SKU: CF.YPS221

ISBN 9781491156605. UPC: 680160915149. 9 x 12 inches.

Here is a clarinet feature that will reinforce the young student's early use of the upper register. The second clarinet part is in the lower register, but all students should be encouraged to learn the first upper part. Show off your clarinet section with Dancing Clarinets. Performance Time: 110.

Instruments:
Bass Clarinet, Bass Drum, Bassoon, Bells, Clarinet 1, Clarinet 2, Euphonium, Euphonium T.C., Flute, Horn, Mallet Percussion, Oboe, Percussion 1, Percussion 2, Snare Drum, Timpani, Triangle, Trombone, Trumpet 1, Trumpet 2, Tuba, alto Saxophone and more.

SKU: MH.1-59913-054-8

ISBN 9781599130545.

Royal Coronation Dances is the first sequel to the Fanfare Ode & Festival, both being settings of dance music originally arranged by Gervaise in the mid 16th-century (the next sequel is The Renaissance Fair, which uses music of Susato and Praetorius). Fanfare Ode & Festival has been performed by many tens of thousands of students, both in high school and junior high school. I have heard that some of them are amazed that the music they are playing was first played and danced to over 400 years ago. Some students tend to think that music started with Handel and his Messiah to be followed by Beethoven and his Fifth Symphony, with naught in between or before of consequence. Although Royal Coronation Dances is derived from the same source as Fanfare Ode & Festival, they are treated in different ways. I envisioned this new suite programmatically -- hence the descriptive movement titles, which I imagined to be various dances actually used at some long-ago coronation. The first movement depicts the guests, both noble and common, flanked by flag and banner bearers, arriving at the palace to view the majestic event. They are festive, their flags swirling the air, their cloaks brightly colored. In the second movement, the queen in stately measure moves to take her place on the throne as leader and protector of the realm. In the third movement, the jesters of the court entertain the guests with wild games of sport. Musically, there are interesting sonorities to recreate. Very special attention should be given to the tambourine/tenor drum part in the first movement. Their lively rhythms give the movement its power. Therefore they should be played as distinctly and brilliantly as possible. The xylophone and glockenspiel add clarity, but must not be allowed to dominate. Observe especially the differing dynamics; the intent is to allow much buzzing bass to penetrate. The small drum (starting at meas. 29) should be played expressively, with attention to the notated articulations, with the brass light and detached, especially in a lively auditorium. It is of some further interest that the first dance is extremely modal. The original is clearly in G mixolydian mode (scale: G-A-B-C-D-E-F-G). However, other editors might put in F-sharps in many places (changing the piece almost to G major), in the belief that such ficta would have been automatically put in by the 16th-century performers as they played. I doubt it. I have not only eschewed these within the work, but even at the cadences. So this arrangement is most distinctly modal (listen to the F-naturals in meas. 22 and 23, for instance), with all the part-writing as Gervaise wrote it. In the second movement, be careful that things do not become too glued together. In the 16th century this music might have been played by a consort of recorders, instruments very light of touch and sensitive to articulation. Concert band can easily sound heavy, and although this movement has been scored for tutti band, it must not sound it. It is essential, therefore, that you hear all the instruments, with none predominating. Only when each timbre can be heard separately and simultaneously will the best blend occur, and consequently the greatest transparency. So aim for a transparent, spacious tutti sound in this movement. Especially have the flutes, who do this so well, articulate rather sharply, so as to produce a chiffing sound, and do not allow the quarter-notes to become too tied together in the entire band. The entrance of the drums (first tenor, then bass) are events and as such should be audible. Incidentally, this movement begins in F Major and ends in D Minor: They really didn't care so much about those things then. The third movement (one friend has remarked that it is the most Margolisian of the bunch, but actually I am just getting subtler, I hope) again relies upon the percussion (and the scoring) to make its points. Xylophone in this movement is meant to be distinctly audible. Therefore, be especially sure that the xylophone player is secure in the part, and also that the tambourine and toms sound good. This movement must fly or it will sink, so rev up the band and conduct it in 1 for this mixolydian jesting. I suppose the wildly unrelated keys (clarinets and then brass at the end) would be a good 16th-century joke, but to us, our put-up-the-chorus-a-half-step ears readily accept such shenanigans. Ensemble instrumentation: 1 Full Score, 1 Piccolo, 4 Flute 1, 4 Flute 2 & 3, 2 Oboe 1 & 2, 2 Bassoon 1 & 2, 1 Eb Clarinet, 4 Bb Clarinet 1, 4 Bb Clarinet 2, 4 Bb Clarinet 3, 2 Eb Alto Clarinet, 1 Eb Contra Alto Clarinet, 3 Bb Bass & Bb Contrabass Clarinet, 2 Eb Alto Saxophone 1, 2 Eb Alto Saxophone 2, 2 Bb Tenor Saxophone, 2 Eb Baritone Saxophone, 3 Bb Trumpet 1, 3 Bb Trumpet 2, 3 Bb Trumpet 3, 4 Horn in F 1 & 2, 2 Trombone 1, 4 Trombone 2 & 3, 3 Euphonium (B.C.), 2 Euphonium (T.C.), 4 Tuba, 1 String Bass, 1 Timpani (optional), 2 Xylophone & Glockenspiel, 5 Percussion.

