In late August 1942, Eugene Goossens, the conductor of the Cincinnati Symphony, wrote to Copland requesting a patriotic fanfare to help with the war effort. Goossens suggested the instrumentation of brass and percussion and length of about two minutes. A large group of American composers were given similar requests, and Goossens hoped to perform Copland’s fanfare in October at his first concert of the season. Since Copland did not deliver the Fanfare until November, Goossens suggested another date: March 12, 1943, as it would then be income tax time, an ideal opportunity for honoring the common man.

—Vivian Perlis, 1998

With the threat of impending war, Thornton Wilder’s play Our Town, with its look back at an America of homespun values, was tremendously appealing. Copland accepted the invitation to compose the musical score for the screen version of life in the small town of Grover’s Corners, New Hampshire. He explained, “For the film version, they were counting on the music to translate the transcendental aspects of the story. I tried for clean and clear sounds and in general used straight-forward harmonies and rhythms that would project the serenity and sense of security of the story.” Copland arranged about ten minutes from the film score for a suite. It is dedicated to Leonard Bernstein.

-Vivian Perlis, 1998

Blue…like the sky. Where all possibilities soar. Cathedrals…a place of thought, growth, spiritual expression…serving as a symbolic doorway in to and out of this world. Blue represents all potential and the progression of journeys. Cathedrals represent a place of beginnings, endings, solitude, fellowship, contemplation, knowledge and growth. As I was writing this piece, I found myself imagining a journey through a glass cathedral in the sky. Because the walls would be transparent, I saw the image of clouds and blueness permeating from the outside of this church. In my mind’s eye the listener would enter from the back of the sanctuary, floating along the corridor amongst giant crystal pillars, moving in a contemplative stance. The stained glass windows’ figures would start moving with song, singing a heavenly music. The listener would float down the aisle, slowly moving upward at first and then progressing at a quicker pace, rising towards an immense ceiling which would open to the sky…as this journey progressed, the speed of the traveler would increase, rushing forward and upward. I wanted to create the sensation of contemplation and quiet peace at the beginning, moving towards the feeling of celebration and ecstatic expansion of the soul, all the while singing along with that heavenly music.

These were my thoughts when The Curtis Institute of Music commissioned me to write a work to commemorate its 75th anniversary. Curtis is a house of knowledge–a place to reach towards that beautiful expression of the soul which comes through music. I began writing this piece at a unique juncture in my life and found myself pondering the question of what makes a life. The recent loss of my younger brother, Andrew Blue, made me reflect on the amazing journeys that we all make in our lives, crossing paths with so many individuals singularly and collectively, learning and growing each step of the way.

This piece represents the expression of the individual and the group…our inner travels and the places our souls carry us, the lessons we learn, and the growth we experience. In tribute to my brother, I feature solos for the clarinet (the instrument he played) and the flute (the instrument I play). Because I am the older sibling, it is the flute that appears first in this dialog. At the end of the work, the two instruments continue their dialogue, but it is the flute that drops out and the clarinet that continues on in the upward progressing journey.

This is a story that commemorates living and passing through places of knowledge and of sharing and of that song called life.

This work was commissioned and premiered in 2000 by the Curtis Institute of Music.

–Jennifer Higdon

Union is a reflection on the American experience—its origins, contradictions, struggles, and enduring search for a fuller realization of its ideals. Throughout the concerto, fragments of familiar American musical materials appear, disappear, collide, and return in altered emotional contexts. The solo trombone serves as a human voice within this landscape: at times lyrical and questioning, at times forceful, defiant, vulnerable, or soaring. Ultimately, Union asks what freedom might truly sound like, and whether a more honest and inclusive version of the American promise can still be forged. This concerto was written for the incredible trombonist Brittany Lasch, whom I treasure as a dear friend and collaborator. Thank you for bringing this work to life with me.

—Brian Raphael Nabors, 2026

Origin begins in an open, elemental sound world, evoking the natural beauty of the land that would eventually become the United States while paying homage to the Indigenous peoples whose histories and cultures long preceded the nation that would eventually take shape upon it. A small fragment drawn from America the Beautiful becomes an important recurring idea, representing not simply the country as a political entity, but the enduring beauty of the land itself—something that persists symbolically through the conflicts and transformations that would take place throughout the nation’s history.

Against this backdrop, the trombone enters as both participant and observer. Its broad expressive and registral range unfolds against sharply contrasting orchestral environments: thin, icy, and sparkling sonorities surround moments of warmth and lyricism, while the soloist moves between restraint, brilliance, intimacy, and full-bodied power.

—Brian Raphael Nabors, 2026

Descent begins quietly, with timpani and the lowest regions of the orchestra initiating a gradual journey into a darker sound world. A persistent groove emerges from minor-pentatonic language informed by Black American folk traditions, hymns, and spirituals. Its forward motion carries both resilience and strain—the sound of people continuing to move, create, endure, and reach toward freedom.

