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COMPOSERS' CORNER

VOL. I

March, 2016
Dear Friends,
Welcome to the Composers' Corner! In our continuing and expanding effort to provide unique experiences and tailor-made music to our clients throughout the world, we are excited to announce this new way of connecting conductors, composers, and students! Composers' Corner is a digital monthly periodical which includes interviews with industry professionals, opinion articles on topics relating to new music and music education, and a Piece of the Month, focusing on one of the works from World Projects' ever-expanding published catalogue. It will also include comments from you, our clients, about what you read in previous issues and what you would like to see in future ones.

The rotating monthly entries will be written and edited by Dr. Brett Abigaña, Music Director at Boston University Academy (an independent high school within Boston University), and a composer whose music is published by World Projects. You can reach Dr. Abigaña via email at [email protected]. We believe this new initiative will provide you with more tools with which to explore truly innovative programming, and your students with new avenues to explore the world of new music. We hope to give music educators, composers, and students at all levels new ways of connecting, collaborating, and creating, and we hope you will find it a pleasant and informative addition to your inbox.

And without further ado, let's dive into our first Piece of the Month:

Brad Hart's Movement for band (Grade 3).

The newest addition to the World Projects Publishing Catalogue!

Brad HartMovement is an exuberant, sunny jaunt of a piece with a unique sense of counterpoint that stays within an aesthetic easily accessible to both your students and audiences. While the piece includes slower, darker music, the overall work does not follow the usual fast-slow-fast formula and instead relies on a natural sense of flow as it develops. Of course, these are aspects of the piece easily found once you see a sample score or hear a recording…but how can it be taught?

A number of pedagogical approaches can be taken with this piece. There is certainly sufficient material to showcase a skilled woodwind section. In particular, an alto saxophone line (conveniently marked as an optional solo) develops into a short saxophone section feature in the potentially thorny key of concert G Major. The writing lends itself nicely for use as a gentle introduction to a key not often used in Grade 3 pieces. While the 1st Alto line is tricky, it is certainly performable by an advanced middle school ensemble. It could even be used as a seating audition excerpt if that is part of your curriculum. The ensuing ensemble section is an excellent way to work on lightness with your band. Indeed, while the orchestration is thickly- written, the percussion writing can really shine through if the ensemble tongues lightly and maintains control over their dynamics and articulations.

Moving forward, a short section featuring brass and timpani in c minor provides an opportunity for legato tonguing work and blend, as well as contrapuntal and interpretational variety. In one interpretation, no one line is more important than another, whereas in a different interpretation, the lines pass importance between them. I might suggest this as a wonderful opportunity to engage your students in making some interpretational choices, perhaps even challenging them to change the sound of this section from rehearsal to rehearsal. This music is expanded in the next section to include the whole band (with the addition of an alto saxophone obligato), and provides every student with the opportunity to explore the overall shape of the piece.

Overall, Movement is a wonderful addition to both a curriculum and performance. Were I at the helm of an appropriate ensemble, I would leave this piece in their folders as a type of lab piece. I would use it to teach and explore concepts used in larger pieces, but in a setting more familiar to students' ears and skill levels. Pedagogical opportunities abound at all levels, from the fingering of a C# on a clarinet, to relatively unfamiliar key areas and textures. These opportunities can even go as far as more macro-oriented concepts like interpretation and form. Of course that's not to say that the piece doesn't have merit on the stage! When composer Brad Hart first introduced me to this piece, my first reaction was that it is a wonderful piece that introduces more advanced concepts to the ensemble and audience alike without straying too far from a familiar aesthetic. Indeed, this piece can be a welcome (and for some audiences, a very much needed) bridge between the work of someone like Robert W. Smith or James Barnes and someone like Eric Whitacre or Frank Ticheli.

 
If you would like to look at a sample score, hear a recording, or purchase a score and/or parts for Brad Hart's Movement, you can do so by visiting www.world-projects.com/newmusic. Here you can find our entire published catalogue of new works written for a variety of ensembles and levels. And if you do use Movement in your classroom, please let us know how!
Stay tuned next month for the next installment of
Composers' Corner: Why Should I Work With a Living Composer?
 
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