Instrumentation
Picc, Flute-2, Ob-2, Bsn-2, Bb Cl-3, BCl, ASx-2, TSx, BSx | Hn-4, Tpt-3, Tbn-2, BTbn, Euph, Tuba, Db | Timp, Perc-2, Vib
Details
Piccolo 2 Flutes 2 Oboes 2 Bassoons 3 Clarinets in Bb Bass Clarinet 2 Alto Saxophones Tenor Saxophone Baritone Saxophone 3 Trumpets in Bb 4 Horns in F 2 Trombones 1 Bass Trombone Euphonium Tuba Double Bass Timpani Percussion (3 Players) Percussion 1: Mark Tree, Tubular Bells, Glockenspiel Percussion 2: Bird Call, Snare Drum, Suspended Cymbal Percussion 3: Vibraphone
Program Notes
Silver Wings has its named derived from the poem High Flight by John Gillespie Magee Jr, written a few months before his death in December of 1941. This is the second work I have based around this poem, the first being an art song for tenor and piano. In the creation of this work I have used elements from that previous composition as well as quoting a portion of the Royal Air Force March Past in the ending as an homage to John Gillespie Magee Jr's service as part of the Canadian Royal Air Force. Silver Wings evokes the image of a pilot taking off from the runway in their plane, soaring across the countryside and above to the heavens. With flourishing woodwinds combined with fanfaric brass lines, this work celebrates the poet's love of flight and soaring to the skies' limits.
Recordings
Performance History
John “Rusty” Koenig, conductor, Greater Hartford Youth Wind Ensemble, Lincoln Theater, University of Hartford, West Hartford, CT, Streaming Online, April 30, 2023 - Premiere