SKU: CF.CPS219F

ISBN 9781491153130. UPC: 680160910632.

Solar Flare, by Tyler Arcari, depicts the huge explosion on the Sun that appears as a sudden bright flash. The piece incorporates a whirlwind of mixed meters to?depict this phenomenon. Arcari showcases his fresh, exciting, and well-scored compositional style in this piece. Solar Flare makes for? an excellent concert opener.
A solar flare is a huge explosion on the sun that appears as a sudden increase in brightness or flash. Sometimes these explosions push large amounts of energy and even parts of the sun flying out into space. These events can be so powerful that they cause events on Earth such as auroras, as well as more serious issues like disrupting radio and electronic instruments. To our naked eye, these dangerous explosions are beautiful and quiet. The celestial is a fascinating place, hopefully captured in some small part by this work. About the Work: Solar Flare began as a piece with two goals: to write a space piece in 7/8 and to write a teaching 7/8 space piece. The piece uses a 2-2-3 pattern, so using this in pre-performance warm-ups might be beneficial. The piece is loosely based on a minor second descending to a minor third. This motif is used at the onset of the piece in the mallet percussion and then again in the woodwinds. The melody presents itself at m. 19 in the clarinets. This melodic material is varied and traded throughout the instrument groups until m.67. Measures 6972 should be treated as a transitional fanfare to the new material at m. 73. Measures 99115 to the end of the piece feature a style similar to the beginning that helps to transition to m. 115, which is the climax of the work. An ostinato pattern (2-2-3) is presented with fragments of the melody appearing in the alto voices. This momentum culminates in a large, abrasive area at m. 125 where the suspension-resolution in the brass and horn melodic fragment need to be the focus. This momentum continuously grows until the last note where we resolve finally. Care should be taken that the ^ accent on the final note is one meant to be played heavy, and not short.
A solar flare is a huge explosion on the sun that appears as a sudden increase in brightness or flash. Sometimes these explosions push large amounts of energy and even parts of the sun flying out into space. These events can be so powerful that they cause events on Earth such as auroras, as well as more serious issues like disrupting radio and electronic instruments. To our naked eye, these dangerous explosions are beautiful and quiet. The celestial is a fascinating place, hopefully captured in some small part by this work. About the Work: Solar Flare began as a piece with two goals: to write a space piece in 7/8 and to write a ateaching 7/8a space piece. The piece uses a 2-2-3 pattern, so using this in pre-performance warm-ups might be beneficial. The piece is loosely based on a minor second descending to a minor third. This motif is used at the onset of the piece in the mallet percussion and then again in the woodwinds. The melody presents itself at m. 19 in the clarinets. This melodic material is varied and traded throughout the instrument groups until m.67. Measures 69a72 should be treated as a transitional fanfare to the new material at m. 73. Measures 99a115 to the end of the piece feature a style similar to the beginning that helps to transition to m. 115, which is the climax of the work. An ostinato pattern (2-2-3) is presented with fragments of the melody appearing in the alto voices. This momentum culminates in a large, abrasive area at m. 125 where the suspension-resolution in the brass and horn melodic fragment need to be the focus. This momentum continuously grows until the last note where we resolve finally. Care should be taken that the a^a accent on the final note is one meant to be played heavy, and not short.
A solar flare is a huge explosion on the sun that appears as a sudden increase in brightness or flash. Sometimes these explosions push large amounts of energy and even parts of the sun flying out into space. These events can be so powerful that they cause events on Earth such as auroras, as well as more serious issues like disrupting radio and electronic instruments. To our naked eye, these dangerous explosions are beautiful and quiet. The celestial is a fascinating place, hopefully captured in some small part by this work. About the Work: Solar Flare began as a piece with two goals: to write a space piece in 7/8 and to write a ateaching 7/8a space piece. The piece uses a 2-2-3 pattern, so using this in pre-performance warm-ups might be beneficial. The piece is loosely based on a minor second descending to a minor third. This motif is used at the onset of the piece in the mallet percussion and then again in the woodwinds. The melody presents itself at m. 19 in the clarinets. This melodic material is varied and traded throughout the instrument groups until m.67. Measures 69a72 should be treated as a transitional fanfare to the new material at m. 73. Measures 99a115 to the end of the piece feature a style similar to the beginning that helps to transition to m. 115, which is the climax of the work. An ostinato pattern (2-2-3) is presented with fragments of the melody appearing in the alto voices. This momentum culminates in a large, abrasive area at m. 125 where the suspension-resolution in the brass and horn melodic fragment need to be the focus. This momentum continuously grows until the last note where we resolve finally. Care should be taken that the a^a accent on the final note is one meant to be played heavy, and not short.