As the music intensifies, familiar materials overlap, fracture, and collide until the orchestra is consumed by a swirling chromatic siege. The momentum then begins to stretch almost beyond recognition, slowing until the music reaches a near standstill.

Beneath inhabits this suspended space: a portrait of exhaustion, uncertainty, and the feeling that the American Dream itself may have slipped beyond reach. The solo trombone struggles within the surrounding orchestral landscape as fragments, gestures, and competing voices gradually lose their sense of direction.

Out of this stillness, Horizon slowly emerges. Light returns by degrees until the orchestra opens into a broad affirmation of hope, joy, and possibility. Yet the concerto does not end in uncomplicated triumph. After its great expansion, the music gradually recedes. The orchestral texture becomes transparent, and the trombone sings above widely spaced strings, harp, percussion, and piano before fading into quietness.

The final gesture offers less an answer than a question: having glimpsed the horizon, where do we go from here?

—Brian Raphael Nabors, 2026

Composer, conductor, and creative catalyst Peter Askim is Music Director of the Wilmington Symphony Orchestra, Artistic Director and Founder of The Next Festival of Emerging Artists, Conductor of the Raleigh Civic Symphony and Chamber Orchestra, and Director of Orchestral Activities at North Carolina State University. Known for his visionary programming and commitment to uplifting living composers, Askim bridges artistic innovation with community engagement.

A passionate advocate for new music, Askim has commissioned and premiered works by Lisa Bielawa, Christopher Cerrone, Aaron Jay Kernis, Allison Loggins-Hull, Nico Muhly, Curtis Stewart, Christopher Theofanidis, and Paul Wiancko, among others. In 2022, he led the American premiere of Florence Price’s Ethiopia’s Shadow in America. His conducting has been featured on HBO and NPR, earning recognition for his collaboration on the documentary The Cold Blue.

Praised by The Strad as “a modern master,” Askim’s compositions have been commissioned and performed by the Tokyo Symphony, Honolulu Symphony, Stavanger Symphony, and Cantus Ansambl Zagreb, ensembles such as ETHEL and the Aizuri Quartet, and cellist Jeffrey Zeigler. 

Through his leadership of the Raleigh Civic Orchestras, Askim has redefined the role of the university and community symphony. Since 2015, every concert under his direction has included a new commission, totaling over 40 to date.

Askim’s Next Festival of Emerging Artists, founded in 2013, is a trailblazing incubator for early-career string players, composers, and choreographers. The Festival has supported more than 250 emerging artists, offering mentorship, collaboration, and performance opportunities with Pulitzer, MacArthur, GRAMMY, and Emmy-winning artists.

A winner of the S&R Foundation Washington Award and Astral Artists National Auditions, trombonist Brittany Lasch brings authenticity and unshakeable commitment to all aspects of her music-making. Increasingly in demand as a soloist with orchestras and brass bands alike, Brittany balances an intensive performance career with her role as a sought-after educator and Assistant Professor of Trombone at the renowned Jacobs School of Music at Indiana University. As a serial collaborator and commissioner of composers, Brittany is a musical explorer creating new repertoire for her instrument from some of today’s most compelling voices, and true ambassador in expanding recognition for the trombone as a powerful solo voice for today.

Brittany has appeared as a soloist with ensembles ranging from the U.S. Army Band “Pershing’s Own”, Rodney Marsalis Philadelphia Big Brass, and for concerto performances with the Queens Symphony, National Repertory Orchestra, Bucks County Symphony, Bowling Green Philharmonia, Manhattan School of Music Philharmonia, and others across the country. With playing described as “masterful” (Syracuse Post-Standard), American Record Guide recently hailed Brittany as an “excellent soloist” across a diverse range of repertoire.

American Prize-winning TrombonistBrittany has been a featured guest artist at numerous festivals, including the International Trombone Festival, the International Women’s Brass Conference, and the American Trombone Workshop. She was a winner of the National Collegiate Solo Competition hosted by the U.S. Army Band, the Eisenberg-Fried Brass Concerto Competition at the Manhattan School of Music, the Zulalian Foundation Award in Boston. Her trombone quartet Boston Based won the 2017 International Trombone Association’s Quartet Competition. In 2018, Brittany was awarded 2nd place in The American Prize Solo Instrumentalist competition. A prizewinner in numerous other competitions, she received the coveted John Clark Award upon graduation from the Manhattan School of Music for outstanding accomplishment in brass performance.

