Concert Band Series
Band together
Supervillains!
Erin Paton Pierce, 2017
Grade 0.5
Duration: circa 1:30
What is it that makes supervillains so intriguing in our comic books and movies? Is it their incredible power? Their tenacity for evil? Or perhaps something else? To every great hero there is a foil, and that certainly is true about superheroes and supervillains. A well-crafted villain always shakes up the story in the most interesting ways, sometimes so much that it seems like it will be impossible for the hero to save the day! Supervillains! highlights the sinister, the plotting, and at times comical traits from our beloved comic book antagonists. It’s sneaky at some times and brash in others, making for a fun tribute to the baddies.
Grade 0.5
Duration: circa 1:30
What is it that makes supervillains so intriguing in our comic books and movies? Is it their incredible power? Their tenacity for evil? Or perhaps something else? To every great hero there is a foil, and that certainly is true about superheroes and supervillains. A well-crafted villain always shakes up the story in the most interesting ways, sometimes so much that it seems like it will be impossible for the hero to save the day! Supervillains! highlights the sinister, the plotting, and at times comical traits from our beloved comic book antagonists. It’s sneaky at some times and brash in others, making for a fun tribute to the baddies.
Waiata i Te Kāinga (Songs From Home)
Erin Paton Pierce, 2017
Grade 1
Duration: circa 4:00
Waiata i Te Kāinga (Songs From Home) is a collection of three Māori folk songs: Haere e hine (action song), Hine e Hine (lullaby), and E Papa Waiari (stick game). Being originally from New Zealand, I grew up listening to the music of the Māori, watching the haka on the tele (and once in real life—5-year-old me was so terrified and fascinated!), and trying to learn their language. I have picked three of my very favourite Māori folk songs to arrange, and hope they bring you as much joy as they have brought me.
Grade 1
Duration: circa 4:00
Waiata i Te Kāinga (Songs From Home) is a collection of three Māori folk songs: Haere e hine (action song), Hine e Hine (lullaby), and E Papa Waiari (stick game). Being originally from New Zealand, I grew up listening to the music of the Māori, watching the haka on the tele (and once in real life—5-year-old me was so terrified and fascinated!), and trying to learn their language. I have picked three of my very favourite Māori folk songs to arrange, and hope they bring you as much joy as they have brought me.
Madiba
Erin Paton Pierce, 2014
Grade 2
Duration: circa 4:00
On December 5th, 2013, Nelson Mandela, one of the greatest men of our era, passed away. He was a leader in peace and unity, having served as an anti-Apartheid revolutionary and later becoming South Africa’s first Black president. He is the winner of the prestigious Nobel Peace Prize and the US Presidential Medal of Freedom. His dreams, work, and legacy have touched and inspired countless people from all backgrounds around the world.
Soon after Mandela’s passing, I was approached by Dr Johnson about his proposed program for the CSU Middle School Outreach Ensemble. He wanted to centre the program on Nelson Mandela and themes from the Apartheid revolution he helped lead, but at that time there were no pieces written for a middle school band about Mandela himself. Dr Johnson commissioned me to write such a piece, thus was how Madiba came to be. The piece, named after Mandela’s Xhosa clan name, features four sections that represent different times in Mandela’s life: a dream of a unified South Africa, the struggle for that dream, the triumph when that dream is manifested, and the reflection upon the legacy Mandela left. Madiba features the South African national anthem, Nkosi Sikelel, featuring an extract from the hymn Nkosi Sikelel iAfrika (God Bless Africa), which became the informal anthem for the anti-Apartheid movement. Throughout Madiba, there are four sections where students have the chance to recite quotes from Nelson Mandela. It is a song that celebrates the strength and perseverance of mankind, and in the words of Mandela, "Everyone can rise above their circumstances and achieve success if they are dedicated to and passionate about what they do."
Grade 2
Duration: circa 4:00
On December 5th, 2013, Nelson Mandela, one of the greatest men of our era, passed away. He was a leader in peace and unity, having served as an anti-Apartheid revolutionary and later becoming South Africa’s first Black president. He is the winner of the prestigious Nobel Peace Prize and the US Presidential Medal of Freedom. His dreams, work, and legacy have touched and inspired countless people from all backgrounds around the world.