A solar flare is a huge explosion on the sun that appears as a sudden increase in brightness or flash. Sometimes these explosions push large amounts of energy and even parts of the sun flying out into space. These events can be so powerful that they cause events on Earth such as auroras, as well as more serious issues like disrupting radio and electronic instruments. To our naked eye, these dangerous explosions are beautiful and quiet. The celestial is a fascinating place, hopefully captured in some small part by this work. About the Work: Solar Flare began as a piece with two goals: to write a space piece in 7/8 and to write a teaching 7/8 space piece. The piece uses a 2-2-3 pattern, so using this in pre-performance warm-ups might be beneficial. The piece is loosely based on a minor second descending to a minor third. This motif is used at the onset of the piece in the mallet percussion and then again in the woodwinds. The melody presents itself at m. 19 in the clarinets. This melodic material is varied and traded throughout the instrument groups until m.67. Measures 69-72 should be treated as a transitional fanfare to the new material at m. 73. Measures 99-115 to the end of the piece feature a style similar to the beginning that helps to transition to m. 115, which is the climax of the work. An ostinato pattern (2-2-3) is presented with fragments of the melody appearing in the alto voices. This momentum culminates in a large, abrasive area at m. 125 where the suspension-resolution in the brass and horn melodic fragment need to be the focus. This momentum continuously grows until the last note where we resolve finally. Care should be taken that the ^ accent on the final note is one meant to be played heavy, and not short.
A solar flare is a huge explosion on the sun that appears as a sudden increase in brightness or flash. Sometimes these explosions push large amounts of energy and even parts of the sun flying out into space. These events can be so powerful that they cause events on Earth such as auroras, as well as more serious issues like disrupting radio and electronic instruments. To our naked eye, these dangerous explosions are beautiful and quiet. The celestial is a fascinating place, hopefully captured in some small part by this work. About the Work: Solar Flare began as a piece with two goals: to write a space piece in 7/8 and to write a teaching 7/8 space piece. The piece uses a 2-2-3 pattern, so using this in pre-performance warm-ups might be beneficial. The piece is loosely based on a minor second descending to a minor third. This motif is used at the onset of the piece in the mallet percussion and then again in the woodwinds. The melody presents itself at m. 19 in the clarinets. This melodic material is varied and traded throughout the instrument groups until m.67. Measures 69-72 should be treated as a transitional fanfare to the new material at m. 73. Measures 99-115 to the end of the piece feature a style similar to the beginning that helps to transition to m. 115, which is the climax of the work. An ostinato pattern (2-2-3) is presented with fragments of the melody appearing in the alto voices. This momentum culminates in a large, abrasive area at m. 125 where the suspension-resolution in the brass and horn melodic fragment need to be the focus. This momentum continuously grows until the last note where we resolve finally. Care should be taken that the ^ accent on the final note is one meant to be played heavy, and not short.
A solar flare is a huge explosion on the sun that appears as a sudden increase in brightness or flash. Sometimes these explosions push large amounts of energy and even parts of the sun flying out into space. These events can be so powerful that they cause events on Earth such as auroras, as well as more serious issues like disrupting radio and electronic instruments. To our naked eye, these dangerous explosions are beautiful and quiet. The celestial is a fascinating place, hopefully captured in some small part by this work.About the Work:Solar Flare began as a piece with two goals: to write a space piece in 7/8 and to write a “teaching 7/8” space piece. The piece uses a 2-2-3 pattern, so using this in pre-performance warm-ups might be beneficial. The piece is loosely based on a minor second descending to a minor third. This motif is used at the onset of the piece in the mallet percussion and then again in the woodwinds. The melody presents itself at m. 19 in the clarinets. This melodic material is varied and traded throughout the instrument groups until m.67. Measures 69–72 should be treated as a transitional fanfare to the new material at m. 73.Measures 99–115 to the end of the piece feature a style similar to the beginning that helps to transition to m. 115, which is the climax of the work. An ostinato pattern (2-2-3) is presented with fragments of the melody appearing in the alto voices. This momentum culminates in a large, abrasive area at m. 125 where the suspension-resolution in the brass and horn melodic fragment need to be the focus. This momentum continuously grows until the last note where we resolve finally. Care should be taken that the “^” accent on the final note is one meant to be played heavy, and not short.

