Band Symphony Presentation

7/23/2019 Band Symphony Presentation

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The Symphony

■ During the Baroque era, the terms “symphony” and “sinfonia” werdescribe many types of pieces, regardless of form or structure, likethe words origins !“sounding together”"#

■ The opera o$erture, an %talian form that featured three mo$ementcontrasting tempi !fast, slow fast" de$eloped in the &'((s, and isconsidered the likely forerunner to our current concept of the symp

■ )romoted largely by aristocracy in *ienna#

■ +ate aydn - .o/art, the form changed from three mo$ements to f

■ The number of ma0or composers symphonies decreased from &(&to 1& !.o/art" to 2 !Beetho$en", signifying an increase in comple3artistic signi4cance during the 5lassical period#



# 6789 :88D

La Fiesta Mexicana (1948)



;bout # 6wen :eed

■ Studied composition with a wide $ariety of composers, includioward anson, ;aron 5opland, +eonard Bernstein, :oy arri;rnold Schoenberg#

■ Spent his career at .ichigan State <ni$ersity from &2=2>&2'?held the title of “professor emeritus” until his death 0ust last y

■ Taught many wind conductors and composers, including Da$id@illingham and Da$id .aslanka#

■ .any of his works incorporated traditional or folk music from $cultures found on the 9orth ;merican continent !.e3ican, 9at;merican, ;frican ;merican, ;nglo ;merican, etc#"#



5ommissioning and 5onceptio

■ The piece came about as the result of a @uggenheim fellowshawarded to :eed with the speci4c intent of writing a piece for

■ Studied .e3ican folk music and culturally prominent music frosources including popular tunes, religious music, etc#

■ The source material he incorporated into the work included a

!which :eed transcribed himself", an ;/tec melody he purchasan ethnomusicologist who speciali/ed in ;/tec music, a medieof @regorian chant used in 5atholic worship, and mariachi mu

■ :eed concei$ed it as a “.e3ican folk song symphony depictintypical 4esta#”



%nstrumentation

■ %ncluded a broad $ariety of percussion instruments to literallyrepresent or e$oke the source music#

■ Snare drum, bass drum, cymbals, maracas, tam tam, temple btom toms, tubular bells, marimba#

■ ;lso utili/ed a small oA>stage band#



.acro ;nalysis of “+a iesta

.e3icana”■ .$t %C )relude and ;/tec Dance

The opening of the 4esta is depicted with tolling church bells and 4rmidnight# The celebrators gather in the court surrounding the old caand rest until the church bells and 4reworks return to signify mornin

band is heard in the distance, and an ;/tec dance can be heard#

■ .$t %%C .ass

; traditional latin chant is quoted to emphasi/e that, at its core, the a religious celebration#

■ .$t %%%C 5arni$al

+i$ely public entertainment is e$oked hereC the circus, the market, t

bull4ght, the town band, .ariachis, etc#



.icro>analysisC 7hy is this asymphony

■ 8ach mo$ement is through> composed, and :eed notes that aindi$idual mo$ement can be played as a stand>alone piece !aindi$idual sections within each mo$ement"#

■ 6pening themeC church bells and 4reworks#

■ )arade#

■ ;/tec Dance#

■ 5hant#

■ “+a 9egra” !.ariachi song"

■ :ecaptiulation in .$t# %%%#



);<+ %9D8.%TSymphony in Bb



;bout )aul indemith

■Born in 9o$# &E2F till Dec# &2?=■7as one of the the principal @erman composers of the 4rst h

G(th century and leading music theorist#■indemith sought to re$itali/e tonality>>the traditional harmo

system that was being challenged by many other composers>pioneered in the writing of Gebrauchsmusik !utility music"

■indemith earned his li$ing at an early age playing the $iolin dance bands and theatres#

■7hile we played these small gigs his compositions were beinat international festi$als of contemporary music# By the late &indemith was regarded as the foremost @erman composer ogeneration#




■Symphony in Bb was composed for the occasion of an in$itat)aul indemith to guest conduct the premiere band of the <S“)ershing 6wn#”

■7hen 4rst in$ited to appear, indemith requested a later dathe might ha$e the time “write a little something#” That littlesomething being Symphony in Bb#

■ This piece was inno$ati$e, in that it was the 4rst substanti$e,e3tended, original work to be composed for the wind band#%ndemiths use of orchestration was groundbreaking in termdepth of sonority he achie$ed with the ensemble and in hisde$elopment of themes through the use of te3ture and numesolo e3posures#

■%n contrast to his Gebrauchsmusik compositions that were intfor amateur musicians, Symphony in Bb was written for the m




■<nlike Schoenbergs Theme and *ariations, indemiths pieceno concessions to either the performers nor the audience#

