Wind Ensemble

About the Program

Program notes by Mark Bilyeu except where noted. 

John Adams
Grand Pianola Music
Born February 15, 1947, Worcester, MA
Composed 1981
Premiered February 26, 1982, San Francisco Symphony, John Adams, conductor
Duration 30 minutes

In the early 1980s, composer John Adams was beginning to pay more attention to the subject matter appearing from his subconscious, namely his dreams. In one of those dreams, he experienced driving along Interstate 5, and being approached from behind by two black limousines, which transformed into Steinway pianos delivering E-flat and B-flat major arpeggios. It reminded him of walking the halls of the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, with the cacophony of practice rooms creating what he described as “a sonic blur of twenty or more pianos playing Chopin, the 'Emperor' Concerto, Hanon, Rachmaninov, the Maple Leaf Rag, and much more." The work is emblematic of phase music, with a simple harmonic structure that creates generally stable harmonic landscapes. The premiere was well-received, but the New York premiere was not as successful, with the audience—seeing it as a “smirking truant with a dirty face, in need of a severe spanking” amidst the other serialist works on the concert—audibly booing throughout the performance.  "The piece could only have been conceived by someone who had grown up surrounded by the detritus of mid-twentieth century recorded music,” explained the composer, “Beethoven and Rachmaninoff soak in the same warm bath with Liberace, Wagner, the Supremes, Charles Ives, and John Philip Sousa." 

Catherine Likhuta
Sure-fire
Born 1981, Kyiv, Ukraine
Composed 2023
Premiered  October 24, 2023, Oklahoma State University Wind Ensemble, Bradley Genevro, conductor
Duration 15 minutes

Catherine Likhuta is a Ukrainian-Australian composer, pianist, and recording artist. Her music exhibits high emotional charge, programmatic nature, rhythmic complexity and Ukrainian folk elements. She holds a degree in jazz piano from Kyiv Glière Music College, a five-year post-graduate degree in composition from the National Music Academy of Ukraine (Kyiv Conservatory) and a Ph.D. in composition from the University of Queensland. She writes of her work Sure-Fire: “I had known for a while that I wanted the piece to be centered around the theme of fire, in one way or another. Ever since Australia’s 2019–20 bushfires, where we lost over one billion local animals, I wanted to write a lament through which listeners and musicians could grieve over those horrific events. When I told my husband about the overall idea of fire, he proposed the title Sure-fire. While appropriately difficult and virtuosic, the writing in this piece is meant to instill confidence in the soloists and let them shine through as the spectacular musicians that they are.”

Bury and Rise
Composed 2023
Premiered November 7, 2023, University of Texas at Austin Wind Ensemble, Jerry Junkin, conductor
Duration 14 minutes

In February 2022, the world was shocked by Russia’s barbaric invasion of Ukraine. My 60-year-old disabled mother lived in Kyiv at the time and did not survive the attack on the city. Later, I was approached by Dallas Winds with a commission request for a piece which would celebrate the stoic heroism of the Ukrainian resistance. I quickly realized that my brain has repressed many or most traumatic memories of these past few months. The start of the full-scale war and many of the subsequent developments felt absolutely surreal. Perhaps, it is only through music that I can express what I need to say about these events. There are no words to describe how important this commission is to me. The piece features the key elements of Ukrainian folk music and its gutsy, almost tribal, yet wonderfully optimistic spirit. The capabilities of wind band fit perfectly with Ukrainian musical traditions—from the band’s angular rhythms to its brilliant runs on woodwinds going up against heroic brass and colourful percussion. Furthermore, there are numerous possibilities to imitate traditional Ukrainian instruments with the core band arsenal: piccolo and flute can sound just like sopilka, horn makes an excellent trembita, and harp is a great substitute for bandura. The title of the piece, Bury and Rise, is a loose translation of a line from the iconic poem Zapovit (“Testament”, 1861) by Taras Shevchenko, arguably the most important artist for the Ukrainian identity. Shevchenko asks to bury him when he passes and then rise to defend the homeland. That is exactly what Ukrainians have done. Bury and Rise will be an ambitious project celebrating their spirit, their never-ending optimism against all odds, and—as a news reporter recently put it—their stamina as the fastest renewable energy source.

– Catherine Likhuta

David Del Tredici
In Wartime
Born March 16, 1937, Cloverdale, CA
Died November 18, 2023, Manhattan, New York
Composed 2002-2003
Premiered April 30, 2003, University of Texas at Austin Wind Ensemble, Jerry Junkin, conductor
Duration 18 minutes

"I know of no other composer…who composes music of greater freshness and daring" wrote Aaron Copland about composer and pianist David del Tredici. Del Tredici, an artist who centered his identity throughout his career, and created a body of music that celebrated his own gay sexuality, was a Guggenheim fellow, a Woodrow Wilson fellow, and received the 1980 Pulitzer Prize in Music for his work In Memory of a Summer Day.  “In Wartime, my first piece for wind symphony,” he wrote, “was begun on November 16, 2002, and completed on March 16 (my birthday), 2003 — as momentous a four-month period in US history as I have experienced. November's dramatic congressional mandate for war had become, by March, the shocking international reality of war. With my TV blaring, I composed throughout this period, feeling both irresistibly drawn to the developing news and more than a little guilty to be unable to turn the tube off. Composing music at such a time may have seemed an irrelevant pursuit, but it nevertheless served to keep me sane, stable and sanguine, despite the world's spiraling maelstrom.In Wartime is comprised of two connected movements...The first, “Hymn,” has the character of a chorale prelude, with fragments of Abide With Me embedded beneath a welter of contrasting and contrapuntal musical material... Heralded by a long, ominous roll on the snare drum and a steady, measured tread, “Battlemarch” announces the start of war... Like the incoming tide, the waves encroach inexorably on new harmonic ground...until their fateful confrontation with Salamati, Shah! (the national song of Persia), laced as well with quotes from the opening of Wagner's Tristan und Isolde. With East battling West in musical terms, this trio section of the march builds to the movement's climax. As the overwhelming wash of sound subsides, the opening march-theme returns, now battle-weary but growing nevertheless to a full-throttled recapitulation and finale—marked, inevitably, by a wail of pain.”