SKU: PR.16500092L

UPC: 680160039531. 11 x 17 inches.

Zion is the third and final installment of a series of works for Wind Ensemble inspired by national parks in the western United States, collectively called Three Places in the West. As in the other two works (The Yellowstone Fires and Arches), it is my intention to convey more an impression of the feelings I've had in Zion National Park in Utah than an attempt at pictorial description. Zion is a place with unrivalled natural grandeur, being a sort of huge box canyon in which the traveler is constantly overwhelmed by towering rock walls on every side of him -- but it is also a place with a human history, having been inhabited by several tribes of native Americans before the arrival of the Mormon settlers in the mid-19th century. By the time the Mormons reached Utah, they had been driven all the way from New York State through Ohio and, with tragic losses, through Missouri. They saw Utah in general as a place nobody wanted, but they were nonetheless determined to keep it to themselves. Although Zion Canyon was never a Mormon Stronghold, the people who reached it and claimed it (and gave it its present name) had been through extreme trials. It is the religious fervor of these persecuted people that I was able to draw upon in creating Zion as a piece of music. There are two quoted hymns in the work: Zion's Walls (which Aaron Copland adapted to his own purposes in both is Old American Songs and the opera The Tender Land) and Zion's Security, which I found in the same volume in which Copland found Zion's Walls -- that inexhaustible storehouse of 19th-century hymnody called The Sacred Harp. My work opens with a three-verse setting of Zion's Security, a stern tune in F-sharp minor which is full of resolve. (The words of this hymn are resolute and strong, rallying the faithful to be firm, and describing the city of our God they hope to establish). This melody alternates with a fanfare tune, whose origins will be revealed in later music, until the second half of the piece begins: a driving rhythmic ostinato based on a 3/4-4/4 alternating meter scheme. This pauses at its height to restate Zion's Security one more time, in a rather obscure setting surrounded by freely shifting patterns in the flutes, clarinets, and percussion -- until the sun warms the ground sufficiently for the second hymn to appear. Zion's Walls is set in 7/8, unlike Copland's 9/8-6/8 meters (the original is quite strange, and doesn't really fit any constant meter), and is introduced by a warm horn solo. The two hymns vie for attention from here to the end of the piece, with the glowingly optimistic Zion's Walls finally achieving prominence. The work ends with a sense of triumph and unbreakable spirit. Zion was commissioned in 1994 by the wind ensembles of the University of Texas at Arlington, the University of Texas at Austin, and the University of Oklahoma. It is dedicated to the memory of Aaron Copland.

