Project Description
Solo Flute and Wind Ensemble
2000
48 min.
Listen Now
Illinois State University Wind Symphony, Stephen Steele, cond., Kimberly McCoul Risinger, flute
On the album Song Books
Preview Score
Instrumentation
Solo Fl | Fl-2 Ob-2 BbCl-2 BCl CbCl Bsn-2 ASx-2 TSx | Hn-2 Tpt-2 Tbn BTbn DB | Pno Perc-4
- Solo Flute
- Flute (2) (1 dbl Alto Flute)
- Oboe (2)
- Clarinet in A (2)
- Bass Clarinet in B♭
- Contrabass Clarinet in E♭
- Alto Saxophone
- Tenor Saxophone
- Bassoon (2) (2 dbl Contrabassoon)
- Horn in F (2)
- Trumpet in C (2)
- Trombone
- Bass Trombone
- Harp
- Piano
- Double Bass
- Timpani
- Required Percussion (4 players)
- Claves
- Vibraphone
- Suspended Cymbal (1 sm., 1 med., 2 lg.)
- Crotales
- Orchestra Bells
- Snare Drum
- Wood Block (sm)
- Marimba
- Brake Drum
- Bell Tree
- Metal Wind Chimes
- Temple Blocks
- Sleigh Bells
- Maracas
- Tam-tam (2)
- Anvil
- Bongos (2)
- Conga Drum
- Cabasa
- Egg Shaker
- Crash Cymbals
- Bass Drum
- Hi Hat Cymbal
Movements
- A Song of Coming Awake
- Solvitur Ambulando
- Song: In loving memory
- Song: In the Crucible of Your Pain
- A Song for the End of Time
Commissioned by
The composition of “Song Book” for Flute and Wind Ensemble was supported by the following persons and institutions, and the work is respectfully dedicated to them:
- Marcellus B. Brown, Boise State University, Boise, ID
- William Johnson, Director of Bands, California Polytechnic University, San Luis Obispo, CA
- Larry Sutherland/Teresa Beaman, Director of Bands, California State University, Fresno, CA
- Central Washington University Music Deptartment, Peter Tries, Chairman
- Central Washington University Wind Ensemble, Larry Gookin, Conductor
- Russell Pesola, Concordia College, Moorhead, MN
- Stephen K. Steele, Illinois State University
- Karen and Larry Gookin
- Scott L. Taube, Director of Bands, McMurry University, Abilene, TX
- Joseph Hermann, Tennessee Tech University
- James Croft, The Florida State University
- Hal Ott for the National Flute Association
- The University of Calgary Symphonic Band and Calgary Concert Band, Jeremy S. Brown Conductor
- Dwight Satterwhite, Director of Bands, The University of Georgia
- The University of Miami Wind Ensemble, Gary Green, Conductor
- The University of Texas at Arlington Wind Ensemble, Ray C. Lichtenwalter, Conductor
- The University of Texas at Austin Bands, Jerry Junkin, Conductor
- John Weddle, Westmount College, Santa Barbara, CA
Program Note
“Song Book” is a set of pieces that are songlike – that is, intimate and expressive, though not necessarily quiet. The solo flute feels like a voice to me, a voice which has a complex story to tell, in the form of musical dreams.
The 371 Four-Part Chorales by J. S. Bach have been a long-time focal point for my study and meditation. these chorales are the models for melodic and harmonic movement used by every beginning music theory student. I had my first encounter with them as a college freshman in 1961. Ten years ago I returned to singing and playing them as a daily warm-up for my composing. In that time I have come to experience the chorales as touchstones for dream space. I have used many of them as the jumping off point for my own compositions. The feeling is one of opening an unmarked door and being suddenly thrust into a different world. The chorales are the doors.
I have used three chorale melodies in “Song Book”. The first movement, “A Song of Coming Awake”, is based on “Crist ist Erstanden” (Christ is Risen); the third, “In Loving Memory”, on “Van Gott will Ich nicht lassen” (I never wish to part from God); the fifth, “A Song for the End of Time”, on “O Gott, du frommer Gott” (O Good and Gentle God).
The title of the second movement, “Solvitur Ambulando”, is Latin for “it is solved by walking”. There is a centuries-old tradition that good ideas come while walking. It is a practice that I have used in my creative work for some years. intuition and intellect are engage together by the alternating motion of the limbs. The Danish philosopher Kierkegard wrote: “Above all, do not lose your desire to walk: every day I walk myself into a state of well-being; I have walked myself into my best thoughts…If one just keeps on walking, everything will be all right.”
“In the Crucible of Your Pain” is a title that appeared in my mind as I was writing the fourth movement. I can’t explain it very well. There is a deep sense of struggle – something serious is going on!
Program note by David Maslanka
Further Reading
From the Maslanka Archive – No. 34, Julian Velasco’s Interview of Gary Green
From the Maslanka Archive features media and stories of David's life and work. This week, we are excited to feature Julian Velasco's interview of Gary Green from the Wharton Center in East Lansing, MI from October 24, 2017.
From the Maslanka Archive – No. 32, Julian Velasco’s Interview of David – Part 2
From the Maslanka Archive features media and stories of David's life and work. This week, we are excited to feature Part 2 of Julian Velasco's interview of David from his home in Missoula, MT in 2016.
Maslanka Weekly: Best of the Web – No. 74, Time
Maslanka Weekly highlights excellent performances of David Maslanka’s music from around the web. This week, we feature three of David’s works that contemplate the enigma of time: “At This Time” from Songs for the Coming Day, Symphony No. 10: The River of Time, and "A Song for the End of Time" from Song Book for Flute and Wind Ensemble.
Maslanka Weekly: Best of the Web – No. 62, Memories
Maslanka Weekly highlights excellent performances of David Maslanka’s music from around the web. This week, we feature three of David's compositions that seem to focus on the memory of something or someone through the passage of time: Traveler, Beloved, and "In Loving Memory" from Song Book for Flute and Wind Ensemble.
Maslanka Weekly: Best of the Web – No. 54, Walking
Maslanka Weekly highlights excellent performances of David Maslanka’s music from around the web. This week we feature three of David’s works that reference his practice of walking: Song: "Fire in the Earth" from Concerto for Alto Saxophone and Wind Ensemble, "Solvitur Ambulando" from Song Book for Flute and Wind Ensemble, and Rollo Takes a Walk.
David Maslanka: Works for Younger Wind Ensembles
Here are more than twenty works for wind ensemble, arranged in approximate ascending order of difficulty, with commentary by David Maslanka
Recording the Wind Ensemble Music of David Maslanka
Mark Morette of Mark Custom Recording shares his extensive experience in recording wind ensembles.
A Conductor’s Examination of Three Concertos with Wind Ensemble
Dr. Travis Cross' doctoral dissertation includes a chapter on David's Song Book for Flute and Wind Ensemble and a transcript of an interview with the composer. His research presents an analysis of the Song Book's formal structure, [...]
