Grade 4
Autumn on White Lake
Autumn on White Lake was commissioned by Lakeland High School of White Lake, Michigan. Sounds that conjure golden leaves, crisp air and rustic memories envelop your ensemble as well as the audience in this flourishing work as it recalls an October visit to this beautiful region. Dur: 6:30
Bridges (Wind Symphony & Orator)
Composed at the request of Virginia Tech University and performed on the band's 2007 commencement tour, this work from Samuel Hazo pays tribute to the university's fallen students through a touching tone poem and accompanying inspirational text that helps build the bridges to healing. Dur: 5:00
Diamond Fanfare
Written with a dramatic blend of thundering percussion, intense brass proclamations, and woodwind flourishes, Samuel Hazo expands the “fanfare” format into a truly powerful setting for wind band. Equally effective for contest use or any festive occasion. Dur: 4:30
Echoes
Resonant chimes and sonorous chorales lend a somber but inspiring hue to this work, written to memorialize a band director's passing while celebrating the legacy that all teachers leave for their students. As Hazo writes in the score's preface; “The more we give of ourselves, the more our lives resound.” Dur: 4:50
Enchanted Spaces
The Decorah (IA) High School Wind Ensemble commissioned Enchanted Spaces to both capture the magic of their “enchanted” city, and to be very playable at the high school level. A sparkling, full ensemble entrance gives way to musical paintings of vast spaces and natural beauty. The ebb and flow between grand sounds and lush charm perfectly balance this shimmering composition. Enchanted Spaces becomes the majesty and quaintness of the mountains, rivers, culture and cityscape of this unique town. Dur: 4:35
Everything Beautiful - New Release
Premiered by Maestro Eugene Migliaro Corporon conducting Music For All's 2014 Honor Band of America, this spectacular memorial for renowned band director Charles Campbell will surround your students and audiences in layers of emotion. Expressive moments upon moments allow the ensemble to follow their musical instincts, gaining an aesthetic reward each time. Typical of performances, the work fades into introspective silence, then is followed by lengthy applause. Available in the original three-movement set, and also just Mvt. 1, The Stillness of Remembering. Dur: 9:00
Fantasy on a Japanese Folk Song
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A tour de force of exotic sounds and emotional design, this major work from Samuel Hazo will leave your audiences breathless. Based on the hauntingly beautiful Sunayama, this composition tells a story of the inner conflict of a Japanese girl who falls in love with an American. She is torn between a life with him in America and her longing for the culture of her childhood. From time to time she plays a music box given to her by her parents (Sunayama theme), bringing a flood of homeland memories. The composer weaves together a tapestry of sounds and moods as the piece builds to a fulfilling climax of musical drama and power. Dur: 5:30
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ScorePlay is available for this piece. You may view the score and listen to the recording of Fantasy on a Japanese Folk Song below.
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Hennepin County Dawn (1st Movement from "Minnesota Portraits")
This sensitive and beautifully scored work showcases delicate woodwind scoring and poignant melodies along with carefully paced emotional builds and full ensemble chorale-like passages. Mallet percussion colors and shimmering effects lend support in this impressive work. Dur: 3:30
In Flight
After a bombastic rapid-fire brass fanfare, the woodwinds take hold of a soaring melody that is then interspersed with full ensemble splashes. Woodwind flourishes and expansive scoring lend a grandiose splendor to the overall effect. Exciting and powerful writing for today's wind band! Dur: 3:45
Mountain Thyme
Written as a memorial, this beautifully emotional setting is a reworking of the traditional folk song “The Braes of Baquhidder” (also known as “Wild Mountain Thyme”) by Scottish writer Robert Tannahill. Samuel Hazo uses a varied tapestry of colors, textures and dynamics, taking full advantage of the depth and power of the modern wind band in creating this stunningly effective work. Dur: 4:20
Perthshire Majesty
Winner of the 2003 NBA William Revelli Composition Award. A Scottish ballad for wind band, Perthshire Majesty finds its musical roots in the heritage of David Gregory, the conductor who led the premiere. A gentle, elegant work with a broad, cinematic lyricism, Perthshire Majesty evolves with a sense of engaging inevitability. Dur: 4:40
Siorai September
Translated from Gaelic as “Eternal September,” this marvelous setting for band is designed to take each listener back to their own vivid fall memories on a college campus. Commissioned by the University of Notre Dame and premiered at their Carnegie Hall performance in 2010, this work is also dedicated to the composer's father, Dr. Samuel J. Hazo, a 1949 graduate of Notre Dame. Additionally, Dr. Hazo's poem “Home Are the Sailors” is incorporated in the middle of the piece. Rich in musical references and varied textures, this is a dramatic and rewarding work for mature ensembles. Dur: c. 5:30
Southern Hymn
Even though the themes used in this beautiful setting are original, it is intended to be played in the style of a slow Southern folk hymn, similar to “Amazing Grace” or “Shenandoah.” Filled with suspensions and resolutions, as well as calm moments and powerfully emotional builds, this is a marvelous work for expanding your ensemble's stylistic and dynamic range. Dur: 4:25
Stella Maris
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Composed as a memorial piece for a beloved teacher and friend, tender melodies and lush harmonies combine in this moving and lyrical work for mature ensembles. Stella Maris is a Latin term for Polaris, the North Star, with its symbolic role as “the star that protects and guides.” It's this reference that serves as the inspiration and premise of this emotional and rewarding work. (The piano introduction is optional.) Dur: 4:40
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ScorePlay is available for this piece. You may view the score and listen to the recording of Stella Maris below.
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The Stillness of Remembering (Movement 1 from "Everything Beautiful") - New Release
Sòlas Ané (Yesterday's Joy)
With a unique blend of flowing lines and lush textures coupled with dynamic Celtic drumming, Sam has created a very stylized and effective setting for wind band. Interspersed are quiet moments with soloistic woodwind lines that contrast nicely with the emotional full band passages. Dur: 4:30
Their Blossoms Down
This piece is meant to take on a lush Irish feel, as this best compares to Father McAnulty's (former President of Duquesne University in Pittsburgh) gentle nature. The poem is from an old Irish blessing. Dur: 5:50
Today is the Gift
Commissioned by the acclaimed Midwest Clinic in 2005, this exciting work by Samuel Hazo demonstrates the composer's continued fresh approach and unique vision for wind bands. Scored for brass and percussion with woodwind players contributing East African chant/singing along with egg shakers, this composition is a tribute to the memory of Rosa Parks and her struggles on behalf of civil rights more than 50 years ago. An auxiliary set of woodwind parts is now available, allowing this dramatic music to be performed by a traditional symphonic band instrumentation. Dur: 4:00
Whisper to Their Souls (based on "Greensleeves")
Here is a unique and creative setting of the familiar tune Greensleeves (What Child Is This?) that opens with the melody scored softly for the woodwinds. The full ensemble contributes a series of harmonically rich phrases until the work reaches an emotional climax at the powerfully scored key change. While this is certainly effective as a holiday offering, it can be performed as a memorable tone poem any time of the year. Dur: 4:10