Parade of the Tall Ships Jay Chattaway (b. 1946)
In 1976, I visited my older brother who was a pastry chef for the Four Seasons hotel in Boston, Massachusetts. I arrived in time to experience several celebrations of the United States’ Bicentennial. The most awe-inspiring was a literal parade of tall ships in the harbor and river.
Chattaway served in the Navy Band as an arranger and composer. In the 1970s, he became the arranger for Maynard Ferguson’s band and composed or co-composed several of Ferguson’s hits, including “Conquistador”, Superbone Meets the Bad Man”, and “Primal Scream”.
Chattaway was involved as composer/arranger for a number of the Star Trek television series: Star Trek: The Next Generation, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Star Trek: Voyager, and Star Trek: Enterprise.
Jay Chattaway composed this powerful and heroic concert march which effectively recalls the glory and adventure of the tall sailing ships.
Parade of the Tall Ships dedicated to the U.S. Navy Band in Washington, DC.
Chorale and Alleluia Howard Hanson (1896-1981)
Howard Hanson (1896-1981) was a distinguished American composer, conductor, educator, music theorist and ardent advocate of American music. Born in Wahoo, Nebraska to Swedish emigrants, he began music studies at an early age. He studied at what later became Juilliard School and Northwestern University. Hanson became director of the Eastman School of Music in 1924 and developed it into one of America’s most prestigious music conservatories.
In 1944, Hanson received a Pulitzer Prize for his Symphony No. 4 but is most known for his Symphony No. 2, called “Romantic”. It typifies Hanson’s idea that romanticism and beauty should be the foundation of music.
He received honorary doctorates from over 32 universities and colleges his music and commitment to education. Hanson was responsible for two generations of American composers and teachers which was a major contribution to musical excellence in America.
Hanson’s first piece for symphonic band was composed in 1954. Chorale and Alleluia was commissioned by Edwin Franko Goldman for the American Bandmasters Association. Completed in 1954, this was the composer’s first work for symphonic band. Goldman and his son, Richard, commissioned many of the most significant compositions for band in the mid-20th century.
The formal structure of this piece is A B B A with a sonorous and expressive opening Chorale section. Hanson uses repeated ostinato Chorale motivic sections throughout the Alleluia section which alternates with the Alleluia theme.
Contre qui, Rose Morten Lauridsen (b. 1947)
Lauridsen has been named an “American Choral Master” by the National Endowment for the Arts. He is a recipient of the National Medal of Arts “for his composition of radiant choral works combining musical beauty, power and spiritual depth that have thrilled audiences worldwide.”
Lauridsen grew up in the Pacific Northwest where he once worked as a forest firefighter and lookout in a fire tower on Mount St. Helene’s. He began his composition studies at the University of Southern California with Ingolf Dahl and Halsey Stevens and began teaching composition there in 1967. Lauridsen chaird the USC Thornton School of Music from 1990 to 2001. He has been nominated for 5 Grammy Awards for recordings of his music.
Lauridsen’s compositional style is quite broad and changes with the text he is setting. For example, the style for Contre qui, Rose is quite lyrical and almost tentative. The phrasing reflect the questions posed by the poet in his poem.
Contre qui, Rose is originally composed for mixed choir. Lauridsen used a poem by Rilke (1875-1926), considered to be one of the two greatest poets of the German language. Lauridsen wrote of this poem, “[Rilke’s] poems on roses struck me as especially charming, filled with gorgeous lyricism, deftly crafted and elegant in their imagery…the musical settings are designed to enhance these characteristics and capture their delicate beauty and sensuousness.”
Chant and Jubilo W. Francis McBeth (1933-2012)
Composed in 1963, Chant and Jubilo has remained one of the most often performed pieces in the wind band repertoire. It has two distinct movements which are combined as one piece. The haunting melodic material in the opening Chant section is based on a ninth-century Greek hymn. Its simple orchestration enhances the austerity of the chant.
The Jubilo movement is recognizable from the brilliant writing for brass and percussion. The reeds which were used as the “singers” of the chant melody are now given an ostinato that weaves a hypnotic background for the brass and percussion. There are lots of rhythmic motives juxtaposed with long flowing melodies in the horns. A call and answer section between the trumpets and low brass Jubilo section with a quick return to the Chant melody brings the piece to an exultant finale.
