F23 Vermont Wind Ensemble

Strathcarron - Philip Sparke
Audio from the composers website YouTube video (Taipei Wind Orchestra) YouTube audio (Yorkshire Building Society Brass Band)

Strathcarron is a movement from Philip Sparke's "Hymn to the Highlands," a lengthy piece originally written for the brass band that depicts various locations in the Scottish Highlands. Strathcarron is a village in the northwest part of Scotland at the head of Loch Carron, near the Isle of Skye. The piece alternates between a slow section that features dotted rhythms, and a fast section that gradually builds to most of the band playing the fast-note melody.

Moorside March – Gustav Holst/arr. Jacob
YouTube audio (US Marine Band) YouTube audio (North Texas Wind Symphony) YouTube audio (Brass Band recording from 1928 - March starts at 6:15)

Holst wrote Moorside March as the last part of the three-movement "Moorside Suite" as the test piece for the British National Brass Band Championship of 1928. The march opens with an ascending three-note rhythmic motive that leads directly to the flowing first theme. The second theme, more playful in nature, is introduced by the saxophones. The long notes of the second theme are somewhat reminiscent of the work of another British composer, Edward Elgar - especially the "Pomp and Circumstance" theme heard at graduations.

Puszta was written in 1987 and consists of four separate dances that don't have any thematic correlation with each other. Just like some of my other pieces, all themes and melodies are originally written (without using authentic folk dances or tunes). In other words: the composer tried to write a dance suite ‘in the style of ...’. To some, they will sound similar to Brahms' or Dvorak's Hungarian and Slavonic dances or to some parts of Liszts' Hungarian Rhapsodies. By the way: the "Puszta" is a vast prairie in Hungary where gypsies used to move around with their (wild) horses. The alternation of 'temperamental' and 'melancholic' themes and moods is typical for the gypsy music as are the tempo changes. The instrumentation is very bright and colorful, bringing all sections of the symphonic wind band to the fore. – Jan Van der Roost

Ryukuan Fantasy is based on the Okinawan folksong "Asadoya Yunta," which is literally about a brave woman who rejects the marriage proposal of a government, but is thought to reflect the opposition to Japanese rule on the island. The original version is for 2 pianos with 8 hands and was commissioned by the Yo-Gen-Kai Association in 1997. Other versions, all made by the composer, include: solo piano, violin and piano, soprano saxophone and piano, violin with saxophone quartet and piano, marimba sextet, and piano and wind orchestra. The band version was commissioned and premiered by Toshima-Ku Wind Orchestra and was conducted by Ito himself. The percussive nature of the band version reflects the original piano version.

Elegy For a Young American was written in 1964 and is dedicated to the memory of President John F. Kennedy. The many stages of mourning can be felt as the work unfolds. A quiet and slow adagio sets a tone of respect and solemnity in the beginning. Feelings of shock and denial are reflected by the dynamics and octave jumps in the melody. Anger and remorse express themselves, but they are replaced with a resolution of the loss and an allegro celebration of the contributions of this great American. The slow closing section reminds us again of our loss.

Sir Malcolm Arnold’s works include symphonies, concertos, chamber music, and film music, including “The Bridge Over the River Kwai.” The Prelude, Siciliano and Rondo was originally written for British brass band under the title "Little Suite for Brass". The arrangement for full band, by the renowned wind conductor John Paynter, adds woodwinds and augments the percussion parts of the original. Each of the three short movements is in a five-part, ABACA form. The Prelude opens with a fanfare, reaches a more lyric high point, and fades away. The Siciliano, a dance in triple meter from the Baroque period, features a more transparent texture than the block chord style of the Prelude. The final movement, Rondo, combines the block and transparent textures of its predecessors. It opens with all instruments of the ensemble playing a unison theme, and then alternates between the two contrasting textures.

Vermont Wind Ensemble - Fall '23