Grundman’s work, the composition is predominately a spirited interplay between the solo saxophone & the ensemble. The soloist launches packets of melody as the theme develops, while also having an opportunity to display technical talent in the cadenzas. Composed in 1973, the work is dedicated to alto saxophone soloist Dale Underwood & the U.S. Navy Band. (Note adapted from Foothill Symphonic Winds, Palo Alto, California.)

--oOo--​

No Finer Calling (Julie Giroux, 1961- ). Julie Ann Giroux was born in 1961 in Fairhaven MA, & grew up in Phoenix AZ & Monroe LA. Her formal education is from Louisiana State University & Boston University. She studied composition with John Williams, Bill Conti, & Jerry Goldsmith, among others. Although an accomplished performer on piano & horn, her 1st love is composition. She began playing the piano at age 3 & published her 1st piece at age 10. In 1985, she began composing, orchestrating, & conducting music for television & films, & now has over 100 film & television credits. She won 3 Emmy Awards. No Finer Calling, a symphony in 3 movements, celebrates the 60th Anniversary of the United States Air Force (1947-2007). Each movement is based on 1 of the Air Force Core Values that set a common standard for conduct – I. Integrity First (fanfare, processional, & march); II. Service Before Self (echoes of America, The Beautiful), III. Excellence In All We Do (musical portrait of the Air Force in peace & war, culminating in the hymn, A Military Prayer).

Lord, God, My Saving Grace. In Your Hands My Soul I Place,
Dear Lord, God Forgive My Sins, Please Let My Faith Not Falter
Lord, God. Please Grant Me Strength. Let Your Spirit Flow Through Mine.
Dear Lord, God. Let Wisdom Reign and Courage Guide My Journey.
Oh Lord, God. The King of Kings. Armor Born of Love Be Mine.
Dear Lord, God. When My Days End Let Heaven's Light Shine On Me.

--oOo--​

The Slavonic Dances, A Symphonic Suite (Antonin Dvorak, 1841-1904), transcribed by Jim Curnow (1943- ). Dvorak left home at age 16 to avoid having to become a butcher. He entered Prague Organ School & graduated in 1862. He worked playing violin & viola in the Prague National Theater orchestra, & received encouragement as a composer from Liszt & Brahms. He wrote 9 symphonies and many other works for orchestra. Inspired by Brahms's Hungarian Dances, Dvorak originally wrote his 16 Slavonic Dances for piano, 4 hands. They became such a success as piano pieces after their publication in 1878 that Dvorak did the full orchestration, & they are extremely popular in orchestral form to this day. Jim Curnow's symphonic suite of Slavonic Dances by Dvorak includes dances No. 1, No. 2, No. 8, No. 4, and No. 3.

--oOo--​

Celebration Fanfare (Joan Tower, 1938 - ). Joan Tower was born in New Rochelle NY & grew up in South America. She took courses in composition & studied piano at Bennington College, receiving her B.A. In 1961. Continuing her studies at Columbia University, she earned her M.A. in 1964 & D.M.A. in 1978. She organized the DaCapo Players in 1969 & was their pianist when they won the Naumburg Award in 1973. In 1972, she began teaching at Bard College, NY, where she is still a professor. She has been recognized with a 1976 Guggenheim fellowship, NEA fellowships in 1974, 1975, 1980, & 1984, & an Academy and Institute of Arts & Letters award in 1983. The music for the ballet Stepping Stones (1993) was commissioned by choreographer Kathryn Posin for the Milwaukee Ballet. Joan Tower's rhythmically & harmonically muscular score was developed in close collaboration with Posin’s choreography. Tower commented: “As a composer, I've always thought of myself as a closet choreographer. Texture, space, speed, direction – all the words that apply to dance, also apply to music.” Friend & fellow composer Jack Stamp suggested to Tower that the ballet's final movement, Celebration Fanfare, would transcribe well into an arrangement for wind band, not suspecting that she would give him the task. The rising tones of Celebration Fanfare are fitting for the progressive stages of a woman’s development, which is the subject of the ballet. (Note adapted from Foothill Symphonic Winds, Palo Alto, California.)