Soon after Mandela’s passing, I was approached by Dr Johnson about his proposed program for the CSU Middle School Outreach Ensemble. He wanted to centre the program on Nelson Mandela and themes from the Apartheid revolution he helped lead, but at that time there were no pieces written for a middle school band about Mandela himself. Dr Johnson commissioned me to write such a piece, thus was how Madiba came to be. The piece, named after Mandela’s Xhosa clan name, features four sections that represent different times in Mandela’s life: a dream of a unified South Africa, the struggle for that dream, the triumph when that dream is manifested, and the reflection upon the legacy Mandela left. Madiba features the South African national anthem, Nkosi Sikelel, featuring an extract from the hymn Nkosi Sikelel iAfrika (God Bless Africa), which became the informal anthem for the anti-Apartheid movement. Throughout Madiba, there are four sections where students have the chance to recite quotes from Nelson Mandela. It is a song that celebrates the strength and perseverance of mankind, and in the words of Mandela, "Everyone can rise above their circumstances and achieve success if they are dedicated to and passionate about what they do."
Gudiparan
Erin Paton Pierce, 2015
Grade 2.5
Duration: circa 3:30
Gudiparan focuses on the Afghan tradition of Gudiparan Bazi, or Kite Flying. While kite flying is common all around the world, the particular traditions of Gudiparan Bazi are held in countries like Pakistan, India, Iran, Korea, Japan, and Brazil. It's popularity and roots, however, are the strongest in Afghanistan. Gudiparan Bazi was banned by the Taliban during their regime but is now legal again and is making a comeback in neighbourhoods across Afghanistan.
Gudiparan (kites) in Afghanistan are typically made out of fine paper and bamboo wood, chosen for its flexibility. Kites can be anywhere between 10"-12" to human sized in diameter. The string or wire for the kites is typically covered in tar for abrasiveness. The wire connects to a charkha, or drum, which was made of wood.
In Afghanistan, the main purpose for kites is a sport called kite fighting. These fights (jang) can be as small as a two kite battle or can be as large as a neighborhood competition and are almost always consisting of child participants. The objective is to cut down opponents' kites using the tar wire and to be the last kite flying. As the kites are cut and start to fall from the sky, kite runners, children not participating in the fight who try to catch the kites, compete on the ground to catch their own kite to keep as a trophy of sorts. Each kite fighting team consists of two people: the kite flyer and the charkha gir (the person holding the drum) and success in kite fighting rests on the cooperation of both team members.
Gudiparan is a musical illustration of a kite fight, having certain sections in the band act as a kite. The piece starts big and exciting as all of the kites are flung high into the air, thus marking the beginning of the fight. There are several short motifs that will appear throughout the piece: the "showdown" motif when two kites close in on each other, the "cut" motif where one of the kites is cut down, and the "running" motif where children are running to catch the fallen kite. I used concepts from Afghan folk songs, which tend to be in complex time signatures and have very scale-based melodies with little to no leaps in pitches. Instead of using a complex meter such as 5/8, I wrote Gudiparan in 3/4 time to give the feel of amore complicated meter without being too challenging for the performers.
Grade 2.5
Duration: circa 3:30
Gudiparan focuses on the Afghan tradition of Gudiparan Bazi, or Kite Flying. While kite flying is common all around the world, the particular traditions of Gudiparan Bazi are held in countries like Pakistan, India, Iran, Korea, Japan, and Brazil. It's popularity and roots, however, are the strongest in Afghanistan. Gudiparan Bazi was banned by the Taliban during their regime but is now legal again and is making a comeback in neighbourhoods across Afghanistan.
Gudiparan (kites) in Afghanistan are typically made out of fine paper and bamboo wood, chosen for its flexibility. Kites can be anywhere between 10"-12" to human sized in diameter. The string or wire for the kites is typically covered in tar for abrasiveness. The wire connects to a charkha, or drum, which was made of wood.
