The Sinfonians (1960) Clifton Williams
Commissioned by the Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia Fraternity of America, The Sinfonians was dedicated to Archie N. Jones, former President of the fraternity. The composer conducted the first performance at the fraternity's national convention in Cincinnati, Ohio, in July of 1960
When Jesus Wept (1956) William Schuman
Premiered in New York City by the Goldman Band in 1958, When Jesus Wept is the second movement of New England Triptych (after William Billings), a three movement work for Orchestra by William Schuman. Schuman later transcribed the work as a prelude for band. It is intended to be performed as an introduction to the composer’s Chester, an Overture for Band.
The text to William Billings' Revolutionary War Hymn reads as follows:
When Jesus wept, the falling tear
in mercy flowed beyond all bound;
when Jesus mourned, a trembling fear
seized all the guilty world around.
William Schuman writes:
William Billings (1746-1800) is a major figure in the history of American music.
The works of this dynamic composer capture the spirit of sinewy ruggedness,
deep religiosity, and patriotic fervor that we associate with the Revolutionary period.
Despite the undeniable crudities and technical shortcomings of his music, its appeal
even today is forceful and moving. I am not alone among American composers who
feel an identity with Billings, and it is this sense of identity that accounts for my use
of his music as a point of departure. New England Triptych does not constitute a fantasy
on themes of Billings, nor variations on his themes, but rather a fusion of styles and
musical language.
Chester (1957) William Schuman
The Billings song Chester was born during the time of the American Revolution, appearing in 1778 in a book of tunes and anthems called The Singing Master's Assistant. This book became known as Billings' Best following as it did his first book called The New England Psalm Singer, published in 1770. Chester was so popular that it was sung throughout the colonies from Vermont to South Carolina. It became the song of the American Revolution, sung around the campfires of the Continental Army and played by fifers on the march. The music and words, both composed by Billings, expressed perfectly the burning desire for freedom which sustained the colonists through the difficult years of the Revolution.
Let tyrants shake their iron rod,
And Slav'ry clank her galling chains,
We fear them not, we trust in God,
New England's God forever reigns.
The Foe comes on with haughty Stride;
Our troops advance with martial noise,
Their Vet'rans flee before our Youth,
And Gen'rals yield to beardless Boys.
What grateful Off'ring shall we bring?
What shall we render to the Lord?
Loud Halleluiahs let us Sing,
And praise his name on ev'ry Chord.
Suite Française (1944) Darius Milhaud
Normandie
Ile de France
Alsace-Lorraine
Provence
Suite Française was written in 1944 on commission from the publisher Leeds Music Corporation, as part of a contemplated series of original works for band by outstanding contemporary composers. Milhaud's first extended work for winds, Suite Française was premiered by the Goldman Band in 1945
The composer writes:
For a long time I have had the idea of writing a composition fit for high school
purposes, and this was the result. In the bands, orchestras, and choirs of American
high schools, colleges and universities where the youth of the nation be found, it is
obvious that they need music of their time, not too difficult to perform, but nevertheless
keeping the characteristic idiom of the composer.
The five parts of this suite are named after French Provinces, the very ones in which
the American and Allied armies fought together with the French underground of
the liberation of my country: Normandy, Brittany, Ile-de-France (of which Paris is
the center), Alsace-Lorraine, and Provence (my birthplace).
I used some folk tunes of these provinces. I wanted the young American to hear the popular melodies of those parts of France where their fathers and brothers fought
to defeat the German invaders, who in less than seventy years have brought war, destruction, cruelty, torture, and murder three times to the peaceful and democratic
people of France.
.
