Yale Concert Band - feat. Seraph Brass (all-women quintet), guest artists

Thomas
C. Duffy, Music Director. “Dust” for wind ensemble and brass quintet by
Jennifer Jolley, feat. Seraph Brass (all-female quintet).

●
Jennifer Jolley wrote “Dust” in reflection of her time in Lubbock, TX, when she
served on the faculty at Texas Tech University School of Music. During periods
of isolation during the COVID-19 pandemic, she took long drives and immersed
herself in the landscape, climate, and history of the vast state. From high
plains, to rolling prairies, to verdant grasslands, from being caught in brief,
intense hail showers and dust storms and the scorching sun, she came to know
Texas through its ambient and tactile qualities. As she puts it, “Texas is
extreme in that way, in every way. It’s immense and intimate, precarious and
nurturing, vital and violent all at once.”

Seraph Brass was founded by trumpet
soloist Mary Elizabeth Bowden (Yale School of Music M.M. 2006) with a mission
to showcase the excellence of women brass players and highlight musicians from
marginalized groups, both in personnel and in programming. In addition to
performances and residencies, Seraph performs as a 10-piece ensemble, as
soloists with symphony orchestras and wind bands, and in collaboration with
other chamber artists. Seraph Brass performs a diverse body of repertoire,
ranging from original transcriptions to newly commissioned works and core
classics. More information on Seraph Brass (https://www.seraphbrass.com/)

●
Viet Cuong wrote “Deciduous” after his father’s death, comparing the experience
of grief and healing to the cycle of life, where there is the loss of one’s ‘leaves,’
after which the leafless winter eventually is followed by a spring.

● “Second
Suite in F for Military Band” by Gustav Holst is based on English folk songs
and dance. Each of its four movements possesses its own distinctive
character—from slow and tender to lively and complex—ending with a resetting of
the well-known tune ‘Greensleeves.’

Other
music: “The Other Side Silence – Finale” (Stephen Roberts), “Like an Altar with
9000 Robot Attendants” (Ryan Lindveit), “Stand the Storm” (Julian Work), “Frozen
Flame March” (T. C. Duffy)