In Afghanistan, the main purpose for kites is a sport called kite fighting. These fights (jang) can be as small as a two kite battle or can be as large as a neighborhood competition and are almost always consisting of child participants. The objective is to cut down opponents' kites using the tar wire and to be the last kite flying. As the kites are cut and start to fall from the sky, kite runners, children not participating in the fight who try to catch the kites, compete on the ground to catch their own kite to keep as a trophy of sorts. Each kite fighting team consists of two people: the kite flyer and the charkha gir (the person holding the drum) and success in kite fighting rests on the cooperation of both team members.
Gudiparan is a musical illustration of a kite fight, having certain sections in the band act as a kite. The piece starts big and exciting as all of the kites are flung high into the air, thus marking the beginning of the fight. There are several short motifs that will appear throughout the piece: the "showdown" motif when two kites close in on each other, the "cut" motif where one of the kites is cut down, and the "running" motif where children are running to catch the fallen kite. I used concepts from Afghan folk songs, which tend to be in complex time signatures and have very scale-based melodies with little to no leaps in pitches. Instead of using a complex meter such as 5/8, I wrote Gudiparan in 3/4 time to give the feel of amore complicated meter without being too challenging for the performers.
Monarchs
Erin Paton Pierce, 2010
Grade 3
Duration: circa 5:00
In the backyard of my childhood home in Remuera, New Zealand, there was a wall of milkweed stalks where I used to play. Every year, hundreds of monarch butterflies flocked to the milkweed stalks to eat, lay eggs, and protect their young. From the eggs hatched caterpillars, and although they blended in with the milkweed so well I always enjoyed trying to find them all. Eventually the caterpillars would wrap themselves in cocoons and in a week or two they would emerge as beautiful butterflies. I was always so fascinated by the butterfly life cycle, and I looked forward to butterfly season each year.
Monarchs was written for the memories I have of the butterflies fluttering about my backyard. It is a light piece that makes use of the woodwind and mallet percussion colours as well as the percussive sounds of accented brass. There are three sections for the piece: the main monarch theme, the caterpillar and chrysalis themes, and a reprise of the monarch theme as the new butterflies come out of their cocoons.
This piece is important to me not only because of the memory it is based off of but because it is my first concert band composition. As such, Monarchs has set the stage for my future concert band works and will continue to be a special part of my catalogue.
Grade 3
Duration: circa 5:00
In the backyard of my childhood home in Remuera, New Zealand, there was a wall of milkweed stalks where I used to play. Every year, hundreds of monarch butterflies flocked to the milkweed stalks to eat, lay eggs, and protect their young. From the eggs hatched caterpillars, and although they blended in with the milkweed so well I always enjoyed trying to find them all. Eventually the caterpillars would wrap themselves in cocoons and in a week or two they would emerge as beautiful butterflies. I was always so fascinated by the butterfly life cycle, and I looked forward to butterfly season each year.
Monarchs was written for the memories I have of the butterflies fluttering about my backyard. It is a light piece that makes use of the woodwind and mallet percussion colours as well as the percussive sounds of accented brass. There are three sections for the piece: the main monarch theme, the caterpillar and chrysalis themes, and a reprise of the monarch theme as the new butterflies come out of their cocoons.
This piece is important to me not only because of the memory it is based off of but because it is my first concert band composition. As such, Monarchs has set the stage for my future concert band works and will continue to be a special part of my catalogue.
Sea to Sky
Erin Paton Pierce, 2017
Grade 3+
Duration: circa 3:30
I love Canada. If you know me, that is no secret. I love it so much that I keep trying to find excuses to go back (and not just to eat bags and bags of “All Dressed” Ruffles). Particularly, I love British Columbia—from the Canadian Rockies to the coast of the Salish Sea. I love Vancouver and its landscape, its diversity, and its charm. I love the Costal Mountains that tower over the coastline. I love the lush rainforest and the trees that are as tall as skyscrapers. I love that even out on the West coast there are people who still speak French like their ancestors, and my French learning didn’t seem like such a waste. I love the First Nations there, who are now breathing new life into their ancient cultures for what really is the first time since colonialism began in Canada and the rest of North America. I love how these First Nations are always so strong in their struggle for rights and proper representation in government, and I love their allies too. I love the people in British Columbia in general—they are so friendly and kind even to strange and obnoxious Kiwi American tourists like me. I love Vancouver. I love British Columbia. I love Canada.