■; masterpiece of formal structure and thematic de$elopment

become one of the cornerstones of the wind band rep#

■%ronically, e$en though Symphony in Bb was not intended forscholastic le$el ensembles, and Schoenbergs piece was, it is

former piece that is more often performed by high school ban■Symphony in Bb was premiered in 7ashington D5 on ;pril F,

by “)ershings 6wn,” with indemith conducting#



%nstrumentation

■)iccolo, G lutes, G 6boes, & 8b 5larinet, & Solo Bb 5larinet, =5larinets, & 8b ;lto 5larinet, & Bb Bass 5larinet, G Bassoons, GSa3es, & Bb Tenor Sa3, & 8b Baritone Sa3

■& Solo Bb 5ornet, = Bb 5ornets, = Trombones, 1 orns, & BaBasses

■ Timpani, .i3ed )ercussion != players"



.acro ;nalysis

.$t# %

■ Symphony in Bb is a three mo$ement work, with the mo$emenamed simply after their stylistic indicationsC

H Moderatey !ast" #ith $i%orH &ndantino %ra'iosoH Fu%ue" ather Broad

There are a number of themes that appear throughout the composition$arious guises# The inter$al of a perfect fourth is used e3tensi$ely, facilindemiths pantonal language# The resulting quartal harmonies gi$e tan angular, industrial quality, almost as though indemith anticipated hcountrys postwar high>tech economic reco$ery#



.acro ;nalysis

■ Each movement is divided into two parts. In the first movement the division occurs foll

77. The first part is characterized by a preponderance of triplet eighth not rhythms; in th

part, the dominant rhythm is the dotted eighth/siteenth note combination. !indemith im

establishes the scope of the ensemble and the promise of the depth of his composition w

scored figure on the opening downbeat.

■ There are several entrances of the main melody and its countermelody in another imitat

strictly fugal, teture. "s before, !indemith adds instruments and density to the orchest

increasing the intensity into a moment of full ensemble involvement at mm. #$7.

■ !indemith achieves sonorous bloc% voicing&s through the simulation of the harmonic se

in the open 'ths at the bottom of the chords and thirds placed relatively high up in the st



.acro ;nalysis

%n contrast with the bulk of the multi>mo$eme

pieces composed for the wind band, the scale, sophistication, an

of this 4rst mo$ement, along with its highly de$eloped formal st

would allow it to stand on its own as a complete piece of music#

recogni/ing once again the con$entions of the band world, in

could foresee that his 4rst mo$ement might be programmed as along piece, so he designed it in such a way that it would seem c

unto itself#



7hy is this piece important

5omposer *incent )ersichetti, who himself contributed signi4canthe wind band rep# wrote an article discussing indemiths wo&2?1#

e states, Band music is $irtuay the ony kind o! mus &merica today #hich can be introduced" accepted" put to imm#ide use" and become a stape o! the iterature in a short time

7ith the post 77%% boom in college and public schools band acti$there was a growing population of directors hungry for well crmusic for the wind band# %ndemiths contribution to thead$ancement of wind band orchestrational practices is signi4cdemonstrates the manner by which a comple3, contrapuntallycomposition can be constructed to take ad$antage of the wideof instrumental colors a$ailable in the wind ensemble#



.6:T69 @6<+D

Symphony !or Band ,est -oint+



;bout .orton @ould

■ 5hild prodigy# e published his 4rst composition before his se$birthday#

■ ired as a pianist for the 9ational Broadcasting 5ompany in &later became the music director for 9ew Iorks 76:, where hcompositional life thri$ed#

■ e recei$ed a )ulit/er )ri/e in &22F for Srtin%music, an orchespiece#



5ommissioning and 5oncept

■ 5ommissioned for the sesquicentennial the <nited States .ilit;cademy at 7estpoint# !;long with ? other compositions that commissioned#"

H %n$ited by the commanding oJcer of the military band#

■ )remiered ;pril &=th, &2FG at the military academy#

■ @ould conducted the premiere#

■ @ould continued to work with the band until he died# !;ctuallybefore#"



%nstrumentation

■ = trumpets and = coronet parts# 8ach part is independent# <seantiphonal eAects, and for color changes#

■ 1th trombone part# ;llows for a thicker scoring of the trombonesection, and for doubling the bass line while keeping a three pharmony#

■ .arching .achine in the percussion section# The eAect is thathitting the ground as if a formation of people were marching p!<sed during the passacaglia#"



.acro ;nalysis of SymphonyBand ,est -oint+

■ %# 8pitaphs

H Buids upon a pensi$e theme in carinets and bassoons* &ns#ea brass chorae" and proceedin% into a de$eopin% section* .hmo$ement transitions into a passaca%ia section" marked by aostinato in the trumpets and cornets* (/$okin% a batte)

H .he passaca%ia sub0ect is presented in the tubas and repeate

times* &!ter that" there is a return to the so# openin% theme*mo$ement ends 2uiety" e$okin% the bu%e ca .aps+ in triton!oreshado#in%*



