Symphonic Wind Orchestra

Alex Shapiro Liquid Compass

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Liquid Compass is a tone poem that takes the musicians and the audience on a watery journey spanning the mystical and the triumphant. Commemorating the 140th anniversary of Carthage College's wind band, the piece migrates to different places, but never loses its bearings in pursuit of a musical true north. The spiritual power of the sea is ever-present, in layers of unique sounds heard in the audio track, and duplicated by the musicians. The effect is a physical surround-sound of texture, as metal bowls capture slow, resonant drips of water, and flutists breathe other-worldly intonations. The piece, like the school that commissioned it, continues to push forward while observing that which has come before. Because one can't celebrate history, without reflecting on the waters over which time and experience have passed.

 

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Rossini William Tell Overture (arr. J Sommer)

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William Tell was Rossini’s final opera – his 39th – after which he entered semi-retirement, continuing to compose lighter vocal and sacred works. Its overture became more famous than the opera itself, especially as the iconic theme for The Lone Ranger and the British series The Adventures of William Tell.

 

Lasting about 12 minutes, the overture evokes life in the Swiss Alps, the opera’s setting. Berlioz, despite disliking Rossini’s style, called it “a symphony in four parts,” though the sections flow seamlessly without pause:

 

• Prelude (Dawn): A gentle, atmospheric opening featuring solo bassoon, with timpani softly suggesting an approaching storm.

• Storm: A full-orchestra tempest, building to thunderous brass and percussion before gradually fading to a lone flute.

• Ranz des Vaches: A pastoral interlude led by oboe and flute, evoking peaceful Alpine scenes. This melody recurs in the opera and is often used in cartoons to depict sunrise.

• Finale (March of the Swiss Soldiers): A fast-paced, triumphant galop symbolizing Swiss victory. Though the opera lacks actual horses, this section is widely associated with galloping steeds, thanks to The Lone Ranger. It’s even quoted in Shostakovich’s Symphony No 15.

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Guy Woolfenden Gallimaufry

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1. Church and State

2. Inn and Out

3. Starts and Fits

4. Father and Son

5. Advance and Retreat

6. Church and Status Quo

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Gallimaufry (gali maw’fri): 

A medley; any confused jumble of things; but strictly speaking, a hotch potch made up of all the scraps of the larder.
cf Shakespeare: The Winter’s Tale: “a gallimaufry of gambols”

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Gallimaufry was inspired by Shakespeare’s Henry IV plays, and derives from music I composed for the Royal Shakespeare Company’s production which opened the Barbican Theatre in 1982. The score is dedicated to Trevor Nunn, then Artistic Director of the RSC, with grateful thanks for his suggestion that I should expand and mould the music from these productions into a form suitable for concert performance.

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My thanks also to Timothy Reynish and the British Association of Symphonic Bands and Wind Ensembles who, with funds provided by North West Arts, commissioned the work and helped to ensure its first performance on September 24th 1983 with the Royal Northern College of Music Wind Orchestra.

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The work is continuous and the thematic material of each of the six sections closely related. The “establishment” – leadership, temporal and ecclesiastical power – are depicted in the stately march which opens the work. (Church and State)

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The second section, Inn and Out, in an energetic hemiola rhythm, is concerned with the stews and low-life revels at the Boar’s Head Tavern. This is interrupted and finally integrated with the Tavern Brawl and Gadshill Ambush of Starts and Fits. The mood changes and the ambivalence of Prince Hal’s relationship with his father and surrogate father, Falstaff, is portrayed in a serene cor anglais solo. (Father and Son)

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Advance and Retreat is a recruiting march, derived from the Tavern Tune and leads into the last movement, Church and Status Quo, which deals with the rejection of Falstaff and the crowning of Price Hal. Order is restored with a majestic affirmation of the opening material.

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Valerie Coleman Roma

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Roma was commissioned by the College Band Directors National Association and was written to depict the language and traditions of the Romani peoples. The composer writes: “A nation without a country is the best way to describe the nomadic tribes known as gypsies, or properly called, the Romani. Their traditions, their language (Roma), legends, and music stretch all over the globe, from the Middle East, the Mediterranean region, and the Iberian Peninsula, across the ocean to the Americas. Roma is a tribute to that culture, with five descriptive themes, as told through the eyes and hearts of Romani women everywhere: Romani Women, Mystic, Youth, Trickster, and History. The melodies and rhythms are a fusion of styles and cultures: Malagueña of Spain, Argentine Tango, Arabic music, Turkish folk songs, 3/2 Latin claves, and jazz.”