Johann Sebastian Bach
Trans. By Gustav Holst

When Holst was commissioned to write Hammersmith for the BBC Wireless Military Band in 1928, he felt rather out of practice in orchestrating for the medium. For some years he had the idea of arranging some JS Bach fugues for brass and military band, so he set himself the task of scoring the Organ Fugue in G Major BWV 577 (from Preludes, Fugues and Fantasias). He, rather than Bach, called it Fugue à La Gigue.

The piece made an ideal exercise, and Holst’s brilliant dovetailing of the counterpoint between different instruments shows his mastery. The piece is technically demanding and the characteristic unison clarinet writing suggests the orchestral conception of a large wind ensemble rather than a band. It was this concept which the composer carried forward into Hammersmith.

Fugue à La Gigue was published for military band in 1928 by Boosey & Hawkes and shortly afterwards for orchestra, but with only short scores, as was customary at the time.

Eric Whitacre

At the Midwest Band and Orchestra convention in 1996, Gary Green approached me about a possible commission for his wind ensemble at the University of Miami. I accepted, and the commission formally began July 1st, 1997. Two years later I still couldn’t show him a single note. That’s not to say I hadn’t written anything. On the contrary, I had about 100 pages of material for three different pieces, but I wanted to give Gary something very special and just couldn’t find that perfect spark.

Around this time my great friend and fellow Juilliard composer Steven Bryant was visiting me in Los Angeles, and as I had just bought a new computer I was throwing out old sequencer files, most of them sketches and improvisational ideas. As I played one section Steve dashed into the room and the following conversation ensued:

Steve: “What the hell was that!?!”

Me: “Just an old idea I’m about to trash.”

Steve: “Mark my words, If you don’t use that I’m stealing it.”

The gauntlet had been thrown.

That was the spark, but it took me a full eight months to write the piece. There are a LOT of notes, and I put everyone on paper (with pencil). I wanted to write a moto perpetuo, a piece that starts running and never stops (‘equus’ is the Latin word for horse) and would also be a virtuosic show piece for winds.

The final result is something that I call “dynamic minimalism,” which basically means that I love to employ repetitive patterns as long as they don’t get boring. We finally premiered the piece in March 2000, nearly three years after the original commission date, and the University of Miami Wind Ensemble played the bejeezus out of it. Equus is dedicated to my friend Gary Green, the most passionate and patient conductor I know.

Anton Reicha

Performers
Reece Neff
Megan Vezzetti
Cameron Kellner
Erika Fetvedt
Jacob Timin

Pavel Cheznokov
arr. C. De Paolo

Performers
Ben Poovey
Max Abelson
Jack Fitzpatrick
Zack Powers
Harrison Fringer
Luke Sbityakov
Liam Weiss
Spencer Monaco
Samer Issa (NC State alumni)

Anthony DiLorenzo

Michael Markowski

I had just moved from Arizona to New York City when I began sketching the first fragments of City Trees. After being born, growing up, and living in the desert for 25 years of my life, moving to New York so suddenly was and continues to be one of the most challenging things I’ve ever done. I think it has also been one of the bravest. I left my friends, my family, and my ridiculously cheap rent all without much planning.

Every time I walk down a street in New York, I notice the trees shackled by the sidewalk. Some have little fences around them, many have trash nestled up next to their exposed roots, and others have grown so big and become so strong that they have broken right through the concrete pavement. As I pass beneath them, they all seem to wave their leafy pom-poms in the wind, a thousand leaves applauding, cheering me on as if I had just returned from the moon.

These trees have learned how to brave the concrete jungle, and it gave me solace knowing that they had flourished in such a challenging environment. Over time, the impossibilities of the city have become familiar, and although I continue to learn new lessons every day, I’ve slowly begun to assimilate, finding my way around, discovering new places, and making friends while still keeping close with those who aren’t close by. The music in City Trees began to take on a growing sense of perseverance, embodied by the expansive melodies that sweep over the pensive, rhythmic undercurrent.

For me, City Trees is a reflection of the bravery that it often takes to venture into new worlds, embrace other cultures, and lovingly encourage new ideas. I am deeply honored to dedicate this piece to the Lesbian and Gay Band Association. Although I may never completely understand the unique challenges my friends have faced and had to overcome, I am inspired by the overwhelming courage that has been so firmly planted for 30 years and that continues to grow, perhaps slowly, but always stronger.

Camille de Nardis
Arr. Antonia Cafarella

Composed in 1878, The Universal Judgement won 1^st Prize in a national band competition in Naples, Italy. Camille de Nardis was 21 years old when he composed this work. 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 powerful call and response section, featuring the trumpets and low brass, represents a glimpse of the ranks of angels blowing the last fanfare signaling that the time of the final judgement has arrived.

“The Universal Judgement” is completely nineteenth-century Italian opera in nature, style, and scope. You can hear similarities to the well known “Tuba Mirum” section of Verdi’s requiem, which was premiered in Milan, Italy in 1874. Four years before de Nardis composed his own “universal judgement”.

Camille de Nardis was a very successful composer of operas and symphonic works for orchestra and band. He taught at several universities in Italy and was named director of the Conservatory of Naples, Italy where he taught composition held the director position for over twenty years.