Un Cafecito (2020), by Denis Llinás (b.1980)

Dennis Llinás drew the inspiration for Un Cafecito from a unique Cuban custom that he experienced while growing up in Miami, Florida, explaining that “the phrase ‘Un Cafecito’ means a little coffee. Growing up in Miami in our Cuban culture, it was customary for co-workers to bring to work an 8 oz cup filled with Cuban coffee (basically really strong and sweet espresso) and tiny shot cups. At certain points in the day, they would approach colleagues and pour a quick shot for them accompanied with the phrase, ‘¿Quieres un cafecito?’ translating to ‘Do you want some coffee?’ Needless to say, after that shot, you were ready for another few hours of daily activity. The piece, Un Cafecito, is basically that - a quick pick-me-up that is just meant to be fun to perform and listen to filled with energy, sensuality, passion and the dance motivation of Cubans…” The amplified string bass and percussion act as the backbone of this piece, and the composer assures the percussionists that “as a Cuban percussionist, you have authentic percussion parts. Un Cafecito perfectly encapsulates that burst of energy that comes from great coffee, music, and company while showcasing each section of the band with a Cuban flair.

Concierto para Trompeta y Banda Sinfónica(2024), by Juan Vázquez (b.1993)
Jesse Cook, Faculty Guest Artist [consortium premiere]

Juan Vázquez is a Mexican composer, orchestral conductor, lawyer, and professor born in La Piedad, Michoacán. His musical journey began with piano studies in his hometown and continued at the Conservatorio de las Rosas in Morelia. He pursued law at the Escuela Libre de Derecho in Mexico City, where he is currently an Assistant Professor. Juan's compositions often draw from Mexico's rich musical traditions, such as the regional "Son" styles of Michoacán, which influenced his trumpet concerto, blending classical form with local rhythms and melodies, and each with unique characteristics such as instrumentation, tempo, tonality, and time signatures. One prominent style is the Mexican Son, particularly the 6/8 time signature, which varies by region. In Michoacán, there are various types of Sones, including Son Purépecha, Son Planeco, Son Abajeño, and Son Calentano. Although much of Vázquez’s music has been influenced by Mexican traditions, this trumpet concerto represents the first time that he has created a piece fully inspired by his homeland, specifically, blending classical concerto form with the regional styles of Michoacán. The concerto's first movement is based on the joyful Son Purépecha, featuring a fast tempo, major key, and simple harmonies. The second movement draws from the Pirekua, a pre-Columbian chant, with slow tempi and traditional rhythmic elements, creating an intimate atmosphere with a flugelhorn solo. The third movement, inspired by Son Abajeño from the northwest of Michoacán, showcases the wind ensemble's traditional sound and the virtuosic capabilities of the trumpet, with fast tempos and lively rhythms. The movement's Rondo form highlights the vibrant energy of the region’s music.

Havana(2018), by Kevin Day (b.1996)

Composer, Kevin Day, wrote that, “Havana was a wind ensemble piece that I started working on in 2017, got about 30 measures into writing, and then put on the shelf. I couldn’t think of what to do with it or come up with an idea, so I ended up just putting it aside until I could. I ended up forgetting about it, and while I was searching through my music files on a night in September 2018, I stumbled on this work and found inspiration to write on what I had. I wanted to tell a story with the piece and make it authentic, and so I spent a lot of time carefully writing the work. After messing with a few titles and feeling a good amount of frustration, I decided to go with Havana, despite there being a viral pop song already in existence with the same name (a song that is honestly a guilty pleasure of mine to listen to). This piece, however, has nothing to do with the Camilla Cabello mega-hit. Havana is a 7-1/2 minute work that is heavily influenced by Cuban music, rhythms, and percussion. I wanted to highlight different dance genres such as salsa, mambo, and cha-cha, while also making the piece in my own voice. I have a strong love for Latin music, and so this was incredibly fun to write. I sought to paint a mental picture of the city of Havana, the beautiful landscape, and the culture that it is known and beloved for. There are many ‘Latin-influenced’ pieces for band already and so I wanted to make Havana stand out as one that is exciting and memorable. I hope that performers and audiences will tap their foot, bop their heads, and feel the music.”