--oOo--​

Early Light (Carolyn Bremer, 1958- ). After training as an orchestral double bass player, Carolyn Bremer developed an interest in composition at age 24. She studied at the Eastman School of Music & CalArts, before receiving her Ph.D. in composition from the University of California, Santa Barbara. Bremer was Chair of Composition at the University of Oklahoma 1991-2000, where she directed the New Century Ensemble & the New Improv! Century Ensemble. She composes in a wide variety of genres, from electronic to music for chamber groups, band, & orchestra. Currently, Bremer is Professor & Area Director of Composition & Theory at California State University, Long Beach. Early Light was written for the Oklahoma City Philharmonic & received its premier performance in July 1995. The material is largely derived from The Star Spangled Banner. One need not attribute an excess of patriotic fervor in the composer as a source for this optimistic homage to our national anthem; Carolyn Bremer, a passionate baseball fan since childhood, drew upon her feelings of happy anticipation at hearing the anthem played before ball games when writing Early Light. The slapstick heard near the end evokes the crack of the bat powering a long home run. (Note adapted from Foothill Symphonic Winds, Palo Alto, California.)

--oOo--​

Midway March (John Williams, 1932- ). John Williams studied composition at UCLA & later attended Juilliard. In 1956, he started working as a session pianist in TV & film orchestras. He wrote the music and served as music director for over 70 films, including Jaws, E.T., Star Wars, Superman, Raiders of the Lost Ark, Schindler’s List, Jurassic Park, Catch Me If You Can, & Memoirs of a Geisha. John Williams won 2 Emmys, f5 Oscars, & 17 Grammy Awards, & earned several Gold & Platinum records. He has written many concert pieces & is also known for his Olympic themes & fanfares. John Williams served as conductor of the Boston Pops 1980-1995, succeeding Arthur Fiedler. Midway March is from the 1976 Hollywood film Midway, which tells the story of the famous WW2 battle in the Pacific. The jaunty lilt of the piece comes from its compound meter (12/8), & throughout the work, there is a subtle suggestion of the Scottish highlands. The energetic concert march abounds with syncopation, & is full of colorful & consistently building intensity. (Note adapted from Foothill Symphonic Winds, Palo Alto, California.)

--oOo--​

Kelly's Field (Jennifer Higdon, 1962- ). Program Note by the composer: Kelly’s Field is a tribute to conductor Mark Kelly, my former band director & conducting teacher at Bowling Green State University. It was commissioned by Midwest in honor of a gentleman who has given so much in the fields of wind ensemble performance & music education, touching thousands of lives through many years of service. Thinking of what type of music would be appropriate to honor “Chief,” I felt that a tapestry of playful gestures & bold statements would most accurately reflect his knowledge and gifts that always become evident upon his ascending a podium. Some of my most vivid musical memories come from performing as a member of 1 of his various bands at Bowling Green, including a truly inspiring performance at Midwest. To this day, when I write music, I recall the thrill of the sound of an ensemble coming together to communicate through the power of music, & I aspire to climb to that level of excitement in the pieces that I write. Only a profound musician, such as he, can create such distinct memories in the minds & hearts of so many young musicians, striving to grow & growing to play, in a field that I distinctly consider . . . Kelly’s Field. This work was commissioned by the Midwest Band Clinic in 2006 & premiered at the festival in Chicago, Illinois, in December of that year.

--Jennifer Higdon​

--xXx--​

-- Alan Cole, McLean (Fairfax County), Virginia, USA.​

 

[Passepartout]

Alan,
Your upcoming concert sounds like a real fine shindig. If we ever take the opportunity to visit the vicinity of the Nation's capitol, we can only hope the City of Fairfax Band is performing.


Paula is at rehearsal as I type. Somebody has to stay with the dog. The Spring Pops concert is coming April 30. This year is the 50th anniversary of our little Magic Valley Symphony Orchestra.

50 years ago, a small group of thespians put on Carousel, and the pit orchestra morphed into today's symphony and the little group of thespians built a fine performing arts auditorium and has put on 1-or-2 shows a year ever since.

They will perform a full Concert production of Carousel. No sets, minimal costumes, just orchestra, vocalists and chorus. The principals who performed 50 years ago are still active in the local arts scene, selected the leads for this concert, and will appear on stage.

Incidentally, Paula, my DW, is president of the symphony as well as principal horn player. For more info www.mvsymphony.org - Oh, she did the web page design, too.

Jim Ricks

 

[AwayWeGo]

March of the Women Marines.

