Fins Up!

“Ladies and gentlemen… boys and girls… and children of all ages—welcome, one and all, to the greatest show on Earth!” For generations, these iconic words signaled that the fun was about to begin. Fins Up! captures that same sense of excitement, energy, and spectacle. Fins Up! was commissioned by and is dedicated to the Dauphin Junior High School Band of Enterprise, Alabama, for their performance at the Alabama Music Educators Association 2026 Conference. Dauphin’s mascot is the dolphin, and their rally cry—“Fins Up!”—provided both the title and inspiration for the work. In conversations with director Justin Compton, the goal was to create a march for young bands that stepped away from tradition—something closer to a circus march and delightfully off the beaten path. Much of the piece’s quirky personality comes from the Percussion 2 part, featuring ratchet, slide whistle, siren, whip, and brake drum. These colorful effects help conjure vivid images of a three-ring circus: clowns on unicycles, jugglers, high-wire acrobats, trapeze artists, lion tamers, and elephants parading beneath the big top. And of course, no circus would be complete without cotton candy, popcorn, and peanuts. Under the big top, the magic awaits—let the show begin!