SKU: MH.1-59913-070-X

ISBN 9781599130705.

Program Notes: Stylistically diverse -- tranquil, spirited pastoral, sensitive, energetic -- exhibiting a remarkable palette, the five movements of SINFONIA IX form a unique symphonic statement. Movement I, Prelude, is about contrasts: A lazy, smooth, motive in brasses alternates with, and then joins, an active and detached motive in woodwinds. The spirited Movement II, Morley's Ghost, is an intricate canonic collage and homage to that venerable theoretician & composer, Thomas Morley. By contrast, movement III, Dialog, speaks in a relaxed, lyrical, and pastoral language as it develops its gently rising and falling motives. Movement IV, Waltz, innocently celebrates the joys of childhood with a lilting melody and rondo form. For the rousing Finale, Movement V begins with a martial call of repeated-notes, heralding a headstrong journey of power and excitement. Like a number of the composer's other works, SINFONIA IX is based on earlier material: A brass sextet, written in 1966 when the composer was nineteen years old, forms the raw material for the first, third and fifth movements, while a later work, Martin's Waltz (a children's piece for flutes and clarinets composed in 1975) is the basis of the fourth movement. The second movement, however, is a fanciful contrapuntal commentary on Thomas Morley's 16th-century canzonet, Fire and Lightning. SINFONIA IX is dedicated to John Raforth, a distinguished band director and music educator at West High School in Madison, Wisconsin. The work was commissioned by his friends and former students, and was completed in 1977. Its first publication some twenty years later is a result of the increasing attention paid by university band directors to the earlier Sinfonias, particularly Sinfonia III (Hymns and Dances); Sinfonia V (Sinfonia Sacra et Profana); and now, Sinfonia IX. Whereas the first two works are wind ensemble compositions that have been championed equally by the concert band, Sinfonia IX is the composer's first college-level Sinfonia written especially for concert band. Ensemble instrumentation: 1 Piccolo, 8 Flute 1-2, 2 Oboe, 1 Eb Clarinet, 4 Bb Clarinet 1, 4 Bb Clarinet 2, 4 Bb Clarinet 3, 3 Bb Bass Clarinet, 2 Bassoon, 4 Eb Alto Saxophone, 2 Bb Tenor Saxophone, 1 Eb Baritone Saxophone, 3 Bb Trumpet 1, 3 Bb Trumpet 2, 3 Bb Trumpet 3, 2 F Horn 1-2, 2 F Horn 3-4, 3 Trombone 1, 3 Trombone 2, 3 Baritone B.C., 2 Baritone T.C., 4 Tuba, 3 String Bass, 2 Timpani, 5 Percussion.

SKU: CF.CPS222

ISBN 9781491152485. UPC: 680160909988.

From the call of the open seas to the wistful dance section, this piece will open the imagination of your students and audiences.  Very playable by young bands, the piece features a short opening ostinato that develops into a tone cluster and leads to the ominous sounds of the brass and percussion, which depict the slow lumbering ship on the dangerous, open waters. The piece continues through a more lyrical second section before a dramatic return of the opening material to close out this contest/festival style piece.
From the call of the open seas to the wistful dance section, this piece will open the imagination of your students and audiences. Very playable by young bands, the piece features a short opening ostinato that develops into a tone cluster. This leads to the ominous sounds of the brass and percussion, which depict the slow lumbering ship on the dangerous, open waters. After a quickly paced melody in the low register for the clarinets, the piece gives way to an exciting tutti section that features horns and saxes on an answering countermelody.The second section is a dance that starts with low reeds and a flute solo, but develops into a full band Spanish-sounding dance, with melody in many different places. The recap is a reverse of the beginning section and again loosely represents the danger of life on the high seas.The short ostinato that is used at the beginning and in some transitional moments is based on the beginning notes of Irish Tune from County Derry, a favorite of J. C. Sykes, who this piece honors. Mr. Sykes gave a lifetime to teaching music to band students in North Carolina. The first four notes in clarinet 1, the first four in flute 1 and the first four in clarinet 2 make up the first phrase from that beautiful melody. Just something to get students thinking about composition in a new way.

