Band Concert Band
SKU:
PR.465000110
Composed
by Dan Welcher. Arranged
by Paul Bissell. Large
Score. With Standard
notation. Composed 1989.
Duration 5 minutes.
Theodore Presser Company
#465-00011. Published by
Theodore Presser Company
(PR.465000110).
ISBN
9781598062090. UPC:
680160575442.
Castl
e Creek was written by
Dan Welcher in
celebration of the Aspen
Music Festival's 40th
anniversary, and served
as a special tribute to
the Festival's longtime
President, Gordon Hardy.
Castle Creek itself is a
tributary of the Roaring
Fork River on which the
Aspen Music Festival
campus (as well as
Hardy's home) is built.
Gordon's initials
(G.A.H.) are used as the
musical basis for the
fanfare, which is
centered on the ascending
pitches G, A and B, and
reflects the upward
motion and positivity of
the Aspen Music Festival
itself. For advanced
players. Duration:
5'.
Program Note by
the ComposerThere is no
“secret
program†or hidden
meaning in this lively,
five-minute work: it was
intended as a celebration
of the 40th anniversary
of the Aspen Music
Festival, and as a
special tribute to the
Festival’s
longtime President,
Gordon Hardy. The title
CASTLE CREEK refers to a
tributary of the Roaring
Fork River on which the
Aspen Music Festival
campus (as well as Mr.
Hardy’s home) is
built.The work pays
homage to Gordon Hardy by
utilizing his initials
(“G.A.H.â€) as
a musical motive: the
three letters correspond
to the pitches G, A, and
B). This three-note group
forms the basis of the
fanfare that opens the
work, and it also serves
as an ostinato, a bass
line, and a general means
of organizing the
work’s tonal
centers. Because the
three notes are in
ascending order, the
ever-upward direction of
the Aspen Music Festival
and the positive energy
of Gordon Hardy are
readily evident.The
athletic fanfare that
begins the work (marked
“noble, but
energeticâ€) is
scored for brass and
percussion alone, and may
be played as a separate
piece. The rest of the
ensemble joins at the
conclusion of the
fanfare, and a spirited
tune in 9/8 issues from
the woodwinds. After this
is given a thorough
workout, a middle section
in faster 3/4 time
provides machine-like
energy. Perhaps it is the
energy of the Festival,
in high gear. At the
height of this, the music
of the fanfare returns in
broad open notes in the
brass, with the machine
still pulsing in support.
The overture ends in a
burst of motion, with the
three-note motive in its
highest transposition.My
colleague and former
student Paul Bissell made
this excellent
transcription from the
orchestral original.