- INTERMISSION -
Lincolnshire Posy (1937) Percy Grainger
Lisbon
Harkstow Grange
The Brisk Young Sailor
Lord Melbourne
The Lost Lady Found
Mark Minton, Associate Conductor
Lincolnshire Posy was commissioned by the American Bandmasters' Association in 1937. Considered by biographer John Bird to be Grainger's greatest masterpiece, the sixteen minute work is comprised of six movements, (five in the current performance) each adapted from folksongs Grainger collected on a 1905 trip to Lincolnshire, England. The work was premiered on March 7, 1937 by members of worker bands from the Blatz and Pabst breweries in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
Grainger maintained the exact stylizing he heard in the performances of those who sang to him, which he recorded on primitive wax discs. Grainger wrote that: "...each number is intended to be a kind of musical portrait of the singer who sang its underlying melody—a musical portrait of the singer’s personality no less than of his habits of song—his regular or irregular interpretation of the rhythm, his preference for gaunt or ornately arabesqued delivery, his contrasts of legato and staccato, his tendency towards breadth or delicacy of tone."
Grainger dedicated his "bunch of Wildflowers" to "the old folksingers who sang so sweetly to me"
Sinfonia No. 4 (1965) Walter Hartley
Allegro deciso
Adagio
Vivace
Allegro molto
SinfoniaNo. 4 was commissioned by the students of the Ithaca High School Concert Band as part of their annual tradition of commissioning new works by American composers. It was first performed under the leadership of Frank Battisti at Ithaca High School’s Kulp Auditorium on May 11, 1966.
The Sinfonia, in four movements, is written in condensed classical forms of the rondo type, contrasting in tempo; each movement is designed in its own way to exploit the various facets of the modern wind and percussion ensemble in line and color. There is much antiphonal writing in between the choirs, many solo passages for a wide variety of instruments, and a general reliance upon pure colors with little doubling (except for voices at the octave). The style is tonal (with free dissonance frequently producing bitonal effects) with a constant opposition of chordal and contrapuntal textures. The last two movements are lighter in mood than the first two, especially the finale, which is almost, but not quite, a march.
The Lion King (1994) Elton John
Arranged by John Higgins
The soundtrack to the Disney movie The Lion King dates from 1994. John Higgins' arrangement features the songs "Circle of Life," "I Just Can't Wait to be King," "Be Prepared," "Hakuna Matata," "Can You Feel the Love Tonight," and "King of Pride Rock."
Show Tune (1944) Clifton Williams
Show Tune was composed in 1944, while Clifton Williams was stationed at Selman Field in Monroe, Louisiana, for the base Army Air Corps Band. The work was revised at some point during the 1950s, in which form it is presented in the current performance.
THE MUSICIANS
PICCOLO
Erica Barrett
Lauren Flynn
Kaci Wilson
FLUTE
Erica Barrett
Lauren Flynn
Darick Harris
Michael Waller
Kaci Wilson
OBOE
Hannah Hobson
CLARINET
Glenda Beck
Noah Ferrell
Julia Mack
Martha Maxey
William Nichols
Jessica Shuler
Tim Wright
BASS CLARINET
Keith Sanders
Clair White
BASSOON
Jayvian Bush
Thomas Wlson
ALTO SAXOPHONE
Bob Maynard
Leslie Loanzon
TENOR SAXOPHONE
Tom Yates
BARITONE SAXOPHONE
Cory Craig
TRUMPET
Kaelis Ash
Carlos Garcia
John Loanzon
Carol Lupton
Noah Rampmaier
Mike Scarlato
HORN
Eddie Carmichael
Jackson Dillard
Kathy Phillips
Richie Salzer
TROMBONE
Cody Ford
Mark Minton
Jamie Neeley
Todd Warren
EUPHONIUM
Daniel Coleman
TUBA
Abby Kent
Dean Mayeux
Matthew Pirkey
PERCUSSION
Jim Beck
Caleb Daniels
J. J. Sullivan
Chandler Teague
Morgan Vaughan
SPECIAL THANKS TO:
Slteven Vrbka, Pricipal, Parkway High School
Emmitt Beggs, Assistant Principal, Parkway High School
Mike Martindale, KEEL 710AM
Mark Minton, Director of Bands, Parkway High School
Bob Maynard, Assistant Director of Bands, Parkway High School
IN CONCERT
Friday, June 28, 2023
7:30PM
Parkway High School
Bossier City, Louisiana
Hosted by
Mike Martindale
of Mike and McCarty
on KEEL 710AM
PROGRAM