March of the Women Marines (Louis Saverino, 1915-2003). The official march of the U.S. Marine Corps Women's Reserve. Probably the most colorful of all the Women's Reserve units was the Marine Corps Women's Reserve Band formed in November 1943 by Captain William F. Santelmann & trained by members of the Marine Band. Prominent music schools & colleges were canvassed for candidates & talented enlisted women were auditioned to find the requisite 43 musicians. Director of the band was Master Sergeant Charlotte Plummer, formerly director of the Portland, Oregon, public school system band & member of the city's municipal band. The Camp Lejeune-based band gave concerts at Parris Island, Cherry Point, & Henderson Hall, & performed on national radio programs. It played at guard mounts, inspections, graduations, dances, & occasionally at the officers club. It may be best remembered for stirring performances at the weekly Saturday morning MCWR recruit depot reviews, marching to the rhythm of its own March of the Women Marines, written especially for it by Louis Saverino of the Marine Band. Saverino was a conductor, arranger, & performer on tuba, contrabass, & bass clarinet. He graduated from the Eastman School of Music in 1938 & joined the U.S. Marine Band (“The President's Own”) in 1939. In addition to writing The March of the Women Marines, Louis Saverino arranged the current official version of Hail to the Chief. According to the website Dead Rock Stars Club Dot Com, after Saverino retired from the Marine Band in 1963, he played standup bass in a jazz ensembles.

http://www.nps.gov/archive/wapa/indepth/extcontent/usmc/pcn-190-003129-00/sec16.htm

http://www.thedeadrockstarsclub.com/2003.html

http://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louis_Saverino

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_TgX9tZvtLY

-- Alan Cole, McLean (Fairfax County), Virginia, USA.​

 

[AwayWeGo]

Free Concert Sunday Night By The Cathedral Brass, Vienna VA -- May 2, 2010.

The selections . . .

Musica Mobilis (by James A. Beckel, Jr.)
Quintet No. 3 (by Victor Ewald)
Ballade, Pastorale & Dance (by Eric Ewazen)
Ita Missa Est (by Brian Balmages)
Amazing Grace (traditional, arr. Jari Villanueva)
The 1st Circle (by Pat Metheny & Lyle Mays, arr. Bob Curnow)​

Performance venue = Vienna Presbyterian Church, 124 Park Street NE, Vienna VA 22180

7PM -- Sunday, May 2, 2010

If any TUG people attend (& I hope you will), come on up afterward & say Hello. (I'll be playing 3rd horn.)

-- Alan Cole, McLean (Fairfax County), Virginia, USA.​

 

[AwayWeGo]

Ita Missa Est.

For a recording, click here to go to the composer's web site, then scroll down.

Links for flash audio of Ita Missa Est are about halfway down the page -- 1st item under the heading Chamber Music.

Outstanding brass ensemble music, & certainly appropriate for performance in church.

-- Alan Cole, McLean (Fairfax County), Virginia, USA.​

 

[AwayWeGo]

Bravo Broadway !

Click here for information on TUG-BBS about Fairfax Band's Bravo Broadway! concert set for June 5, 2010, as a benefit fund raiser for the Alzheimer's Association.

In addition to the big Broadway numbers, the performance features 3 major concert pieces . . .

Festive Overture (Dimitri Shostakovich, 1906-1975). Shostakovich’s musical career was a roller-coaster with ups of universal acclaim & downs of official disgrace from Soviet authorities who tried to control his work out of concern for its political content rather than its musical substance. External pressures like that made it extremely difficult for Shostakovich to express himself musically in his own way, which tended to be inward-looking & dark. There is nothing gloomy about Festive Overture, however; it’s one of his most straight-ahead upbeat pieces. It was written in 1954, shortly after the death of Stalin, the main source of the composer's artistic repression, & in the same year that Shostakovich was awarded an international peace prize. Festive Overture is crafted very conventionally for a very large orchestra, & is highly popular in the "pops" repertoire. Shostakovich arranged Festive Overture for the Russian Military Band in 1958. The piece is simply 6 minutes of sheer exuberance & fun, showcasing the composer’s talent for combining a sustained melodic line with pulsating rhythmic drive, truly a festive overture. The edition on tonight’s program was arranged for American band by Donald Hunsberger.