As with most things I love, I had to write a song as tribute and decided to focus the concept of the piece on Highway 99—the Sea to Sky Highway. This highway starts on the US/Canada border adjacent to Washington state, runs through downtown Vancouver, and continues north up the coast of Howe Sound past some extremely scenic views, several provincial parks, the outdoor recreation town of Squamish, and then continues through the Coastal Mountains passing by the Whistler Blackcomb ski resort where the 2010 Vancouver Olympics partially took place. The highway passes through two different First Nations lands—the Squamish and the Lil’wat. I would recommend trying to find pictures of the highway on the internet, but even that would not do the highway justice.
Sea to Sky is a musical journey starting in the urban epicentre of Vancouver and then goes on to explore the nature, heritage, and wonder of the land the highway passes through. Take a drive up the Sea to Sky, stop to soak up the beautiful scenery, grab a donut and coffee at a Tim Hortons on your way, and enjoy one of the best drives one can take.
Grade 3+
Duration: circa 3:30
I love Canada. If you know me, that is no secret. I love it so much that I keep trying to find excuses to go back (and not just to eat bags and bags of “All Dressed” Ruffles). Particularly, I love British Columbia—from the Canadian Rockies to the coast of the Salish Sea. I love Vancouver and its landscape, its diversity, and its charm. I love the Costal Mountains that tower over the coastline. I love the lush rainforest and the trees that are as tall as skyscrapers. I love that even out on the West coast there are people who still speak French like their ancestors, and my French learning didn’t seem like such a waste. I love the First Nations there, who are now breathing new life into their ancient cultures for what really is the first time since colonialism began in Canada and the rest of North America. I love how these First Nations are always so strong in their struggle for rights and proper representation in government, and I love their allies too. I love the people in British Columbia in general—they are so friendly and kind even to strange and obnoxious Kiwi American tourists like me. I love Vancouver. I love British Columbia. I love Canada.
As with most things I love, I had to write a song as tribute and decided to focus the concept of the piece on Highway 99—the Sea to Sky Highway. This highway starts on the US/Canada border adjacent to Washington state, runs through downtown Vancouver, and continues north up the coast of Howe Sound past some extremely scenic views, several provincial parks, the outdoor recreation town of Squamish, and then continues through the Coastal Mountains passing by the Whistler Blackcomb ski resort where the 2010 Vancouver Olympics partially took place. The highway passes through two different First Nations lands—the Squamish and the Lil’wat. I would recommend trying to find pictures of the highway on the internet, but even that would not do the highway justice.
Sea to Sky is a musical journey starting in the urban epicentre of Vancouver and then goes on to explore the nature, heritage, and wonder of the land the highway passes through. Take a drive up the Sea to Sky, stop to soak up the beautiful scenery, grab a donut and coffee at a Tim Hortons on your way, and enjoy one of the best drives one can take.
Letters From Japan
Erin Paton Pierce, 2017
Grade 4
Duration: circa 4:00
As a child, having a pen pal was always something I treasured. I loved writing letters and receiving letters from people around the world, learning about other countries and cultures, and broadening my world view. With the creation of Facebook and other social media platforms, the novelty of pen pal letter writing was quickly replaced by more efficient ways to connect with people around the world. I’m not a social media pessimist (I’m a social media junkie millennial—disowning it would be against my creed or something?) and I can better keep in touch with people countries and oceans away, but I do miss the simple act of letter writing.
Very recently, I got back into pen pal letter exchanges, particularly with friends of mine who have moved to Japan and China for work and fulfilling life dreams. Finding funny or cool stationery to use, drawing pictures, collecting stamps—it’s all very nostalgic to me and means so much to me to do again. I wrote Letters From Japan as a homage to pen pal letter writing, but also a nod to the friendship I had with my current pen pals while they still lived close by. There were many Asian dishes cooked and Hayao Miyazaki movies watched (the music in them is amazing, by the way). I would love to live overseas someday (technically I already am!) but until then, I will keep writing letters to those who are.
