Description
Movements
I. Fanfare
II. Lament
III. Jig
Program Note
At the time I was composing Suite for Brass Quintet, I was listening to a lot of medieval, Renaissance, and Baroque music, and I had those harmonies, characters, and forms stuck in my head. I decided to let those genres be the major influence for this piece, so I took three traditional styles – fanfare, lament, and jig – and made each a movement. The celebratory “Fanfare” incorporates open fifths, “Lament” a mournful tune, and “Jig” the traditional lively dance rhythm. But like many composers who have adopted these forms over the centuries, I have filtered them through my compositional lens to give them melodic, harmonic, and rhythmic flair not found in the original forms.