-- oOo --​

Variations on a Shaker Melody, Aaron Copland (1900-1990). Aaron Copland set America's soul to music. After studying with Rubin Goldmark & then, in 1921, with Nadia Boulanger in Paris, he returned to the USA in 1924 seeking a style “that could speak of universal things in a vernacular of American speech rhythms.” He seemed to know what to remove from the music of the European tradition, simplifying the chords & opening the melodic language, in order to speak in a fresh idiom. The strains of Copland's ballet & theater scores -- Appalachian Spring, Billy The Kid, & Rodeo -- & his orchestral & recital repertory -- El Salon Mexico, Lincoln Portrait, Fanfare For The Common Man, & Quiet City -- open visions of the beauty & grandeur of the composer's homeland & of its heroes & workers. Aaron Copland was a great teacher, both to classes of composers at the Tanglewood Festival & to a broad spectrum of lay audiences. In his later years, after he became known as the “dean of American music,” he was often called upon to conduct & narrate his own works. Copland's set of 5 variations on the Shaker song ‘Tis the Gift to Be Simple was derived from the music Copland wrote for his ballet Appalachian Spring, produced in 1944 in collaboration with Martha Graham. The ballet features a bride & her young farmer husband at a springtime pioneer celebration around a newly built farmhouse. Elegantly & simply, the Shaker melody evokes a sense of the pioneer American spirit, full of youth, optimism, & hope. (Note adapted from the Foothill Symphonic Winds, Palo Alto, California, windband.org )

-- oOo --​

The Shining City (Mark Camphouse, 1954- ). Mark Camphouse got his formal musical training at Northwestern University & has taught at universities in Illinois, Minnesota, Oklahoma, & Virginia. He started young at composition; his 1st Symphony premiered when he was just 17. Several of his compositions have won band association awards. Camphouse has served as guest conductor, lecturer, & clinician in North America & Europe. He is Professor of Conducting & Composition in the Music Department of George Mason University's College of Visual & Performing Arts. On commission from the City Of Fairfax Band Association, Mark Camphouse wrote Foundation (published 2007) in memory of Ray Abell, longtime member & president of the City Of Fairfax Band. The Shining City interprets Ronald Reagan’s vision of America through music & narrated selections from speeches & letters by the 40th U.S. president. The piece has earned a place on the USS Ronald Reagan & in the Reagan Presidential Library, Simi Valley, California. Nancy Reagan wrote a personal letter to Camphouse thanking him for the tribute to her husband. The Reagans listened to the composition together. The narration concludes with words from President Reagan's farewell letter to the American public, dated November 5, 1994:

My fellow Americans, I have recently been told that I am one of the millions of Americans who will be afflicted with Alzheimer's disease.
Upon learning this news, Nancy and I had to decide whether as private citizens we would keep this a private matter or whether we would make this news known in a public way.
We feel it is important to share it with you. In opening our hearts, we hope this might promote greater awareness of this condition.
Unfortunately, as Alzheimer's disease progresses, the family often bears a heavy burden. I only wish there was some way I could spare Nancy from this painful experience.
When the Lord calls me home, whenever that day may be, I will leave with the greatest love for this country of ours and eternal optimism for its future.
I now begin the journey that will lead me into the sunset of my life. I know that for America there will always be a bright dawn ahead...(bringing us ever closer to the shining city upon a hill).
Thank you, my friends. May God always bless you.​

-- xXx --​

-- Alan Cole, McLean (Fairfax County), Virginia, USA.​

 

[AwayWeGo]

Less To This Than Meets The Eye, I Believe. (Correlation Does Not Mean Causality.)

A Time magazine article reports that French horn playing is the No. 1 highest suicide-prone job in the U.S. Army.

Click here to see for yourself.

I never once felt like ending it all during the nearly 3 years I was a U.S. Army French horn player.

It is possible that conditions have worsened since then, but somehow I doubt it.

So it goes.

-- Alan Cole, McLean (Fairfax County), Virginia, USA.​

 

[Rose Pink]

That seems really odd about the suicide rate.

Okay, just read the short article. Seems results are skewed due to lower numbers of people in certain jobs.

 

[AwayWeGo]

Fright Night -- October 16, 2010.

The City Of Fairfax Band opens its 41st concert season with a night of "spirited" entertainment including Bach’s Toccata & Fugue in d minor, Mussorgsky’s Night on Bald Mountain, and "Gollum" from Johan de Meij’s Lord of the Rings Symphony. Also, Symphonic Suite From Harry Potter & The Prisoner of Azkaban, Ghost Train, Deserted Ballroom, and The Nightmare Before Christmas. Witches and goblins young & old are invited to dress up for the show in their most “boo-tiful” Halloween costumes.

Date & Time: Saturday, October 16, 2010, 8 pm

Place: Fairfax High School
3501 Rebel Run
Fairfax, VA 22030

Click here to order tickets.​

Notes on the music . . .

