I guess there's a little self-indulgence in this piece of music. Danny Helseth, esteemed leader of Brass Band Northwest at that time, had invited members of the band to play solos during the 2008-09 season, and I was very interested in doing so. The big question, of course, was what to play. There were only three real choices in the matter: find something we already had in the library (I didn't want to do Tubanera again too soon!); find and purchase a new piece, which would be risky without knowing it until we got it; or write one. I wasn't sure how quickly I'd be able to come up with something if I chose to write it, especially with other projects in the works, but decided to give it a shot anyway. I'm very glad I did as it seems to have fallen together pretty well, at least from my perspective.
As a composition this piece started randomly, with no program in mind, but as I got into it it took some quirky but interesting turns and a real program developed. Imagine a group of people summoned to scare off the evil spirits that have taken over and occupied some one-time peaceful location, maybe a cornfield, wheatfield, or open grassland. Their efforts to return it to it's unburdened past begin with a steady chanting, a spiritual preparation of sorts, with their leader at the helm, the tuba. As the chanting stops, the tuba breaks into a solo invocation to call the spirits out. In the faster section that follows these spirits begin to surface and, with regular assault by the tuba, work themselves into a frenzy, to be finally chased from the fields in a huge clamor of sound. Momentarily exhausted, tuba leader falls to the ground as the band softly emerges to a renewed peacefulness. The tuba returns to present the halcyon theme that is warmly accepted and taken up by the rest of the band and everyone lives happily ever after.
This piece was premiered by Brass Band Northwest, with me on Eb tuba, at our concert on June 9, 2009. The original sampled recording from the software I used to write it is available below.