W. Francis McBeth, American composer and native Texan was one of the most popular band composers of the second half of the 20th century. His works were so successful that he was in high demand as a conductor, lecturer, and teacher across the entire world. McBeth once conducted the 1963 Arkansas All-State Band in which the future president Bill Clinton played in the tenor sax section. Strange moments in one’s life!
Ye Banks and Braes O’Bonnie Doon Percy Aldridge Grainger (1882-1961)
“The Banks o’Doon” is a poem written by Robert Burns in 1791. He set the poem to another Scottish air called “The Caledonian Hunt’s Delight”. It is a true story about the tragic relationship between Margaret “Peggy” Kennedy and Andrew McDouall. Burns wrote another poem about Peggy whom he met when she was eighteen.
Grainger, internationally known for his arrangements of original British and Australian folksongs, originally set this piece for men’s chorus and whistlers. The current interpretation was composed by Grainger in 1932. It is two 17 measure verses with a coda and uses an softly undulating character for its melody and rhythm. The “song” starts with a gentle and simple setting of the first verse. The second verse brings in the whole band which ebbs and flows much like the river Doon. For all the tragic nature of the story the piece ends with peacefulness.
Legend Paul Creston (1906-1989)
Legend was composed in 1942 and dedicated to Richard Franko Goldman. Creston wrote that “There is no particular legend attached to this composition. It was inspired by one of the most powerful attributes of music, namely, its narrative power. It is, therefore, a purely abstract piece of music, with the modification, however, that the listener may easily create his own story.” As Creston wrote in his notes about this piece you the audience are invited to use your imaginations and create your own legend as you listen to “Legend” by Paul Creston.
Creston was born in 1906 and was named Giuseppe Guttoveggio by his Sicilian immigrant parents. Largely self-taught as a composer, he is noted for dramatic colors, insistent rhythm structure and sweeping melodies.
Because of poor family finances, Creston’s formal education ended after two and one-half years of high school. During high school, he was nicknamed “Cress” after a character he portrayed in a play. Later in life, he lengthened this name to Creston, chose Paul for a first name, and legally changed his name to Paul Creston in 1944. Creston worked at various businesses, banks, and insurance companies to pay for organ and piano lessons, while studying English, foreign languages, mysticism, music composition, and orchestration on his own.
Students include John Corigliano and Alvin Singleton. Creston was one of the most performed American composers of the 1940sand 1950s.
Creston considered his greatest "teachers" to be Bach, Scarlatti, Chopin, Debussy, and Ravel.
He wrote two books about rhythm and meter. You’ll hear in Legend how rhythm is so important to Creston. Because he was self-taught, you’ll hear a very unique and specialized sound that is purely Creston’s.
The Universal Judgement Camille De Nardis (1857-1951)
Composed in 1878, The Universal Judgement won 1st Prize in a national band competition held in Naples that year. De Nardis was 21 years old when he composed this. It is one of the earliest compositions written specifically for band.
The “universal judgement” refers to the end times when God brings judgement on humanity. The beginning tempo marking is “Allegro con fuoco” meaning “fast with fire”. It opens with turbulent low winds and brass announcing the imminent coming judgement. Towards the middle of the piece a call and response section features the trumpets and low brass. It represents an almost awesome picture of the ranks of angels blowing the last trumpet to signal the time of judgement has arrived.
If you are familiar with the Verdi Requiem you’ll hear similarities with the Tuba mirum section of Verdi’s requiem which had its premiere in Milan in 1874 four years before de Nardis composed his own “universal judgement. Fortunately for us, de Nardis lets us know with lush operatic melodies that all is good and the piece ends with a triumphal sound.
“The Universal Judgement” is completely nineteenth-century Italian opera in character, style and scope. One can see how it appealed to Neapolitan audiences in the late 1800s.
As with many composers and musicians over time they have disappeared from regular performance and knowledge so it has been with de Nardis.
However, in his lifetime, he was a highly successful composer of operas and symphonic works for orchestra and band. He attained a very notable career in Italian music world of his day. He taught at several universities in Italy and was named director of the Conservatory of Naples, Italy where he taught composition and led the Conservatory for over twenty years.