A Night on Bald Mountain, based on an ancient Russian legend, was composed in 1860 for a play titled The Witch. Bald Mountain, near Kiev, is the legendary gathering place of witches from all over Russia. One day each year, they come to celebrate a Black Mass. They dance insanely to gain Satan's favor. At the height of their frenzy, a church bell tolls the coming of the dawn and breaks the spell. A songbird welcomes the daybreak. From the valley shadowed by Bald Mountain, a song greets the sunrise. Good triumphs over evil. The sacred trumps the profane. This music, the first and only tone poem by Modeste Moussorgsky (1839-1881), entered the mass media in 1940 when it was featured in Walt Disney's animated feature Fantasia.

-- oOo --​

Gollum, from Symphony No. 1, The Lord of the Rings (Johan de Meij, 1953 - ). Well before the films based on J.R.R. Toklien’s fantasy-trilogy The Lord of the Rings reached the big screen, the Dutch composer Johan de Meij retold the story musically in his Symphony No. 1. His creation won the Sudler International Wind Band Composition competition in 1989 on its way to becoming one of the world’s most popular works for winds & percussion. The symphony's 3rd movement is Gollum’s malicious yet pitiful lament over the theft of his cherished magic Ring, as the creature searches for his lost treasure.

-- oOo --​

In 1708, the 23-year-old Johann Sebastian Bach began a 7-year term as court organist in Weimar. It was the start of 1 of his most productive periods. Unlike the stiff, formal image suggested by painted portraits from Bach’s maturity, the young Bach was a fiery musician. He created wildly energetic music that showed off his formidable performing talent on the organ keys & pedals. From that period came Bach’s Toccata & Fugue In D Minor, a piece full of barely restrained passion & power. (Remember, the organ is a wind instrument.) Closer to our time, the piece found a home in late-night horror movies. Its trademark opening has inspired loads of sound-alikes. Few can hear it without thinking of Frankenstein and Dracula, at least for a moment.

-- oOo --​

Ghost Train (Eric Whitacre, 1970 - ). Eric Whitacre studied composition & choral conducting at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. His Master's degree in composition is from Juilliard. He won the ASCAP Harold Arlen Award & the Richard Rodgers award, & received 10 Ovation Award nominations. He has received composition awards from the Barlow International Composition Competition, the American Choral Directors Association, & the American Composers Forum. In 2001, Eric Whitacre became the youngest recipient ever awarded the Raymond C. Brock commission by the American Choral Directors Association. Ghost Train is the composer’s musical depiction of an imaginary supernatural machine that roars along the tracks at night through forgotten towns & empty canyons. The opening flute cadenza evokes the call of a distant train whistle before the train comes to life slowly & with effort, in a halting rhythm. The drums pick up the tempo as the great train rolls through the countryside. Written in 1993-94 as a composition project at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, the work was dedicated to the UNLV Wind Symphony & premiered by that ensemble at the 1994 College Band Directors National Association regional convention in Reno.

-- oOo --​

The Deserted Ballroom (Morton Gould, 1913-1996). Summer is gone. The luxury resort is locked up tight for the season. Outside, the chilly winds of autumn swirl, a foretaste of winter. The ballroom is shuttered & deserted, dark now as a tomb. But is it quiet as a tomb? Well, not just exactly. When nobody is around to see, the spooks & the spirits throw their own ghostly Halloween ball. What does it sound like when dancing goblins & gremlins kick up their heels? Morton Gould’s Deserted Ballroom gives our imagination a pretty good idea.

-- oOo --​

Selections From The Nightmare Before Christmas (Danny Elfman, 1953 - ). Danny Elfman is best known for composing music for TV & movies, & for leading the rock band Oingo Boingo as singer/songwriter from 1976 until the band broke up in 1995. He is a frequent collaborator with long-time friend Tim Burton & has scored all but 2 of Burton's films. Danny Elfman was nominated for 4 Academy Awards & won a Grammy Award (for Tim Burton's Batman). Elfman won an Emmy for the Desperate Housewives TV theme. Elfman is famous for creating The Simpsons main title theme, & for his 1993 role as Jack Skellington's singing voice in The Nightmare Before Christmas. In 1985, Tim Burton & Paul Reubens invited Elfman to write the score for their 1st feature film, Pee-Wee's Big Adventure. Elfman was apprehensive at 1st because of his lack of formal music training, but with orchestration assistance from Oingo Boingo guitarist & arranger Steve Bartek, he achieved his goal of emulating the mood of such composers as Nino Rota & Bernard Herrmann. Elfman described the 1st time he heard his music played by a full orchestra as 1 of the most thrilling experiences of his life. Selections from The Nightmare Before Christmas were arranged for concert band by Michael Brown. (Program note adapted from wikipedia.org )

