A Taste of Popcorn Blues
Aaron Alter
A native of Chicago, Aaron received his Bachelor of Music degree from Northwestern University. He received his Master of Fine Arts Degree from Princeton University, where he studied with Milton Babbitt and James K. Randall. Aaron resides in Carlsbad, California and is the Chair of the Carlsbad Arts Commission.
The title of “A Taste of Popcorn Blues” was inspired by the theme, which reminded me of the sound of popcorn popping. After playing the theme with the trombone, the flute goes off in a quasi-improvisational direction, but in the last measure it aligns itself with the trombone again.
Stopwatch
Sy Brandon
Arizona Centennial Composer, Dr. Sy Brandon is a professor emeritus of music from Millersville University. His awards include WITF-FM's 25th Anniversary Composition Contest and the Hillcrest Wind Ensemble Composition Contest. He is the recipient of the 2018 Thor Johnson Memorial Commission sponsored by the Delta Omicron Foundation.
Stopwatch captures the energy and urgency of timing a racehorse. Repeated syncopated figures represent the sound of the horse’s hooves. The melodic ideas depict swiftness. The piece ends with the sound of the stopwatch clicking off as the racehorse has made record time.
Haiku
Paul Cowell
Paul Cowell played percussion for many years, but after becoming more interested in Baroque music, switched to continuo playing. He is a composer and arranger living in London; his pieces have been played on the BBC and ABC, and performed in Europe, Japan, USA and Australia.
The essence of haiku is contrast (kiru), often using two images separated by a kireji (cutting word). The kireji in this piece is a loud interjection at the mid-point. The piece has the traditional 17 bars (syllables), in three phrases of 5, 7, and 5
Cherufe
Edward Dixon
Edward Dixon is the Director of Bands and Chair of the Fine Arts Division at Northern Oklahoma College in Tonkawa, Oklahoma. He is the Artistic Director of the Choral Arts Society of Northern Oklahoma and often composes and arranges works for choir and instrumental ensembles.
The mythical Cherufe is a fire creature that lives in the volcanoes of Chile and is the source of earthquakes and eruptions. The molten earth is volatile (7/8 time) and the trombone and flute showcase the danger and exhilaration of a volcano and the mythical beast inside it.
A cold prescription
Keith R. Gambling
Keith R. Gambling is based in Brisbane, Australia. He's studied music at the University of Queensland, and as a hobbyist performs with the Brisbane Philharmonic Orchestra. Keith has written scores for two award-winning short films, and recently one of his works was chosen for recording by Athens-based flautist Iwona Glinka.
Ice begins easily. Gradually, stability melts away. In the worst of circumstances, alarming cracks begin to appear.
Us
Matjaž Jarc
Matjaž Jarc, born 1954 in Ljubljana, has written 4 operas, 4 symphonies, 2 sinfoniette, choral music, many pieces of chamber music etc., has had some performances by Slovenian national orchestras and choir, opera studio and many ad hoc groups.
The idea is to softly support Angela and Patrick in their musical and everyday life.
Kanna-Little
Shigeru Kan-no
A Japanese Composer-Conductor. borned in Fukushima/ Japan. Studies in Fukushima, Tokyo, Wien, Stuttgart, Ludwigsburg and Frankfurt with Shimazu, I・Yun, Nishimura, Österreicher, Bernstein, Lachenmann, J・Kaiser, Rilling and Zender: theory, piano, composition, conducting and musicology. He conducted Nuerunberg Philharmonic, Roma Symphony Orchestra. Paris Contemporary Music Ensemble. etc.
For this time I used iteratively more often to have a special noise of playing but easy to understand. Initially it starts with glissando or micro tone with ordinary sound, but I used a flute's noise of playing a little as an accompaniment form of the ostinato. I restrained the trombone so that the flute could be heard.
Metallic World
Takenori Kawai
He graduated from Toho Gakuen School of Music, piano performance course. As to the composition, he stuidied it by himself. His works are performed by many players and he performs his own music as a pianist. He won the 1st prize and Hirosaki Mayor Prize of Hirosaki Composition Competition.
I attempt to express the dry atmosphere, say in other words, no humor, like the robot… by the flute and the trombone. The mechanical rhythm and staccato sound are the base of this work. Moreover, flute player and trombone player move together in the whole work.
Hurry Up and Wait
Ken Metz
Ken Metz is a professor and assistant chair of music at the University of the Incarnate Word in San Antonio, Texas. There he teaches music theory and other theory related courses. His main scholarly focus is composition and his music has been performed across the United States.
Program Notes for Hurry Up and Wait This piece blends the wonderful timbres of the alto flute with an instrument that makes a perfect marriage with it: the trombone. My love of these instruments begins with their lowest notes and extends through their entire range.
Wolf and Crow
William F Murray
William Murray was classically trained on the violin and self-taught on the guitar, banjo, and recorder. For over 40 years he has written songs, hymns, and fiddle tunes. In recent years he has become interested in writing through-composed works for chamber ensembles.
Very few mammals have symbiotic relationships with other animals. One of the few exceptions is the wolf and the crow. Crows are sometimes known to Native Americans as “wolf-birds” because they form social attachments with wolves, hunting and playing together. “Wolf and Crow” comments musically on these traditionally paired animals.
Courtship Ritual
Robert Percy
Robert Percy is a London-based composer. His music, for a wide variety of idioms, has been performed extensively in the UK, as well as in Europe and the United States. Robert gained his PhD in composition at City University, London, where he currently lectures in composition.
The aim of the piece was to find common ground, sonically, between the two instruments, just as common ground is sought in courtship rituals across the myriad species.
Dreamlight
Nathan Scalise
Nathan Scalise (b.1993) is a composer who cares if you listen. He has written for children’s theater, professional chamber ensembles, and many groups in between. Nathan holds B.A.s in Music and Economics from Swarthmore College and is currently studying with Daniel Thomas Davis in the M.M. program at SUNY Binghamton.
Composition is a strange process - sometimes the best solution is to sleep. “Dreamlight” is nearly a transcription of music that came to me in a dream, albeit originally with nonsense Italian syllables attached. Removing those, I found what I believe to be an enjoyable duet for flute and trombone.
Discussion
Francesco Sclafani
Francesco Sclafani (b. 1994) is an active composer that lives in Saint Petersburg, Florida. He is pursuing a B.M. in composition from the University of South Florida in Tampa, where his works are regularly performed. He is taught by Dr. Baljinder Sekhon and Paul Reller for composition.
Discussion is based off of the dichotomy between two parties interacting with each other. The instruments interact with similar techniques and instrumental range, but also show the individual qualities of each instrument.
A Newt Spent a Minute in my New Minute Flute
Sebastian Skelly
Seb Skelly, 21, is a composer, arranger and trumpeter based in North London, UK. His approach to composition is driven by melody and motif and underlined by a love for syncopated jazz-influenced rhythms and wide ranges of colours and textures.
A Newt Spent a Minute in my New Minute Flute is a humorous, curious, lascivious one-minute "ballet" for two musicians. It tells the story of a brief encounter between a newt and a flute. Wary at first, the newt eventually settles down inside the flute but is then shooed away.
Sibling Rivalry
Jason A. Taurins
Jason Taurins is a music educator and composer based out of southern Arizona. In addition to writing band music for his students, he enjoys composing for a variety of chamber ensembles. His music has been performed throughout the United States. Learn more at www.jasontaurins.com
"Sibling Rivalry" depicts a fight between a brother and sister. They bicker and show off before acting sweet and innocent when a parent comes to check on them.