Concert Notes by Mark Twehues
Our next concert is on Sunday, December 8, 2024 at 4:00 PM - Join us!
Beatrice and Benedict
Hector Berlioz/arr. Franz Henning (1803-1869)
Beatrice and Benedict was composed by Berlioz as a two-act opera comique in 1858. The libretto is by Berlioz and he based it on a subplot from Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing.
The general plot is Beatrice and Benedict can’t stand one another so, of course, their families and friends employ various deceptions to get the two together. In the end, they do get married with lyrics “Love is a torch…Love is a flame…today the truce is signed; we will become enemies again tomorrow!” A match made in heaven!
The overture opens with the two main characters throwing insults at each other represented by ferocious triplets in the winds. This Introduction is only the introduction to the introduction which is a slow and romantic duet before the action gets down to business by returning to the triplet/insults from the beginning.
The comical nature of the opera comes out through its energy, lightness, and spark. Even in the slow romantic aria in the middle there is a forward motion that keeps the tension effervescent rather than maudlin. The overture definitely sounds like Berlioz as he includes his signature brass exclamatory statements throughout the piece.
This was Berlioz’s last composition as he would die just a few years later. One would never guess that Berlioz was in considerable pain when he wrote Beatrice and Benedict because of its joy and fun. He himself enjoyed writing the opera and was thrilled at the success of its premiere which he conducted.
American Patrol
F.W. Meachum (1856-1909)
At the end of the 19th century, before radio broadcasting, music publishers employed pianists and composers/arrangers to perform new compositions. This primarily happened in store-front windows of their publishing firms and was focused along West 28th Street between Fifth and Sixth Avenues in New York City. It was popularly known as Tin Pan Alley. The most famous of these composer-pianists along Tin Pan Alley were Irving Berlin and George Gershwin. Also among these musician-promoters included Frank White Meachum.
Meachum originally composed American Patrol as a piano piece in 1885. He later arranged it for wind band and published that version in 1891. Besides his own original music, Meachum included famous patriotic tunes from the 19th century such as “Columbia, the Gem of the Ocean”, “Dixie” and “Yankee Doodle”.
It has quasi-military music elements and includes drum cadences and bugle calls. It also uses a traditional technique of starting very soft and ending very soft. This gives the impression of a military band approaching from the distance and becoming louder as it crosses in front of the bleachers and then becoming softer as it recedes into the distance.
Perhaps American Patrol is most well-known for a swing version by Jerry Gray, Glenn Miller’s arranger. It was recorded by Glenn Miller and His Orchestra in 1942.
American Patrol entered into pop culture when it was performed on the flute by Russell Johnson, the actor playing “The Professor”, on an episode of Gilligan’s Island.
Lux Aurumque (Light and Gold)
Eric Whitacre, b. 1970
Poem by Edward Esch, b. 1970
light,
warm and heavy as pure gold
and angels sing softly
to the new-born babe.
“After deciding upon the poem by Edward Esch (I was immediately struck by its genuine, elegant simplicity), I had it translated into the Latin by the celebrated American poet Charles Anthony Silvestri. A simple approach is essential to the success of the work, and if the tight harmonies are carefully tuned and balanced they will shimmer and glow.” Eric Whitacre
Whitacre composed Lux Aurumque in 2000 as a choral piece on commission by the Master Chorale of Tampa Bay. The version for wind band we hear today is also by Whitacre and was premiered here in San Antonio at the Texas Music Educators Association Convention in 2005.
As one can tell by the text it is a Christmas piece with references to the angels and the “new-born babe”. Its two initial chords Whitacre borrowed from Passio (also know as the St. John Passion) by Estonian composer Arvo Part and thus makes the Christian mystical connection between birth and death; incarnation and resurrection.
While Lux is rather short at 55 measures its compactness holds an immensity of space and color through shifting harmonies and lush orchestral sound. If color can be translated into sound Whitacre has been sublimely successful.
Toccata Marziale
Ralph Vaughan Williams (1872-1958)
Vaughan Williams was a prominent British composer and collector of British folk song. His wind band works, along with Gustav Holst and Percy Grainger, form the bedrock of British band repertoire.
