Vulnerable Joy

From Wind Repertory Project
Jodie Blackshaw

Jodie Blackshaw


General Info

Year: 2022
Duration: c. 5:25
Difficulty: IV (see Ratings for explanation)
Publisher: Murphy Music Press
Cost: Score and Parts (print) - $145.00   |   Score Only (print) - $35.00


Instrumentation

Full Score
C Piccolo
Flute I-II
Oboe
Bassoon I-II
Contrabassoon (optional)
B-flat Soprano Clarinet I-II-III-IV
B-flat Bass Clarinet
B-flat Contrabass Clarinet (optional)
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
Bass Trombone
Euphonium
Tuba
String Bass
Timpani
Percussion I-VI, including:

  • Bass Drum
  • Conga (large)
  • Crash Cymbals
  • Crotales
  • Glockenspiel
  • Marimba
  • Suspended Cymbal
  • Tam-Tam
  • Triangle
  • Vibraphone


Errata

None discovered thus far.


Program Notes

Vulnerable Joy is inspired by the self-sacrifice, commitment and humility of the mother humpback whale. As a mammal, baleen whale, she grows to approximately 16m (52 feet) and lives at the ocean's surface in order to breath. She travels up to 6,500km (approx. 4,000 miles) from her feeding ground to birth her calf in warmer tropical waters. Once she leaves the feeding grounds of Antarctica or the cooler oceans of the Northern Hemisphere, she will not feed again until she returns some 8-9 months later, all the while nursing her newborn calf with up to 600 litres (132 gallons) of milk per day.

In realizing the enormity of this feat, my mind turned to the whales who are closest to me, those who migrate along the east coast of Australia from Tonga to Antarctica. I imagined the sheer relief she must feel in that moment when the cool waters of the Southern Ocean rub her skin for the first time. She is tired and hungry, but in that moment (in my imagination) I feel her joy, her intense, overwhelming joy.

- Program Note by composer


Media


State Ratings

None discovered thus far.


Performances

To submit a performance please join The Wind Repertory Project

  • San Jose (Calif.) Wind Symphony (David Vickerman, conductor) - 1 October 2023
  • University of North Dakota (Grand Forks) Wind Ensemble (James Popejoy, conductor) - 7 March 2023
  • University of Wisconsin-Parkside Wind Ensemble (Laura Rexroth, conductor) - 20 October 2022
  • St. Olaf Band (Notrhfield, Minn.) (Erika Svanoe, conductor) – May 2022


Works for Winds by this Composer

Adaptable Music


All Wind Works


Resources