Wintry

Wintry is a moving piece representative of a cold, bleak, harsh winter storm. The piece was written for brass quintet before being arranged for five trombones. With dense orchestration in parts, complex counterpoint, and bold themes throughout, Wintry follows a modified rondo form. Lots of close intervals and dissonant tensions provide the piece with an edgy, piercing iciness. In the end, all of the interweaving lines come to a head. But they gently slip back into a solemn canon of the main theme to end the piece, like how a storm can end just as quietly as it started, leaving a stately yet gentle presence of snow. Originally written in the shutdown of December 2020, as I looked outside my window to a snow-covered landscape after a storm the previous night, I wanted to recreate the complex feeling that rang throughout the world. Generally, it was one of loneliness, but the captivating snow-blanket had a somewhat of a dignified, awe-inspiring nature. Wintry was commissioned by the International Trombone Summit, under direction of James Justin Kent, the trombonist for the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra. The premiere took place at a concert during the organization's second festival in June of 2022.