Concerto for Alto Saxophone and Wind Ensemble (Ticheli)
General Info
Year: 2014
Duration: c. 20:00
Difficulty: VI (see Ratings for explanation)
Publisher: Manhattan Beach Music
Cost: Score and Parts - $325
Movements
1. Falcon Fantasy - 7:15
2. Silver Swan - 6:40
3. Black Raven - 5:30
Instrumentation
Full Score
Solo Alto Saxophone
C Piccolo
Flute I-II
Oboe I-II
Bassoon I-II
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
Horn in F I-II
Trombone I-II-III
Euphonium
Tuba
String Bass
Timpani
Percussion I-II-III, including:
- Bass Drum
- Drum Kit
- Glockenspiel
- Guiro
- Marimba
- Ratchet
- Slapstick
- Suspended Cymbal
- Tam-tam
- Temple Block
- Triangle
- Vibraphone
- Vibraslap
- Woodblock
- Xylophone
Errata
None discovered thus far.
Program Notes
Falcon, swan, raven -- as my work progressed, avian thoughts grew stronger and stronger and eventually became a source of great inspiration and enjoyment. While the listener should not take the movement titles too literally, one may easily hear their evidence in the music. For example, the first movement is charged with enormous vitality and buoyancy. Rapid, rocket-like gestures suggest the falcon’s ability to swoop and dive at incredible speed. A “scurrying” middle section hints at animals trying to escape the falcon’s eye. The second movement suggests a kind of beauty that is at once tender, fragile, and mournful. Its title, Silver Swan, recalls the text of a beautiful madrigal by English Renaissance composer Orlando Gibbons:
The silver Swan, who living had no Note,
When Death approached, unlocked her silent throat.
Leaning her breast against the reedy shore,
Thus sang her first and last, and sang no more:
“Farewell, all joys! O Death, come close mine eyes!
More Geese than Swans now live, more Fools than Wise.”
The belief that swans sing a beautiful song just before their death dates back at least to 3rd century Greece and has been referenced by artists throughout the ages. In ancient Greek mythology, the swan was considered a symbol of harmony and beauty.
The raven has long been used by artists as a symbol of terror, mystery, and the supernatural. My finale, while not related to any specific work of art from the past, does conjure the kinds of dark and fiery images traditionally symbolized by the raven. The music is alternately menacing, tempestuous, playful, mocking, and always on edge. The energy increases wildly to the end, exploding in a roller coaster of sound and fury.
- Program Note by composer
Awards
- Concerto for Alto Saxophone and Wind Ensemble has been recommended as interesting, serious and distinctive music by members of the World Association of Symphonic Bands and Ensembles (WASBE).
Media
State Ratings
None discovered thus far.
Performances
To submit a performance please join The Wind Repertory Project
- United States Marine Band (Washington, D.C.) (Jason K. Fettig, conductor; Stephen Temme, alto saxophone) – 19 October 2019 (Porterville, Calif.)
- Illinois State University (Normal) Wind Symphony (Anthony C. Marinello, conductor; Davis Hale, alto saxophone) – 22 September 2019
- Rowan University (Glassboro, N.J.) Wind Ensemble (Joseph Higgins, conductor; Timothy Powell, alto saxophone) – 7 March 2019
- Michigan State University (East Lansing) Symphony Band (John T. Madden, conductor; Joseph Lulloff, also saxophone) – 22 March 2016
- Hartt Wind Ensemble (West Hartford, Conn.) (Glen Adsit, conductor; Carrie Koffman, Joe D'Aleo, Josh Thomas, alto saxophone) – 11 March 2016 (CBDNA 2016 Eastern Division Conference, New London, Conn.)
- University of Louisville (Ky.) Wind Ensemble (Frederick Speck, conductor; Adam McCord, saxophone) – 15 July 2015 - WASBE Conference, San Jose, Calif.
- Texas A&M University (College Station) Wind Symphony (Timothy Rhea, conductor; Timothy McAllister, alto saxophone) - 12 February 2015 (2015 TMEA Conference, San Antonio)
- Arizona State University Wind Orchestra (Gary W. Hill, conductor; Christopher Creviston, alto saxophone) – 5 November 2014
- World Youth Wind Symphony (Interlochen, Mich.) (Steve Davis, conductor) - 26 July 2014
- University of Iowa (Iowa City) Symphony Band (Richard Mark Heidel, conductor; Kenneth Tse, alto saxophone) – 28 February 2014 (CBDNA 2014 North Central Division Conference, Muncie, Ind.)