-- oOo --​

Symphonic Suite From Harry Potter & The Prisoner Of Azkaban (John Williams, 1932 - ). The Academy Award nominated score to the film Harry Potter & The Prisoner Of Azkaban was composed & conducted by John Williams & released on CD on 25 May 2004. As with the Williams scores for the earlier Harry Potter movies, the music for the 3rd film in the series features distinct medieval influences in the instrumentation. One of the new themes, "Double Trouble," was written during production so that a children's choir could perform it in Hogwarts's Great Hall in an early scene. There are brief quotes of themes from the earlier Harry Potter films, although most of the material in this Prisoner of Askaban score is new, including statements of "Double Trouble" and & several other entirely new themes. The symphonic suite for concert band was arranged by Victor Lopez. (Program note adapted from wikipedia.org )

-- xXx --​

-- Alan Cole, McLean (Fairfax County), Virginia, USA.​

 

[ricoba]

Here's a little ditty sung by Johnny Cash (written by Jack Clement) that I think is kind of cute, especially since I now attend a Methodist Church that had a touring folk group during the 1960's and early 70's.

 

[AwayWeGo]

Free Concert Next Sunday Night By The Legacy Brass, Springfield VA -- Dec. 5, 2010.

-- Alan Cole, McLean (Fairfax County), Virginia, USA.​

 

[AwayWeGo]

A Jazzier Christmas.

Free Concert Next Sunday Night By The Legacy Brass, Springfield VA -- Dec. 5, 2010.

Joy To The World
Jingle Bells
Away In A Manger
Hark! The Herald Angels Sing
Sheep May Safely Graze
The Christmas Song
O Christmas Tree

--- INTERMISSION ---

Feliz Navidad
O Holy Night
Santa Claus Is Coming To Town
I'll Be Home For Christmas
It Came Upon A Midnight Clear
Ceremonial For Christmas Brass​

All the tunes are familiar -- traditional & popular favorites -- but some of the arrangements are strictly non-traditional (e.g., Cajun zydeco version of Jingle Bells, bossa nova version of O Holy Night, jazz version of Hark! The Herald Angels Sing, etc.). That's why the theme of the performance is A Jazzier Christmas.

7PM -- December 5, 2010
St. John's United Methodist Church
5312 Backlick Road
Springfield VA 22151​

If you attend the recital, be sure to come up after the show & say Hi.

-- Alan Cole, McLean (Fairfax County), Virginia, USA.​

 

[SueDonJ]

Sounds great, Alan. Wasn't it last year that you all had snow out the wazoo that caused cancellations of your holiday program? If so, better luck this year.

 

[AwayWeGo]

Snow Up To The Window Sills. Ice Up To The Hubcaps. (Last Year.)

Wasn't it last year that you all had snow out the wazoo that caused cancellations of your holiday program? If so, better luck this year.

Heavy snow wiped out last year's December concerts by both the City Of Fairfax Band & the Cathedral Brass (of Vienna VA).

Fairfax Band is putting on this year the program that got snowed out last year -- all the same tunes & everything.

The Cathedral Brass will be doing all different tunes from last year's Glorious Sounds Of Christmas event that was canceled because of heavy snow.

-- Alan Cole, McLean (Fairfax County), Virginia, USA.​

 

[AwayWeGo]

Uncle Alan On Fairfax Band Video.

Click here for the Fairfax Band web site, where you can download a 15-minute WMV-format video about the history of the City Of Fairfax Band since 1969.

Several on-screen band personalities are featured as commentators, including Tom Hill (Director Emeritus), Bob Pouliot (Music Director), Rick Parrell (Associate Conductor), Daria Parrell (Eb clarinetist), Jack Mauro (clarinetist & former Associate Conductor), & Uncle Alan (horn player).

The producers did a nice job. The video is shown on endless loop at the City Of Fairfax Museum & Visitor Center -- or you can download the WMV file & watch it in the privacy of your home on your own electric computer.

-- Alan Cole, McLean (Fairfax County), Virginia, USA.​