Symphonic Synthesis

Symphonic Synthesis was begun on June 9, 2010, and completed 12 days later. It was originally written as a work for high school band, entitled The Snipe Hunt. The present version, more advanced in its technical demands, was written for collegiate or professional ensembles. The work is written to syntesize different moods and instrumental colors in the contemporary symphonic wind ensemble. One hears the juxtaposition of Classical and jazz elements, tonal and atonal (including the 12-tone row heard in the opening bass clarinet solo), and spiky rhythmic passages interspersed with chorales and other calmer sections. Symphonc Synthesis was premiered by the dedicatees on April 29, 2011 in Herndon, Virginia, and was recorded by them on the U.S. Navy Band's label, on a CD entitled "Derivations."