Wind Symphony (Moravec)
General Info
Year: 2012
Duration: c. 24:45
Difficulty: VI (see Ratings for explanation)
Publisher: Subito Music
Cost: Score and Parts (print) - $250.00 | Score Only (print) - $45.00
Movements
1. - 13:00
2. - 4:45
3. - 7:00
Instrumentation
Full Score
C Piccolo
Flute I-II-III
Oboe I-II
English Horn
Bassoon I-II
E-flat Soprano Clarinet
B-flat Soprano Clarinet I-II-III
B-flat Bass Clarinet
E-flat Alto Saxophone I-II
B-flat Tenor Saxophone
E-flat Baritone Saxophone
B-flat Trumpet I-II-III
Horn in F I-II-III-IV
Trombone I-II-III
Bass Trombone I-II
Tuba
String Bass
Timpani
Percussion, including:
- Bass Drum
- Bell Tree
- Cow Bell
- Crash Cymbals
- Crotales
- Flexatone
- Glockenspiel
- Ratchet
- Slap Stick
- Snare Drum
- Suspended Cymbal
- Tambourine
- Thunder Sheet
- Triangle
- Vibraphone
- Wood Block
- Xylophone
Errata
None discovered thus far.
Program Notes
Wind Symphony was Paul Moravec’s first work for wind band. Set in three contrasting, untitled movements, it is a difficult work intended for highly skilled ensembles. The composer is interested in exploring the colors available to the wind band, seemingly emphasizing texture over harmony. The substantial first movement begin with a slow introduction, with quick arpeggiated motives scored throughout the ensemble. The faster section of the movement contains intricate and complex rhythms, often pitting duple against triple on a variety of rhythmic levels. The second movement is deliberate, with the harmonic rhythm moving quite slowly. Numerous solo passages give the movement the feeling of chamber music over chordal accompaniment. The third and final movement is very quick, but is more accessible than the first due to the traditional rhythmic structures and block scoring.
Mastery of rhythm and a keen sense of pulse are in demand throughout this piece. Ranges are rarely extreme, but the technical facility of each player is put to the test, particularly in the first movement. Moravec uses dynamics to add another layer of texture to rhythmic motives, and these should be carefully observed and executed. Small motivic fragments combine to create larger composite musical ideas. In the third movement, horns are required to slur at intervals up to a twelfth. Five trombone players, including two bass trombones, are required.
- Program note by Stephen Andrew Hunter
Media
- Video: University of New Mexico (Albuquerque) Wind Symphony (Eric Rombach-Kendall, conductor) – 30 April 2018
State Ratings
None discovered thus far.
Performances
To submit a performance please join The Wind Repertory Project
- University of New Mexico (Albuquerque) Wind Symphony (Eric Rombach-Kendall, conductor) – 30 April 2018
- University of Florida (Gainesville) Wind Symphony (David Waybright, conductor) – 29 March 2012 *Premiere Performance*
Works for Winds by This Composer
- Change at Jamaica (2013)
- Wind Symphony (2012)
Resources
- Hunter, S. An Annotated Bibliography and Performance Commentary of the Works for Concert Band and Wind Orchestra by Composers Awarded the Pulitzer Prize in Music 1993-2015, and a List of Their Works for Chamber Wind Ensemble – Accessed 10 May 2020
- Moravec, P. (2012). Wind Symphony for Concert Band [score]. Subito Music: Verona, N.J.
- Subito Music website – Accessed 10 May 2020
- "Wind Symphony for Concert Band." The Wind Band Symphony Archive. Web. Accessed 11 May 2020