All-Northwest Band 2007
Program Notes
Shortcut Home by Dana Wilson
Shortcut Home is a rousing and rather elaborate fanfare that features each section of the ensemble. Drawing upon various jazz styles, the music proclaims and cascades, always driving towards the “home†of the final, C Major chord.
Anchors Aweigh by Charles Zimmermann/Alfred Miles arr. Hayslett
Lieut. Charles A. Zimmermann, USN, a graduate of the Peabody Conservatory in Baltimore, had been selected as the bandmaster of the Naval Academy Band in 1887 at the age of 26. Early in his career, Lieut. Zimmermann started the practice of composing a march for each graduating class. By 1892, "Zimmy", as he was affectionately known by the midshipmen, became so popular that he was presented with a gold medal by that year's class. More gold medals followed as Zimmermann wrote a march for each succeeding class. In 1906, Lieut. Zimmerman was approached by Midshipman First Class Alfred Hart Miles with a request for a new march. As a member of the Class of 1907, Miles and his classmates "were eager to have a piece of music that would be inspiring, one with a swing to it so it could be used as a football marching song, and one that would live forever."Â
Supposedly, with the two men seated at the Naval Academy Chapel organ, Zimmermann composed the tune and Miles set the title and wrote the first two stanzas in November 1906. This march was played by the band and sung by the brigade at the 1906 Army-Navy football game later that month, and for the first time in several seasons, Navy won. This march, Anchors Aweigh, was subsequently dedicated to the Academy Class of 1907 and adopted as the official song of the U.S. Navy. The concluding stanza was written by Midshipman Royal Lovell, Class of 1926.
Great Falls High School adopted “Anchors Aweigh†as their school song (just the trio portion of the original march) in the 1930’s, and it has been fun to resurrect this classic march and learn the entire piece. We are very thankful to Dr. Dennis Hayslett for his work in scoring the piece for the modern concert band so we could play it for you today.
Goddess of Fire by Steven Reineke
Pele, the Goddess of Hawaii’s volcanoes, is the most respected and feared deity in Polynesia. She is both the creator of the sacred land and destroyer when she devours the land with her flames. This programmatic work for symphonic band is an offering to Madame Pele. The work opens with primordial, mysterious sounds representing the foreboding volcanoes of Hawaii. We are then introduced to Pele as a tall, beautiful young woman. This is one of the forms she can take and it represents her powers of creation and beauty. This gives way to the active and destructive Pele, often taking the form of an old woman, wrinkled and bent with age. The following lyrical section of the piece is the full statement of Pele’s theme of creation and beauty. As the theme settles we begin to hear the ground pop and crack letting us know that new lava is beginning to bubble and flow. Suddenly and violently one of her volcanoes erupts, creating massive chaos and destruction. After the eruption subsides, Pele’s theme of creation and beauty returns again. This time it is more of a prayer or offering to the Fire Goddess. In the coda of the piece we once again hear the sounds of lava bubbling, signifying the Pele’s work is never finished. The final measures of the piece represent the mythological idea that “Pele always gets the last word.â€
Mother Earth (A Fanfare) by David Maslanka
Mr. Maslanka, who now resides in Montana, has written many great works in his career for bands, but most of them are extremely difficult to play with most high school ensembles. This piece has all the color and power you expect from a Maslanka work, but is within the reach of a good high school band. The Great Falls High Symphonic Band has also had the pleasure of performing a co-premiere of another Maslanka work, his Piano Concerto no. 2 with soloist Steven Hesla in 2003.
Mr. Maslanka drew upon these words as inspiration for this new piece:
Praised be You, my Lord, four our sister, MOTHER EARTH,
Who nourishes us and teaches us,
Bringing forth all kinds of fruits and colored flowers and herbs.
-St. Francis of Assisi
Blessed Are They (from A German Requiem) by Johaness Brahms arr. Buehlman
This masterpiece, wonderfully transcribed for band by Barbara Buehlman, is truly one of the most beautiful moments in all of Brahms’music. The Requiem was first performed in the Bremen Cathedral on Good Friday in 1868, and has become a staple in concert halls everywhere. The text for this movement, which was selected by Brahms himself instead of using a traditional liturgy, is a comfort to those that remain behind after a loved one dies.
“Blessed are they that mourn, for they shall be comforted. They that sow in tears shall reap in joy. They that go forth and weep, bearing precious seed, shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, bringing their sheaves with themâ€
The GFHS Symphonic Band would like to dedicate this performance of Blessed Are They to the memories of Ms. Katie Hugg, (mother of Mr. Hal Hugg who taught many of the band students in middle school) Ms. Marlilyn Butterfield, (grandmother of Kaylene (clarinet) and Josh Butterfield (trumpet) and grandmother of Shauna Delaney(flute)), all of whom recently passed away.