SKU: CF.CPS216

ISBN 9781491152423. UPC: 680160909926.

Cosmic Expedition takes performers on a musical journey far across the galaxy via three main sections.  This fanfare composition would be perfect for opening a concert. It has bold brass fanfare figures over textural woodwinds to start and then takes the listener on a sonic journey through a variation of harmonic colors, tambural and textural shifts.
Cosmic Expedition takes performers on a musical journey far across the galaxy via three main sections. The first, a rather celebratory and triumphant fanfare in Bb major begins with the upper woodwinds and percussion creating a sound-screen, that is a busy texture consisting of a flurry of repeated notes over which the horns and alto saxophones present the opening theme. The sound-screen should be carefully balanced and give way to the melody at m. 5, which should be played extremely marcato. The timpani solo beginning in m. 11 must not be understated. A brief percussion interlude separates a restatement of the opening theme, this time with the addition of the trumpet, tenor saxophone, and euphonium, and a counter melody by the low winds. The percussion interlude is playful, light, but full of vigor and energy. An Ab in the low winds pulls the harmony towards G minor in m. 40 to start the second section, a more serious fanfare. Here, the marimba repeats an ostinato that is complemented by the bass drum and woodblock. The upper woodwinds with the xylophone and snare drum dance over the stern secondary fanfare. A longing call lead by the trombones, interrupted by a subtle snare drum beckons to the clarinets and horn who begin the third section of the piece at m. 68. This haunting melody in C minor is legato, and starkly contrasts all which came before it. A relentless concert tom-tom played with hard mallets keeps the momentum persistent, and a heartbeat-like pulse is felt from the tuba and baritone saxophone. The melody rises towards m. 84 when the brass harken back to the fanfare style before fading back into another lush woodwind strain.A recapitulation of the low winds’ call is heard at m. 100 which in this occasion intensifies into an emphatic statement by the battery percussion instruments. Now in Eb major, the opening fanfare theme is heard again once more before fading into the beginning of the piece’s conclusion.To end, the counter melody from the opening section duels with chromatic tension above before swelling to an arrival in the original key of Bb major. The full ensemble celebrates the piece’s resolution, and after a few crunchy power chords the journey is completed.

SKU: CF.YPS208

ISBN 9781491152287. UPC: 680160909780. Key: D minor.