Works for Winds by This Composer
Adaptable Music
- Amazing Grace (Adaptable Band) (1994/2021)
- Cajun Folk Songs: Belle (Adaptable Band) (1991/2002/2020)
- Dance (Adaptable Band) (2002/2020)
- Earth Song (Adaptable Band) (2012/2020)
- Here Take This Lovely Flower (Adaptable Band) (2002/2020)
- In C-Dorian (Adaptable Band) (2020)
- In Yonder Valley (Adaptable Band) (2002/2020)
- Joy (Adaptable Band) (2002/2020)
- Loch Lomond (Adaptable Band) (arr. Ambrose) (2002/2020)
- Moving On (Adaptable Band) (2021)
- Moving On. See also: Suite Treats
- Portrait of a Clown (Adaptable Band) (1988/2020)
- Simple Gifts (four movements) (Adaptable Band) (2002/2020)
- Simple Gifts (one movement) (Adaptable Band) (2002/2020)
- Vesuvius (Adaptable Band) (1999/2020)
All Wind Works
- Abracadabra (2005)
- Acadiana (2016)
- Amazing Grace (Ticheli) (1994)
- Amazing Grace (Adaptable Band) (1994/2021)
- Amen! (2009)
- An American Elegy (2000)
- Angels in the Architecture (2009)
- Angels Rising (2023)
- Apollo Unleashed. See: Symphony No. 2
- Ave Maria (as arranger) (1825/2004)
- BASH (2021)
- Belle. See: Cajun Folk Songs: Belle
- Blue Shades (1996)
- Boundless River (2020)
- Cajun Folk Songs: Belle (Adaptable Band) (1991/2002/2020)
- Cajun Folk Songs, Part One (1990)
- Cajun Folk Songs, Part Two (1997)
- Concertino for Trombone (1987/2007)
- Concerto for Alto Saxophone and Wind Ensemble (2014)
- Concerto for Clarinet and Wind Ensemble (2010)
- Concerto for Trumpet (1990/2021)
- Dance. See: Simple Gifts: Four Shaker Songs
- Dancing on Water (2015)
- December Snow (2015)
- Earth Song (Adaptable Band) (2012/2020)
- Earth Song for Band (2012)
- First Light (2013)
- Fortress (1988)
- Gaian Visions (1990)
- Ghost Tale (2020)
- Here Take This Lovely Flower. See: Simple Gifts: Four Shaker Songs
- In C-Dorian (Adaptable Band) (2020)
- In Yonder Valley. See: Simple Gifts: Four Shaker Songs
- Joy (2005)
- Joy (Adaptable Band) (2002/2020)
- Joy Revisited (2005)
- Korean Folksongs from Jeju Island (2013)
- Life-Stream (2022)
- Loch Lomond (2002)
- Loch Lomond (Adaptable Band) (arr. Ambrose) (2002/2020)
- Lux Perpetua (2020)
- Midnight in Nairobi (2019)
- Midnight (2019)
- Moving On (Adaptable Band) (2021)
- Moving On. See also: Suite Treats
- Music for Winds and Percussion (withdrawn)
- Nitro (2006)
- Over the Moon (2023)
- Pacific Fanfare (1994/2002)
- Peace (2015)
- Portrait of a Clown (Adaptable Band) (1988/2020)
- Portrait of a Clown (1988)
- Postcard (1991)
- Rest (2011)
- Sailing the Sky (2021)
- San Antonio Dances (2010)
- Sanctuary (2006)
- Serenade for Kristin (2018)
- A Shaker Gift Song (2004)
- Shenandoah (1999)
- Silver Lining (2017)
- Simple Gifts (four movements) (Adaptable Band) (2002/2020)
- Simple Gifts (one movement) (Adaptable Band) (2002/2020)
- Simple Gifts: Four Shaker Songs (2002)
- In Yonder Valley (Adaptable Band) (2002/2020)
- Dance (Adaptable Band) (2002/2020)
- Here Take This Lovely Flower (Adaptable Band) (2002/2020)
- Songs of Love and Life (2012)
- Sun Dance (1997)
- Symphony No. 1 (tr. Green) (2001/2011)
- Symphony No. 2 (2004)
- The Tyger (2008)
- Under the Big Top (2019)
- Vesuvius (1999)
- Vesuvius (Adaptable Band) (1999/2020)
- Wild Nights! (2007)
Resources
- Frank Ticheli website Accessed 6 July 2020
- Perusal score