Grade 4
Duration: circa 4:00
As a child, having a pen pal was always something I treasured. I loved writing letters and receiving letters from people around the world, learning about other countries and cultures, and broadening my world view. With the creation of Facebook and other social media platforms, the novelty of pen pal letter writing was quickly replaced by more efficient ways to connect with people around the world. I’m not a social media pessimist (I’m a social media junkie millennial—disowning it would be against my creed or something?) and I can better keep in touch with people countries and oceans away, but I do miss the simple act of letter writing.
Very recently, I got back into pen pal letter exchanges, particularly with friends of mine who have moved to Japan and China for work and fulfilling life dreams. Finding funny or cool stationery to use, drawing pictures, collecting stamps—it’s all very nostalgic to me and means so much to me to do again. I wrote Letters From Japan as a homage to pen pal letter writing, but also a nod to the friendship I had with my current pen pals while they still lived close by. There were many Asian dishes cooked and Hayao Miyazaki movies watched (the music in them is amazing, by the way). I would love to live overseas someday (technically I already am!) but until then, I will keep writing letters to those who are.
Musings of an Idealist: A (Not) Folk Song Suite
Erin Paton Pierce, 2015
Grade 4
Duration: circa 12:00
Even before I became involved in music, I was always drawing pictures, creating worlds, and writing stories. As many young people do, I had a terrible habit of finishing what I started until, thankfully, I finally created something that I decided, “Yes, this is the one that will get published!” The story in question was a novella I wrote back in 2003 which consisted of a lost princess trying to return home. I created characters, languages, and a country. I originally wanted the story to take place in China, but I didn’t want to go through all the research to make it historically accurate. Funny enough, I ended up doing even more work creating all of the original lore. Go figure. Creating is more fun than researching, anyways.
I held onto the ideas for the story long enough to create multiple drafts, turning the short 10 chapter novella into a full-length novel. I was never satisfied with it, so I took it to a friend to get his input. He told me exactly what I needed to hear: “Your writing sucks.” I was traumatized, thinking that I had wasted years upon years developing this story. But then he continued, saying that the story itself had a lot of potential. “Maybe you should make it into a comic. You tell such great stories with your pictures.” I started drawing right away and in 2014 I published the first graphic novel out of four in my series, Year of the Marachi. But I didn’t just stick to drawing to tell my story.
I decided to write several folk songs as part of the lore development. These folk songs were some of my very first compositions, some of them having been written as early as 2006. Many of them have been unused for years, so I have been looking for ways to utilize them in an effective but subtle way. Many of these folk songs were inserted into “Musings of an Idealist,” so named after a character from the story who is a composer. I was always inspired by band suites, particularly the two suites Gustav Holst wrote for military band, so I wanted to try to write a suite that paid tribute to the band suite tradition while bringing something new to the formula.
Movement One: "Dance" is a beautiful and energetic movement with a scale-based motif being tossed around in different tones and styles. The overall melody and style of this movement was based off of east Asian folk music, particularly a mix of Indian and Japanese Taiko.
Movement Two: : "Waltz" is heavily influenced by Romantic-era music with a Nationalist dash. The “chorus” after the oboe/soprano sax solo was the first section of the suite that I orchestrated, and it was a great chance to write some great chorale moments as well as more intimate moments.
Movement Three: "March" was a great opportunity to write something that was bonkers—totally cheesy, totally schmaltzy, and totally fun. It’s not often that I let my humour shine through my music, so this movement holds a bit of a special place for me. This march was inspired by many different symphonic marches, particularly Russian, British, and French marches.
Grade 4
Duration: circa 12:00
Even before I became involved in music, I was always drawing pictures, creating worlds, and writing stories. As many young people do, I had a terrible habit of finishing what I started until, thankfully, I finally created something that I decided, “Yes, this is the one that will get published!” The story in question was a novella I wrote back in 2003 which consisted of a lost princess trying to return home. I created characters, languages, and a country. I originally wanted the story to take place in China, but I didn’t want to go through all the research to make it historically accurate. Funny enough, I ended up doing even more work creating all of the original lore. Go figure. Creating is more fun than researching, anyways.