.acro ;nalysis of SymphonyBand ,est -oint+ !cont#"

■ %%# .arches

H .his mo$ement contrasts /pitaphs+* Goud describes it as u%ay in character* & styi'ation o! marchin% tunes that parade pan array o! embeishments and rhythmic $ariants* &t one poinis a simuation o! Fi!e and 3rum orps #hich" incidentay" #asinstrumentation o! the ori%ina ,est -oint Band*

■ The mo$ement, dri$en by markings such as “boisterous”, “drionward”, and “faster and faster”, ends with a transformed $ethe opening themes of the 4rst mo$ement#



7hy %s This )iece %mportant

■ %nstrumentation was e3panded to create a thicker te3ture andof non>traditional instruments !marching machine" show forwathinking#

■ .ade full and idiomatic use of the color palette a$ailable in a band setting#

■ The piece is in two mo$ements, which was gaining popularity

time#



D;*%D.;S+;9K;

Symphony 5o* 6 (1991)



;bout Da$id .aslanka

■ Studied at the <ni$ersity of .ichigan with # 6wen :eed#

H eed #as a hu%e supporter o! ,ind /nsembe iterature and #rote se pieces that remain in the core repertoire*

■ Taught at Kingsborough 5ommunity 5ollege for o$er G( years

■ .o$ed to .issoula, .ontana and li$es oA of commissions fromcompositions since &22(#

■ .aslankas Symphony 5o* 6 was one of the 4rst pieces writtenhis mo$e to .ontana#



5ommissioning and 5oncepti

■ Symphony 5o* 6 was commissioned by the <ni$ersity of 5onnecticut 7in8nsemble and was dedicated to the conductor, @ary @reen#

H .he composition #as supported throu%h a consortium" #hich incuded7 thni$ersity o! onnecticuts Music 3epartment as #e as the esearch Foo! the ni$ersity o! onnecticut

■ ;ccording to letters written to @ary @reen, .aslanka worked on the Sympparts, sending mo$ements to @reen as soon as they were 4nished#

■ The Symphony is a partly programmatic, e3plaining the story of the strugbetween the 9ati$e ;merican people and cowboys#

■ The piece was 4nished in early &22&#

■ %t has been performed only a handful of times and only one recording e3iSymphony*



%nstrumentation

■ G )iccolos

■ G lutes

■ G 6boes

■ 8nglish orn

■ 8b 5larinet

■ = Bb 5larinets

■ Bb Bass 5larinet

■ Bb 5ontrabass 5larinet

■ G Bassoons

■ 5ontrabassoon

■ G 8b Sa3ophones

■ Bb Tenor Sa3ophone

■ 8b Baritone Sa3ophone

■ 1 orns

■ = Bb Trumpets

■ = Trombones

■ Bass Trombone

■ 8uphonium

■ Tuba

■ Double Bass

■ )iano Timpani

■ 1 )ercussion )arts



.acro ;nalysis of .o$emen

■ I. Moderate

H &:B:&;

■ II. Slowing

H &:B::3:B;:oda

■ III. Very Fast

H &:B:&

■ IV. Lament

H < sections" di$ided by soo instruments

■ V. Lament II

H &:B::3:/:&;



Brief .icro ;nalysis of .o$em%

■ Begins in a $ery unique way, with a 5 .a0or scale#

■ Luickly mo$es to the 4rst modern compositional technique of %ndeterminacy the woodwinds impro$ise on a 5 ma0or arpeggio#

■ .aslanka uses the basic outline of sonata form to begin his Symphony*

■ The ; section di$ides into roughly three partsC

H .he ma0or scae #ith the =rst and second theme*

H & dissonant B section*

H & return o! the =rst and second theme #ith a transition to the ar%er B section*

■ The B section of the mo$ement is described by .aslanka as an “e$il little ma

H .his section cuminates in a transition section that resembes the be%innin% o! the & s

■ The recapitulation begins with the resurgence of the two main themes followe3treme thinning of orchestration in the coda#



7hy %s This )iece %mportant

■ %t shows a mature, symphonic style comfortably situated in a ensemble#

■ %t is a massi$e work for wind ensemble, at 1F minutes#

■ The le$el of diJculty of the parts, combined with the idiomatiis of a professional>le$el requiring a professional>le$el ensembperform#

■ The use of indeterminate situations, e3tended techniques, e3pharmonic and rhythmic language, and modern forms are all fothinking and accessible to the wind ensemble#



5onclusion

■ .usic for wind ensemble changed between the years &21E an

H More uni$ersities be%an to ha$e estabished #ind ensembes*

■ 7e begin to see less $ernacular band music!small pieces" andart music for band#

H .he amount o! symphonies and symphony>ike #orks !or #indensembe tripes bet#een ?48 and ?91*

■ <ni$ersity wind ensemble directors push for new music and meAort is made to commission new pieces#

Band Symphony Presentation

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