Tag: woodwind

Found Objects

Do inanimate objects have a narrative, a story to tell from their perspective? Can ordinary objects be viewed as works of art? Artists have explored this concept throughout history in one form or another, but composer Jenni Brandon (b. 1977) may be the first… Continue Reading “Found Objects”

A Manitou Christmas Medley

In our annual winter concert, Manitou Winds presents a program of music, poetry, and prose inspiring you to embrace winter. As creative director of Manitou Winds, I spend a lot of time searching through titles and listening to music, curating the individual pieces that… Continue Reading “A Manitou Christmas Medley”

Summer Fantasies: Three Reveries

Within our Summer Fantasies concert program, there are three pieces I’ve dubbed “reveries”. I refer to them this way primarily as an intentional nod to their French origins, but also because each was inspired by or intended to evoke a dream-like fantasy.

Händel’s Fireworks

In our modern era, it’s almost inconceivable for us to envision music being written and performed expressly for a single occasion. However, it was exactly that sort of one-time occasion that prompted King George II to commission Händel in 1749 to write “Music for the Royal Fireworks”.

Summer Fantasies: The Art of Collaboration

Our collaborating artists typically provide artwork to help promote our concert, and we always offer an opportunity display a collection of their artwork at the concert. But, shortly before the concert, Ellie approached me with an even bolder idea.

New Voices: Jason McKinney

“I did not sit down, one day, and decide I would write “Three Narratives,” says Jason McKinney. “The piece just happened to come together during a very difficult time in my life. The structure of the piece, the melodies inside the structure—these were all comforts to me, a way of coping.”

New Voices: Laura Hood

Laura composed “First Flight” to honor her friend Rebecca Lessard, founder of Wings of Wonder, a raptor rehabilitation center and sanctuary based in Empire, MI.

New Voices: Daniel Baldwin

In Baldwin’s “Landscapes”, the music delves into the life story of the artist, evoking the symbolism of the imagery while translating it into the unique timbres of the quartet.

New Voices: Jenni Brandon

In “On Holt Avenue”, each of the four movements presents a small vignette from Jenni’s memories of daily life in her apartment in a particular Los Angeles neighborhood.

New Voices: Bonnie L. Cochran

The flute is capable of so many modern special effects and extended techniques that a large swath of modern flute music tends to explore these extra-musical sounds and effects rather than drawing the listener in. Bonnie’s music manages to be undeniably modern yet unquestionably musical.