For six seasons, Brittany was the Principal Trombone of the Detroit Opera Orchestra at the Detroit Opera House. She has performed with orchestras nationwide, including the San Francisco Symphony, Los Angeles Philharmonic, Indianapolis Symphony, St. Louis Symphony, Detroit Symphony, Nashville Symphony, The Florida Orchestra, Toledo Symphony Orchestra, ProMusica Chamber Orchestra, Rhode Island Philharmonic, the Oregon Bach Festival Orchestra, the Vermont Symphony, Albany Symphony, Syracuse Symphony, and the New World Symphony in Miami Beach. She participated in the Verbier Festival Orchestra for two summers, and has also appeared at the Spoleto USA Festival, the Pacific Music Festival in Sapporo, Japan, the Castleton Festival, and the Aspen Music Festival. An active presence in the global trombone community, Brittany’s performances for the current and past seasons include Argentina’s Trombonanza, Portugal’s Gravíssimo Festival, as well as appearances in Japan and Korea.

​As an advocate for new music, Brittany has commissioned and performed several new pieces for the trombone, including acclaimed composer Reena Esmail’s major Sonata for Trombone and Piano, which she commissioned for her Astral Artists recital in Philadelphia. Brittany gave the premiere of the orchestrated version of Martin Kennedy’s Theme and Variations for Trombone and Orchestra with the BGSU Philharmonia under the direction of Dr. Emily Brown. She also recorded the work with the BGSU Philharmonia, which was recently released on the Albany Records label. Other recent projects include collaborations with composers Inez McComas, Adam Har-zvi, and David Miller. Her debut solo album, Dark Horse (2024), features works by Samuel Adler, Tony Plog, Reena Esmail, Shawn Davern, and the album’s pianist, Thomas Weaver. The album was recently awarded a Silver Medal from Global Music Awards.

A native of Park Ridge, Illinois, Brittany earned her Doctor of Musical Arts degree from Boston University, where she received the Brass Department Award. She also holds a Master of Music degree from Yale School of Music. With a deep commitment to education, she has previously served as faculty at the College of Musical Arts at Bowling Green State University and the Boston University Tanglewood Institute. She has also been a featured teacher and performer at summer festivals, including the Sewanee Music Festival and the DC Trombone Workshop.

Recent residencies include those at the University of Central Arkansas, James Madison University (Tromblow’in), University of Iowa, Oklahoma State University, Stetson University, the University of Florida, and as the guest artist at the 2023 Frühling Posaunen hosted at Ithaca College. She has presented masterclasses at universities across the country and internationally.

Brittany Lasch is an Edwards Trombone Performing Artist. She also proudly uses and endorses ChopSaver Lip Care. Outside of music, Brittany has recently completed her eleventh full marathon and loves spending time with her cats Clove and Poppy.

Jennifer Higdon is one of America’s most acclaimed and most frequently performed living composers. She is a major figure in contemporary Classical music, receiving the 2010 Pulitzer Prize in Music for her Violin Concerto, a 2010 Grammy for her Percussion Concerto, a 2018 Grammy for her Viola Concerto and a 2020 Grammy for her Harp Concerto. In 2018, Higdon received the Nemmers Prize from Northwestern University which is given to contemporary classical composers of exceptional achievement who have significantly influenced the field of composition. Most recently, the recording of Higdon’s Percussion Concerto was inducted into the Library of Congress National Recording Registry. Higdon enjoys several hundred performances a year of her works, and blue cathedral is today’s most performed contemporary orchestral work, with more than 600 performances worldwide. Her works have been recorded on more than seventy CDs. Higdon’s first opera, Cold Mountain, won the prestigious International Opera Award for Best World Premiere and the opera recording was nominated for 2 Grammy awards. Her music is published exclusively by Lawdon Press.

“I like to think of myself as a ‘fuser of worlds’ and a boundary destroyer. With every piece, my goal is to always create a place where all can meet themselves in some way, as an invitation to explore their own curiosity or to reflect on deep, complex issues throughout history and our time. Whether in a lighthearted or deeply visceral way, I want to hold up a mirror for people to see that there is humanity beneath the masks we wear, and that grace always leads to the discovery of inherent goodness.” – Brian

The son of a church musician and pastor in Birmingham, Alabama, Brian Raphael Nabors was surrounded by a wealth of musical activity. His upbringing immersed him in R&B, Neo Soul, Jazz, Funk, and Black marching band culture. This adventurous, innovative spirit has led to the creation of cutting-edge works, including a “Concerto for Hammond Organ” and a thrilling “Concerto for Orchestra” that embraces nearly every sector of the American soundscape.

Nabors’ music has been performed by the Boston Symphony, Minnesota Orchestra, The Cleveland Orchestra, Detroit Symphony, Seattle Symphony, Atlanta Symphony and Britain’s Chineke! among others, at venues including Carnegie Hall, Elbphilharmonie Hamburg, and events such as the Lucerne Festival, Tanglewood, Aspen Music Festival, Ravinia Festival and Grant Park Music Festival. He holds a Doctor of Musical Arts and master’s degree in composition from the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music. He currently serves as Assistant Professor of Composition at Louisiana State University.