JAMES M. DAVID, composer
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TRANSFIGURED NIGHTS
Double Concerto for Percussion

2022-23 Limited Consortium Commission

I am excited to announce my first full concerto in over a decade and one that I think is a truly compelling combination of forces. Percussion has played such a vital role in my musical life and I am thrilled to be returning to the fascinating sound worlds made possible by percussion and percussionists. The work will be scored for two solo percussionists with wind orchestra and I hope to take full advantage of this incredibly rich palette. A very small and select group of university percussionists and wind conductors are being contacted for this project and no mass announcement will be made.

Lead Commissioner and Organizer: Dr. Christopher Butler, Southern Illinois University, Carbondale

Program Note

The title "Transfigured Nights: Double Concerto for Percussion" of course refers to Schoenberg's Verklärte Nacht (always a favorite title of mine) and each of the three movements will depict a well-known night painting from the late 19th or 20th centuries. 
I. The Falling Rocket
James McNeill-Whistler's "Nocturne in Black and Gold: The Falling Rocket" depicts fireworks above a lake where smoke, light, and water intermingle in a stunningly rich image. Bright metallic sounds combine with darting winds for an effervescent opening to the concerto.

II. Carnival Evening
Henri Rousseau's "Carnival Evening" has a whimsical and romantic quality that suggests the mysterious timbres of Bartok's "night pieces." Marimba and other wooden timbres will predominate and seek to explore the lyrical capabilities of percussion. As one figure is dressed as Pagliacci (or perhaps Pierrot), a few sly references to Puccini and Schoenberg will slip in and out.

III. Nighthawks
Edward Hopper's immortal "Nighthawks" expresses the urban American landscape of the early 1940's. As such, the melting pot of New York slowly builds to a powerful energy as rhumba, swing, bebop, and stride swirl together to break the night's spell.

Commission Details

  • Duration: ca. 13-15 minutes
  • Instrumentation: two solo percussionists (advanced) with wind orchestra (medium advanced, grade 5+)
    • Piccolo, 2 Flutes, 1 Oboe, 1 English Horn (sub. Alto Sax.), 3 Clarinets, 2 Bassoons
    • 4 Horns, 3 Trumpets, 2 Trombones, Bass Trombone, Tuba
    • String Bass, Piano, Harp, Timpani
    • Percussion requirements will use common instruments found in typical university settings
  • Commission cost: $500 per institution
  • Performance exclusivity until April 1, 2024
  • Anticipated Completion: December 1, 2022
  • Composer will attend all consortium premieres (pending availability and travel funding) 
  • Composer will participate in at least one rehearsal prior to consortium premiers (either in person or virtually, no greater than two hours total)
  • Physical bound score with personal inscriptions will be provided and all parts delivered via PDF files
  • Contact the composer directly for invoicing: James.David@colostate.edu

Prior Wind Ensemble Commission

  • Home
  • about
  • wind ensemble
    • Message from Arecibo
    • Flying Jewels
    • Urban Light
    • Troublesome Fire
    • Symphony no. 1
    • Ghosts of the Old Year
    • Call to Commitment
    • With Soul Serene
    • March Tumbao
    • Lookfar
    • Menlo Park, 1879
    • Zephyrus
    • Flexible Instrumentation
    • Heartland Verses
    • Swing Landscape
    • I Saw the Figure 5 in Gold
    • Concerto for Vibraphone
    • The Moorlands
    • Big Four on the River
    • All Dark Is Now No More
    • Temple's Grace
    • From the Shaken Tower
    • Two-Lane Blacktop
    • Sinfonietta no. 3
  • compositions
    • wind ensemble
    • clarinet >
      • all clarinet works
      • clarinet sonata
      • AUTO '66 - Clarinet Concerto
    • saxophone >
      • all saxophone works
      • Saxophone Sonata
      • L'oiseau dans l'espace
      • Saxophone/Percussion Double Quartet
    • trombone >
      • all trombone works
      • Trombone Sonata
      • Five American Dances
      • Song of the Valar
      • Bass Trombone Sonata
      • Partiels 2
      • Garden of the Gods
    • Other Brass Works >
      • Of Unsurpassed Heroes
      • Trumpet Sonata
    • Percussion >
      • The Dandelion
      • NOLA - BELA - SOWEGA
    • large ensemble >
      • Tin Lizzies on Old Fall River
      • LASCAUX
      • KAFKA - Sax Concerto
    • chamber ensemble >
      • Clarinet and Horn Trio
    • solo / electroacoustic
    • choral / vocal >
      • KUBLA KHAN
  • contact
  • Report Performance