I held onto the ideas for the story long enough to create multiple drafts, turning the short 10 chapter novella into a full-length novel. I was never satisfied with it, so I took it to a friend to get his input. He told me exactly what I needed to hear: “Your writing sucks.” I was traumatized, thinking that I had wasted years upon years developing this story. But then he continued, saying that the story itself had a lot of potential. “Maybe you should make it into a comic. You tell such great stories with your pictures.” I started drawing right away and in 2014 I published the first graphic novel out of four in my series, Year of the Marachi. But I didn’t just stick to drawing to tell my story.
I decided to write several folk songs as part of the lore development. These folk songs were some of my very first compositions, some of them having been written as early as 2006. Many of them have been unused for years, so I have been looking for ways to utilize them in an effective but subtle way. Many of these folk songs were inserted into “Musings of an Idealist,” so named after a character from the story who is a composer. I was always inspired by band suites, particularly the two suites Gustav Holst wrote for military band, so I wanted to try to write a suite that paid tribute to the band suite tradition while bringing something new to the formula.
Movement One: "Dance" is a beautiful and energetic movement with a scale-based motif being tossed around in different tones and styles. The overall melody and style of this movement was based off of east Asian folk music, particularly a mix of Indian and Japanese Taiko.
Movement Two: : "Waltz" is heavily influenced by Romantic-era music with a Nationalist dash. The “chorus” after the oboe/soprano sax solo was the first section of the suite that I orchestrated, and it was a great chance to write some great chorale moments as well as more intimate moments.
Movement Three: "March" was a great opportunity to write something that was bonkers—totally cheesy, totally schmaltzy, and totally fun. It’s not often that I let my humour shine through my music, so this movement holds a bit of a special place for me. This march was inspired by many different symphonic marches, particularly Russian, British, and French marches.
World Concert Series
Sabbe Satta Sukhi Hontu
Kelan Rooney, 2015
Grade 5
Duration: circa 7:00
Sabbe Satta Sukhi Hontu is inspired by a Buddhist prayer chant. Translated from Pali, it means “all beings, happy may they be”, and as the first installment of my Tellus Cantus series I could think of no better phrase. Opening with an ethereal and meditative drone, the trance builds and is interrupted, and then builds again until the theme is introduced, first by the piccolo and then echoed by the ensemble. As the movement progresses, the melody breaks down and is replaced by a chorale setting of the original chant in the saxophones and mallet instruments. After a winding solo section featuring Oboe and Udu drum, the theme is reintroduced and driven towards a glorious finale which winds down to the original meditative theme. Influenced by Indian, Nepalese, and Tibetan ideas, Sabbe Satta Sukhi Hontu is a synthesis of, and tribute to the light and happiness that these cultures bring to our world.
Grade 5
Duration: circa 7:00
Sabbe Satta Sukhi Hontu is inspired by a Buddhist prayer chant. Translated from Pali, it means “all beings, happy may they be”, and as the first installment of my Tellus Cantus series I could think of no better phrase. Opening with an ethereal and meditative drone, the trance builds and is interrupted, and then builds again until the theme is introduced, first by the piccolo and then echoed by the ensemble. As the movement progresses, the melody breaks down and is replaced by a chorale setting of the original chant in the saxophones and mallet instruments. After a winding solo section featuring Oboe and Udu drum, the theme is reintroduced and driven towards a glorious finale which winds down to the original meditative theme. Influenced by Indian, Nepalese, and Tibetan ideas, Sabbe Satta Sukhi Hontu is a synthesis of, and tribute to the light and happiness that these cultures bring to our world.
Symphony no. 1: "Of Purple Mountain Majesties"
Erin Paton Pierce, 2014
Grade 5
Duration: circa 25:00
Over a decade prior to the completion of my first symphony, my family moved across the Pacific Ocean from New Zealand to the American state of Colorado. As the years passed, I found myself entranced by the beauty and spirit of my new home. In the summer of 2012, Colorado underwent a difficult chapter in the state’s history when dozens of wildfires, including record-breaking fires, spread throughout the land. Not long afterwards was the devastating Aurora theatre shooting in which 12 people were killed and dozens more were injured. In the aftermath of these tragedies, I was overcome by how strong and spirited Colorado’s citizens and community had grown, which led to me writing what would become the fourth movement of Symphony no. 1, “And the Mountains Still Stand,” based off of a poem I wrote in response to that summer.
