Reminiscence
Dec 15th, 2024
Hounds of Spring
This exciting, rhythmic overture for band is in the fast-slow-fast format of the early 18th-century Italian opera overtures. The composer’s purpose was to capture the twin elements (exuberant, youthful gaiety and the sweetness of tender love) found in the following excerpt from Atlanta in Calydon, written in 1865 by the English poet Algernon Charles Swinburne (1837-1909).
When the hounds of spring are on winter’s traces, The mother of months in meadow or plain
Fills the shadows and windy places
With lisp of leaves and ripple of rain; Where shall we find her, how shall we sing to her, Fold our hands round her knees and cling?
O that man’s heart were as fire and could spring to her, Fire, or the strength of the streams that spring!
And soft as lips that laugh and hide The laughing leaves of the trees divide,
And screen from seeing and leave in sight The god pursuing, the maiden hin.
I invite the audience to think back to the beginning of their love stories. Feel the lightness, joy, excitement, nervousness of meeting and getting to know their person. Find that moment that you knew it was good and hold it close while you listen to Robert Longfield’s arrangement of Hounds of Spring.
A Childhood Remembered
From the composer:
“A Childhood Remembered was inspired by my late partner Douglas Howard Vought, a very gentle, kind-hearted man who passed away from depression in 2010. About a year later I was playing the piano and this light, bubbly melody came to me. While writing the piece I thought about Douglas the entire time. It was a very emotional experience for me. Although the music evokes joy, energy, innocence, and hope, there is the slightest undercurrent of sadness. The one thing about Douglas was that he had a childlike spirit. He loved to eat dessert before dinner. He enjoyed amusement parks and funnel cakes. One summer he actually bought one of those plastic kiddie pools, filled it with water and would bask in the warm California sun. I believe all of us would like to re-live those joyous moments of our childhood, so close your eyes and let the music take you back to that simple time of life.”
Sahuaro from “The Little Mexican Suite”
From the composer:
“Ever since I was a child, I have been very interested in traditional Mexican music. It has always captured my attention. I used to really get excited to hear a danzón or a son jarocho, and, fortunately, that interest has become a fundamental part of my artistic work. Most of my works contain a national, and often regional, root. As is well known, Mexican music has many branches, ranging from danzón to mariachi.
When Dr. Messier approached me, I was immediately overcome by the urge to compose a suite for symphonic band inspired by popular Mexican genres. Almost naturally, the themes for each movement began to appear, and in a short time I had developed them all. It was clear to me that each should be different. I did not want to repeat any genre. Music chooses the composer and takes its own course, and as expected, these movements were connecting with each other, one appearing in another as reminiscences of the past, as light brushstrokes, on occasions hidden and at times very exposed.
Little Mexican Suite for Winds is based on traditional Mexican musical genres that are very popular in my country, and is inspired by species of Mexican trees that have each touched my life in some way and are embedded in my memory.
Sahuaro: The cactus. Very tall and full of water, with thorns and of unparalleled green. A forest of sahuaros lies midway between my city and the nearby bay and, since I was little, they have captured my attention. Without any doubt, this movement had to be a “danzón,” my favorite genre of all time.”
Children's March: “Over the Hills and Far Away”
Children’s March was scored for band by Grainger in 1919 from a piano solo which he had composed between 1916 and 1918. The band arrangement was begun in 1918 while the composer was a member of the U.S. Coast Artillery Band and was written to take advantage of that band’s instrumentation. Generally accepted as the first band composition utilizing the piano, the march features the woodwinds — especially the low reeds — during most of its seven-minute duration. It was first performed by the Goldman Band on June 6, 1919, with the composer conducting and Ralph Leopold at the piano. It was dedicated to “my playmate beyond the hills,” believed to be Karen Holton, a Scandinavian beauty with whom the composer corresponded for eight years but did not marry because of his mother’s jealousy.
I dedicate the performance of this piece to all of my friends; near, far, old, and new.
Dragonfly: A Rhapsody in the Style of Joe Hisaishi
From the composer:
“With this piece, I wanted to pay homage to a composer who has influenced me in a huge way since my childhood, Joe Hisaishi. Mamoru Fujisawa, better known as Joe Hisashi, is a Japanese film composer born in 1950 who has over 100 film scores and solo albums to his name. Dubbed “the John Williams of Japan” by Pitchfork in 2017, he has won the Japanese Academy Award for Best Music seven times. He is best known as the main musical associate of the Studio Ghibli film studio, having scored all but one of Hayao Miyazaki’s animated films.
With this piece, I wanted to use his colors and his palette to pain a picture of intensity, beauty, and adventure. The name of the piece is another homage to one of his works, Dragonboy. Using his palette, I illustrate the journey of a dragonfly. From the beginning of the piece, it is an explosion of color and energy- representing the world of the dragonfly- and from there it is a journey of flight and peril for the small creature of the sky.”
Echoes of a Northern Lake
From the composer:
“Echoes of a Northern Lake was commissioned in celebration of the National Youth Band’s 30th anniversary with support from the Canadian Band Association, the Ontario Band Association, and a consortium of 60 ensembles and individuals from across North America. As a proud alumna of the NYB, it was a great honour to write music for this occasion and for this community.
The inspiration for this piece is rooted in my relationship with the natural world. I spent much of my childhood on a lake* where I had the privilege of interacting with an abundance of plants and animals — most notably, the common loon. This piece is my musical interpretation of the loons’ song and the beautiful yet rapidly declining ecosystems they rely on. Each section of the piece is a vignette of my cherished memories and an invitation for musicians and audiences to reflect on their own relationships with nature. We all have a role to play in the health and longevity of the planet we call home, and we are much more likely to protect that which we know and love. I believe that music is one of the ways in which we can inspire and empower others to connect, care, and take action.
*I respectfully acknowledge that the lands upon which I developed these early relationships with nature are located on the traditional territory of the Anishinaabe and Huron-Wendat peoples. The land on which I live and work today is that of the Anishinaabe, Haudenosaunee, and Neutral peoples. I recognize that these lands have been cared for by indigenous peoples for time immemorial, and I exist in these spaces with immense gratitude.”
The Holly and The Ivy
A contemporary setting of the traditional British carol produces a magical holiday moment with fleeting rhythmic patterns combined with light touches of jazz. This piece brings to mind the excitement and joy of Christmas morning as an adult, watching my family open their gifts and enjoy their company over several cups of coffee.