A stunning and heart-wrenching composition based on the Jewish folk son Shlof, Mayn Kind. You can hear the emotional content pour out of this piece written in memory of an outstanding orchestra director. The piece beginnings with original material to set the tone, followed by a clarinet solo on the song. It then develops through a variety of different harmonic presentation before building to a nice key change and climatic moment. The piece ends as it began, but with a more hopeful tone. An amazing piece.
Sleep, My Child was commissioned by the Madison Middle School Band and Orchestra in Tampa, Florida, and is dedicated to the memory of their Director of Orchestras Kevin Frye. Director of Bands Chris Shultz championed the commissioning of this piece to honor Kevin after he passed away in December 2016. Mr. Frye was a beloved member of the staff at Madison Middle as well as the music community of Tampa and the state of Florida. I was a personal friend of Kevin’s. We were in several musical groups together when we were young that were formative to both of our musical careers. I also guest conducted his Madison Middle School Orchestra several times over the past four years. His musicianship, teaching skills and love for his students were exemplary.When taking on the challenge of writing a piece to honor Kevin’s legacy, Mr. Shultz and I decided to try and include several important aspects of Kevin’s life into the piece. Kevin was proudly Jewish, a fantastic trumpet player and loved Jazz. With that in mind, and after a lot of research, a Jewish folk song Shlof, Mayn Kind was selected as the basis for the piece, not to be religious, but to honor his faith and heritage. Plus it is a beautiful song, and I felt the title reflected the sentiment I was looking to express, which is of someone taking rest after a long battle with illness. Thus, a lullaby seemed appropriate.I also wanted to incorporate Jazz into the piece, but in a concert setting, so you will hear as the piece develops, the harmonies of the folk song expand into ones found more commonly in Jazz compositions. Not in a far out way, but in a subtle way to again honor this part of his life. For example the climactic moment of the piece at the fermata in m. 57 is a Dbmaj9#11 chord. It appropriately give the piece the angst that I was looking for at this moment in the piece, while honoring the importance of Jazz in Kevin’s musical life.The piece was also conceived to include both the Madison band and orchestra in the performance at the premiere. I wanted the pieces to work separately by the band and separately by the orchestra, but I also wanted them to be able to play the piece together to honor Kevin.The piece begins with original material designed to set the mood of the piece with a tempo/style marking of pensive, but also as material that I used as connective musical tissue between statements of the folk song.  After this introduction, the folk song is presented by a solo violin (or clarinet) with orchestral accompaniment in a simple straight forward presentation of the song. This is followed by a woodwind section statement of the folk song accompanied by muted trumpets. During this presentation the harmony starts to expand with more color notes in the chords. The low brass are added half way through this statement to add depth and lushness.The introductory material returns, but with some angry hits in the lower voices. This leads to a full ensemble state of new material that is used to transition to the climax of the piece, and to build tension. After the build, the piece modulates to a shortened statement of the folk song with more advanced harmonies and an active counter line in the violas, horns, saxes and first clarinets to further build the tension.  This tension is released at the fermata in m. 57, as mentioned above. After a thoughtful pause, the piece concludes with a completion of the folk song again with a solo violin (or clarinet) followed by a return of the introductory material to tie the piece together. The piece ends hopeful, with a solo trumpet (Kevin’s instrument) that is dissonant at first, but then resolves as if to say - everything will be OK! It has been my distinct honor to have been asked to write this piece in Kevin’s memory! I hope that in some small way the piece helps to bring comfort to his family, students, colleagues and to all those that knew him!–Larry ClarkLakeland, FL  2017.

SKU: CF.CPS216F

ISBN 9781491153109. UPC: 680160910601.

Cosmic Expedition takes performers on a musical journey far across the galaxy via three main sections.  This fanfare composition would be perfect for opening a concert. It has bold brass fanfare figures over textural woodwinds to start and then takes the listener on a sonic journey through a variation of harmonic colors, tambural and textural shifts.
Cosmic Expedition takes performers on a musical journey far across the galaxy via three main sections. The first, a rather celebratory and triumphant fanfare in Bb major begins with the upper woodwinds and percussion creating a sound-screen, that is a busy texture consisting of a flurry of repeated notes over which the horns and alto saxophones present the opening theme. The sound-screen should be carefully balanced and give way to the melody at m. 5, which should be played extremely marcato. The timpani solo beginning in m. 11 must not be understated. A brief percussion interlude separates a restatement of the opening theme, this time with the addition of the trumpet, tenor saxophone, and euphonium, and a counter melody by the low winds. The percussion interlude is playful, light, but full of vigor and energy. An Ab in the low winds pulls the harmony towards G minor in m. 40 to start the second section, a more serious fanfare. Here, the marimba repeats an ostinato that is complemented by the bass drum and woodblock. The upper woodwinds with the xylophone and snare drum dance over the stern secondary fanfare. A longing call lead by the trombones, interrupted by a subtle snare drum beckons to the clarinets and horn who begin the third section of the piece at m. 68. This haunting melody in C minor is legato, and starkly contrasts all which came before it. A relentless concert tom-tom played with hard mallets keeps the momentum persistent, and a heartbeat-like pulse is felt from the tuba and baritone saxophone. The melody rises towards m. 84 when the brass harken back to the fanfare style before fading back into another lush woodwind strain.A recapitulation of the low winds’ call is heard at m. 100 which in this occasion intensifies into an emphatic statement by the battery percussion instruments. Now in Eb major, the opening fanfare theme is heard again once more before fading into the beginning of the piece’s conclusion.To end, the counter melody from the opening section duels with chromatic tension above before swelling to an arrival in the original key of Bb major. The full ensemble celebrates the piece’s resolution, and after a few crunchy power chords the journey is completed.