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I’m a bit late, but thank you to Shawn Vondran and the Northwestern University Symphonic Band for such a sensitive and moving performance of In the Open Air, In the Silent Lines at NC CBDNA. I’m continually amazed at your artistry! #cbdna #intheopenairinthesilentlines
Jason and Melissa, I’m not sure that I’ll ever find the right words to properly convey my thoughts about this collaboration. Thank you for the friendship, and for finding the perfect poem for the work. Jason, I particularly enjoyed flipping through your score on the podium and finding all of the text written in. And the performance was simply stunning, each line handled with such care. I could not be more proud of you.
And Melissa, thank you for sharing your emotions about Evelyn so openly. I felt her presence throughout the entire writing process, and certainly during the performance. You taught me that it’s alright to talk about her, and in fact, many parents that lose a child want to do just that.
I’m a better person for knowing both of you, and I’m grateful for our friendship. I look forward to the choir premiere in April! #andsingsthetune
“It is six A.M., and I am working. I am absentminded, reckless, heedless of social obligations, etc. It is as it must be. The tire goes flat, the tooth falls out, there will be a hundred meals without mustard. The poem gets written. I have wrestled with the angel and I am stained with light and I have no shame. Neither do I have guilt.” —Mary Oliver, “Of Power and Time.” •••
Stained With Light’s first-ever performance: check. Thank you for sharing your art with @mizzoumusic, Aaron!
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Thankful I got to document some memories of your time here; thankful for our opportunity to premiere this piece; thankful for composers like you who keep our art lively and well. Until next time! -Piper @piperismee 🤘🏼 #Mizzou #COMO #chandelierchimes
Last rehearsal before the premiere of my new piece tonight— “Stained With Light”— commissioned for the MU Wind Ensemble. Exciting stuff! #COMO #Mizzou #premiere
Finally a nice day to explore the campus...and spend a little time with another honor band! #miz
Hanging out this afternoon with the fine students at the William Jewell College Windfest HS Honor Band. Tremendous progress on Life Painting! #lifepainting #williamjewellcollege #windfest
I’m fortunate to be here at the U of Missouri, working with my fantastic friends Brian Silvey and Amy Knopps! What a collaborative, musical environment. I’m thrilled to soon share a brand new piece of mine entitled, Stained With Light,” which will be premiered next week at the Southwestern CBDNA Conference. The Wind Ensemble sounds awesome so if you are anywhere near OKC next Thursday, be sure to check them out! Also, check out these stunning chandelier chimes, made specifically for the premiere by Amy Leigh Dorsch Heavilin! More coming soon on this one! #stainedwithlight #MIZ #chandelierchimes
Due to snow, the SEIBA Honor Band was moved to last Wednesday, February 5th. The trip happened so quickly that I forgot to take pictures or post about it. But I was reminded as I unpacked/repacked and found this plaque! Many thanks to Drew Anderson and the rest of the SEIBA crew for the invite to work with your fabulous students! They did a great job premiering Steeplechase, a new grade 2.5/3 work for band. Look for this one to be available later this spring! #steeplechase #SEIBA
I thought if I waited, I might better find the words to speak about this work. However the “soft” premiere is in less than a week and I’m still at a loss. But I’ll try. My dear friends, Jason and Melissa Nam, commissioned me to write a wind ensemble piece in honor of their precious little girl, Evelyn, who graced everyone with her physical presence on this earth for just a short time.
Fairly early in the discussions, I proposed the idea of writing a choral work and transcribing it for winds. I needed the direction of text and the intimacy of voices. But I only wanted to go this direction if Jason and Melissa approved. They did, and they chose the poem, “Hope is the Thing With Feathers,” by Emily Dickinson. The words and message were beautiful and absolutely perfect.
I finished the choral version on July 16th this past summer, and the transcription for winds shortly thereafter. I’m a better person for writing this work and am forever grateful for the opportunity.
I very much look forward to official premiere of wind ensemble version, performed by the IU Concert under the direction of Jason Nam, which will take place in Chicago at the CBDNA North Central Conference on February 20th. The choral version also has a very special premiere in the works, and I’ll share more on that as it approaches.
#andsingsthetunewithoutthewords
CODA Wind Ensemble and Joe Parisi knockin’ Life Painting out of the park! #lifepainting #windensemble #concertband #coda
New music alert! Here’s a clip of the CODA 9th Grade Honor Band rehearsing new piece, “All the Things I’m Not.” The official premiere is this afternoon. THANK YOU to the awesome students for bringing this music to life! And Darcy Vogt Williams, it was wonderful to work with you; EXCELLENT job guiding these fine students! #allthethingsimnot #newmusic #windensemble #concertband #concertband #coda
“Going for a new amateur recreational saucer sled land speed record, Clark W. Griswold Jr.”
Merry Christmas!
My God son knows what I like! 😉Merry Christmas! #christmaseve #surly
#lifepainting
Amazing premiere of Life Painting this morning! Thank you Wando Symphonic Band! #lifepainting #newmusic #band #concertband #windensemble
“By Woods on a Snowy Evening” is being premiered tonight by the Fond du Lac HS Symphonic Winds and Percussion! Many thanks to Matt McVeigh for commissioning the work and sharing his awesome students with me these past three days! (swipe to see some rehearsal clips) #bywoodsonasnowyevening #fondybands #newmusic #christmas #christmasconcert #windensemble
Apparently I brought the snow and cold from MN to Oshkosh, WI! Despite this, I’m really enjoying my time with Devin Otto and his wonderful students. Here are two clips of Temperance and a clip of my new work for chamber winds called Forever Radiant! #temperance #foreverradiant #windensemble #newmusic #chambermusic
A few clips from an awesome rehearsal with the CSB/SJU Wind Ensemble on a brand new piece of mine called A Dream of Trees! #adreamoftrees #windensemble #csbsjuwindensemble #csbsju
Congratulations to all of the students of the 2019 Texas Woman’s University Honor Bands! Amazing students! The TWU Wind Symphony also sounded fabulous on Friday night. Be sure to catch them at CBDNA if you have the chance. Many thanks, @carter.biggers! Can’t wait to visit again! #tothewind #paleblueondeep #aglimpseoftheeternal #inthismoment #april