Chichester Psalms(1965), by Leonard Bernstein (b.1918-1990),
scored for orchestral winds & mixed chorus by Scott Lubaroff [world premiere]

Leonard Bernstein's Chichester Psalms was commissioned by the Very Reverand Walter Hussey, Dean of Chichester Cathedral in Sussex, England, for its 1965 music festival, and dedicated "with gratitude" to Cyril Solomon, the British physician who had served as a liaison between Bernstein and Hussey. In 1965, Bernstein took a sabbatical from his Music Director position with the New York Philharmonic. He had been struggling, emotionally, after the assassination of President John F. Kennedy and the more recent murder of his close friend, composer Marc Blitzstein, and during this sabbatical, focused his energies on composing. In his inquiry, Dean Hussey explained to Bernstein that he and John Birch, Organist and Choirmaster at Chichester Cathedral at the time, were hoping for a work that the combined cathedral choruses of Chichester, Winchester, and Salisbury could perform at that August's festival, explaining that they were envisioning, "say, a setting of Psalm 2, or some part of it, either unaccompanied or accompanied by orchestra or organ, or both. The resultant work was Chichester Psalms, and in it, Bernstein incorporated much more than just Psalm 2, writing a "suite of Psalms, or selected verses from Psalms." Bernstein originally entitled the work "Psalm of Youth," however later changed it because he was concerned that it might suggest to some that the piece was easy to perform. Each of the work’s three movements contains one complete Psalm plus excerpts from another, and in it, Bernstein allows the melodic and rhythmic contours and emphases of the Hebrew texts to guide mood and character. Chichester Psalms’ first performance, an unofficial premiere, was at New York's Philharmonic Hall, July 15, 1965, with Bernstein conducting the New York Philharmonic. It's "official" premiere was at Chichester Cathedral on July 31 of that same year, conducted by John Birch. This setting, for orchestral winds & percussion, relies upon both the original orchestral version and the edition that Bernstein created for organ, harp, and percussion to inform its orchestration, meaning to faithfully preserve the composer's fundamental intent at all times. Chichester Psalms remains one of Leonard Bernstein's most performed works, in fact receiving 277 performances across 28 countries on five continents in 2018, the centennial of the composer's birth.

D[RAM]EDY for solo piano & wind ensemble(2024), by Alexander Burtzos (b.1985)
Jenny Lin, Guest Artist[world premiere]

No remembrance is fully happy or fully sad. The emotional quotient of memories shifts and slides with the passage of years. A miserable weekend spent camping in the rain might, in time, become a fond recollection of hours spent with friends. A cheerful holiday celebration might, after the passing of a loved one who was there, become tinged with retrospective melancholy. Joy and sorrow are like the two faces of a coin, one aimed into the future, the other into the past, to be experienced in different ways from different vantage points. D[RAM]EDY attempts to capture this ambiguity. It rushes angrily away from a memory, blinded by tears, only to discover that the memory was, in the end, a happy one, meant not only to be retained, but cherished.

Dynamo(2024), by Larry Tuttle (b.1955)

Dynamo was written on a commission from the University of Michigan Symphony Band and its new director, Jason Fettig, as a surprise 90th birthday tribute to their Director Emeritus, H. Robert Reynolds, who conducted the band for nearly thirty years. “As soon as I got the call, I knew what I wanted to write,” composer Larry Tuttle explains, “Something hot. Bob Reynolds introduced me to the world of wind ensemble and concert band in 2017, when he commissioned my Across the Divide. The first time he conducted that piece, he cranked up the tempo by fifteen or twenty clicks and delivered a high-voltage, high-energy interpretation that I never saw coming. So I wanted my tribute to Bob to reflect that side of him – fast, energetic and fun.” Dynamo is driven by the timpani, playing a simple, repetitive and forward-leaning figure that pushes the whole band from underneath. Xylophone and flute hit a ridiculous little riff right before the main themes hit, just to establish a tiny little bit of quirk, a slight smile. The main theme is a set of broad and powerful chords that float over the top of the driving rhythm. Both the chords and the rhythm grow, becoming more and more intense, before hitting the B section, which is a musical portrait of the engine – the dynamo – featuring an angular bassline, rock toms and some ascending industrial cluster chords. “The whole thing resolves to a gigantic, majestic brass chorale – a nod to the traditional wind orchestra and Bob Reynolds' long and storied career in that genre.” After the chorale is played a couple of times, the timpani sneaks back in and re-establishes a driving feel as the piece grows quickly to its final coda.