The Toccata Marziale was composed in 1924 as part of the Commemoration of the British Empire Exhibition. While it is only Vaughan Williams’s second for piece for wind band one can tell that he is a master of orchestration and composition.
A toccata is a type of early Baroque keyboard composition typically for harpsichord or organ. It is adopted from an Italian word “toccare” which means literally “to touch”, a reference to virtuosic finger technique required to play these early pieces. One famous toccata often played during the Halloween season is J.S. Bach’s frightening Toccata and Fugue in d minor!
The opening statement in the brass uses a four-note motive that goes on almost constantly throughout the entire piece. But it is contrasted with a beautiful lyrical melody introduced by the euphonium and cornet soloists. These two melodic ideas are juxtaposed against each other in the middle section of the piece. The lyrical melody is passed back and forth between instrumental groups just like the initial four-note motive, low brasses to high brasses to high woodwinds to low woodwinds. Hence there is built a texture of independent lines woven together through color and density into a complex tonal fabric.
The breathless nature of the Toccata Marziale leaves one with a good sense of those early keyboard compositions. Vaughan Williams though paces out the final section with a long buildup through volume and density of instrumentation. It climaxes at the very end with a restatement of the initial four-note statement.
Victory at Sea – Symphonic Scenarios for Concert Band
Richard Rodgers and Robert Russell Bennett
Victory at Sea is a television documentary first aired on October 26, 1952 by NBC. There were 26 half-hour long episodes. It was so successful that it was then released as a feature film in 1954. Its subject about warfare during World War but focused primarily on naval warfare and industry in warfare. It won an Emmy.
Richard Rodgers is most noted for his collaboration with Oscar Hammerstein which produced some of America’s most famous and most beloved musicals such as Oklahoma!, Carousel, The King and I, Sound of Music and South Pacific.
Rodgers was hired to compose the film score. He composed 12 short piano themes so Robert Russell Bennett was brought on board to flesh out and orchestrate Rodgers’ material. Bennett consequently composed that bulk of the film score.
As one expects from film music it evokes the many natures of the sea and the human experience of life at war on the sea. There are moments of ease and leisure so the music is almost deceptively languorous. The piece opens with an almost heroic fanfare with waves crashing over the bow of a ship. There are battle scenes where the music is violent and brutal. And there are brooding moments of those periods of waiting for battle to engage.
Again, Victory at Sea enters the popular culture through one of Rodgers’ melodies, “Beneath the Southern Cross”. He had his musical collaborator, Oscar Hammerstein, write words to the melody. It became titled “No Other Love” for their 1953 musical Me and Juliet. Perry Como recorded it in 1953 and it made it to “Number One” on the pop charts that year.
Blue Lake Overture for Concert Band
John Barnes Chance (1932-1972)
John Barnes Chance was a native-born Texan who graduated from the University of Texas with degrees in composition. For a while, he played timpani in the Austin Symphony Orchestra and then joined the Army where he was an arranger for the Fourth and Eighth U.S. Army Bands. He was stationed in Korea and while there composed his most famous work, Variations on a Korean Folk Song. He was a popular educator and eventually came to see himself more as a teacher than simply a composer.
The Blue Lake Overture was commissioned by the Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp in Michigan and premiered in 1971. It is a rhythmically complex piece all of which is derived from the opening motive stated in the horns.
There are several contrasting sections all of which are developed from that opening horn statement. There is a fugue section and a waltz section that is reminiscent of Ravel’s La Valse.
This sounds simple but Chance uses the word, slancio, meaning “with impetuosity” to let the musicians know how to approach this energetic piece. And it is impetuous! In the opening and closing large sections Chance uses what are called asymmetrical meters. So instead of using a traditional 4/4 meter (4 pulses in groups of 2) he uses alternating meters with groups of 3’s and 2’s. So some of the groupings will be 3+2+ 3; others are groupings of 3+3+2; 2+2+2+2; 3+3+3; even 3+2+3+2. These pulse groupings happen at a breakneck speed and woe to the musician whose attention wanders for even a split second!
Concert Notes by Mark Twehues
Thank you for joining us this afternoon!