“And the Mountains Still Stand” was originally going to be a stand-alone piece for concert band, but as I continued working on it I was overcome with ideas with Colorado being the common theme. Late in the writing process, I decided to turn the piece into a movement of my first symphony, adding the movements “Wild and Free,” “Rock Giants,” and “Snowfall.” “And the Mountains Still Stand” was modified to be an appropriate finale for the symphony.
Grade 5
Duration: circa 25:00
Over a decade prior to the completion of my first symphony, my family moved across the Pacific Ocean from New Zealand to the American state of Colorado. As the years passed, I found myself entranced by the beauty and spirit of my new home. In the summer of 2012, Colorado underwent a difficult chapter in the state’s history when dozens of wildfires, including record-breaking fires, spread throughout the land. Not long afterwards was the devastating Aurora theatre shooting in which 12 people were killed and dozens more were injured. In the aftermath of these tragedies, I was overcome by how strong and spirited Colorado’s citizens and community had grown, which led to me writing what would become the fourth movement of Symphony no. 1, “And the Mountains Still Stand,” based off of a poem I wrote in response to that summer.
“And the Mountains Still Stand” was originally going to be a stand-alone piece for concert band, but as I continued working on it I was overcome with ideas with Colorado being the common theme. Late in the writing process, I decided to turn the piece into a movement of my first symphony, adding the movements “Wild and Free,” “Rock Giants,” and “Snowfall.” “And the Mountains Still Stand” was modified to be an appropriate finale for the symphony.
Movement One: "Wild and Free"
Movement One: Wild and Free is a homage to the days of the old west, when cowboys patrolled the open range, native tribes lived in harmony with the nature, and settlers dropped everything to try their luck in the gold rush with the words “Pikes Peak or Bust” painted on their wagons. I utilized some musical tropes from Western movie soundtracks as well as throwing in more unusual musical ideas and instruments, such as the use of bongos as a hint of the Spanish explorers who passed through long ago. I wanted to send a message through Wild and Free that the proud state of Colorado is a land that cannot be tamed, even today.
Movement Two: "Rock Giants"
Movement Two: Rock Giants, originally named “Rock Titans,” is about the mountains that makes Colorado so famous. Colorado has the highest average elevation in the United States excluding Alaska and boasts having 53 mountains called “Fourteeners” that are above 14,000 ft (4267.2 meters) elevation above sea level. While in the States, I was particularly fond of a local peak, Pikes Peak, which towers above Colorado Springs like a rocky guardian. Rock Giants was difficult to write because I wanted to capture the power and majesty as well as sheer beauty of the Colorado Rocky Mountains as accurately as I could. I utilized the brass section as well as the percussion section to convey this power while having the woodwinds add a sparkle over the thick brass texture to convey beauty.
Movement Three: "Snowfall"
Movement Three: Snowfall is a two-sided piece dealing with both the literal sensation of snowfall and the metaphorical implication of dealing with tragedy and difficult times. There is a strange and reverent beauty in hardship that I find very sobering, much like the feeling I have when watching snow fall in chilling air. If the fourth movement, And the Mountains Still Stand, stands for the response to difficult times, Snowfall takes place directly after or even during the difficult times and demonstrates the complex emotions associated with such events in a delicate and almost intimate instrumentation and melodic themes. This movement heavily features the woodwinds playing a lament as well as some mallet percussion representing the snow.
Movement Four: "And the Mountains Still Stand"
Movement Four: And the Mountains Still Stand was the first movement composed out of the four but yet took the longest to complete. I admittedly chose a challenging concept for this movement to write about—the spirit of the Colorado community as well as nature—and I wanted to be sure I captured that spirit as accurately as possible. The movement starts with a single note played by a clarinet that hangs over from the previous movement and continues to figuratively pick itself up as the movement continues, adding more voices and growing more joyous. The movement eventually builds up to a cacophony of beautiful dance-like sounds as a celebration begins, and the momentum continues up to the grand finale.