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About the Artists

Catherine Likhuta

 Catherine Likhuta is a Ukrainian-Australian composer, pianist and recording artist. Her music exhibits high emotional charge, programmatic nature, rhythmic complexity and Ukrainian folk elements. Catherine’s pieces have been played extensively around the world, including highly prestigious venues such as Carnegie Hall (Stern Auditorium/Perelman Stage), Glyndebourne Opera House (Organ Room), Meyerson Symphony Center and several International Horn Symposiums and World Saxophone Congresses, as well as many festivals and conferences. Her works have been commissioned and performed by prominent symphony orchestras (such as Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, Queensland Symphony Orchestra, The Ohio State University Symphony Orchestra and Orchestra of the National Radio of Ukraine), chamber ensembles (such as Chicago Symphony Orchestra Brass Quintet, Atlantic Brass Quintet, Ensemble Q, ICE, Lyrebird Brass, NU CORNO and U.S. Army Field Band Horns) and soloists (including former presidents of the North American Saxophone Alliance Griffin Campbell and the International Horn Society Andrew Pelletier). Catherine has held residencies at Tyalgum Music Festival, North Carolina NewMusic Initiative, University of Missouri Kansas City, University of Georgia, The Ohio State University, Cincinnati Conservatory of Music, Cornell University, Syracuse University and other institutions. She is a two-time winner of the International Horn Society Composition Contest (virtuoso division) and a recipient of several awards, including two grants from the Australia Council for the Arts. Her music can be heard on Albany, Cala, Common Tone, Equilibrium, Mark and Summit Records. Horn virtuosa Denise Tryon’s album Hope Springs Eternal featuring Catherine’s piece Vivid Dreams was awarded the 2022 American Prize in Instrumental Performance.

Catherine’s wind band works have been played by dozens of wind ensembles, including prominent groups such as Dallas Winds, the Band of HM Royal Marines (Portsmouth) and the Royal Australian Navy Band. Her music has enjoyed performances at the Australian School Band and Orchestra Festival (Sydney), the Australian National Band and Orchestra Conference (Perth), the Midwest Clinic (Chicago, IL) and several CBDNA conferences.

Catherine holds a bachelor's degree in jazz piano from Kyiv Glière Music College, a five-year post-graduate degree in composition from the National Music Academy of Ukraine (Kyiv Conservatory) and a PhD in composition from the University of Queensland. She is a recipient of the Vice-Chancellor's Alumni Excellence Award from the University of Queensland.

Catherine is an active performer, often playing her own music. She was the soloist on the premiere and the CD recording of Out Loud, her piano concerto commissioned by the Cornell University Wind Ensemble, and the pianist on Adam Unsworth’s CD Snapshots.

Patrick Hughes

 With a tone and musicality described as “pure chocolate”, Patrick Hughes has soloed in recitals throughout the US, at annual regional horn conferences, and at over 20 International Horn Symposia. International ventures include performances in Jamaica, China, Australia, Thailand, the UK, Brazil, Belgium, and Canada. He is an oft-featured soloist with various ensembles at The University of Texas at Austin (recently performing Ligeti’s Hamburg Concerto by György and Mozart’s Sinfonia Concertante) as well as the Northwestern Percussion Ensemble, the St. Olaf Orchestra, and the Dallas Wind Symphony. The Dallas Morning News described Hughes as “…a dream soloist…His tone was warm and honeyed, his virtuosity and legato both apparently effortless.”  Mr. Hughes wears many hats at the Butler School of Music:  associate professor of horn, head of the brass wind and percussion division, and director of the UT Horn Choir. He also enjoys a varied musical life as pedagogue, soloist, chamber musician and composer. His compositions/arrangements include a number of pieces for horn choir and horn in chamber music.

Jerry Junkin

Serving since 1988 on the faculty of The University of Texas at Austin, where he holds the Vincent R. and Jane D. DiNino Chair for the Director of Bands, in addition to serving as a University Distinguished Teaching Professor, Jerry Junkin is recognized as one of the world’s most highly regarded wind conductors. Previously, he served on the faculties of both the University of Michigan and the University of South Florida.  In addition to his responsibilities as professor of music and conductor of the Texas Wind Ensemble, he serves as head of the conducting division and teaches courses in conducting and wind band literature. He has served as music director and conductor of the Hong Kong Wind Philharmonia since 2003, and as artistic director and conductor of the Dallas Winds since 1993. He also serves as visiting professor at the Senzoku Gakuen College of Music Wind Ensemble in Tokyo, Japan. Mr. Junkin has conducted All-State bands and festivals in forty-eight states and five continents, and is a Yamaha master educator.

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Wind Ensemble

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Upcoming Events

Wind Ensemble
20th Anniversary Performance of Circus Maximus
by John Corigliano

Join us this winter in Downtown Austin for the 20th Anniversary Performance of John Corigliano's epic third symphony, Circus Maximus. Commissioned by The University of Texas Wind Ensemble and premiered in 2004, Circus Maximus is scored for three different bands: one on stage, an antiphonal ensemble in the hall, and a marching band. The composer used the Circus Maximus arena in Rome as inspiration, with the audience situated in the center, surrounded by sound. Get your tickets now!

Saturday, January 25, 7:30 p.m.
The Long Center for the Performing Arts

Tickets