In my high school days, I spent a lot of my time consuming and learning about Japanese culture and its fascinating history. I’ve always had the desire to listen to and emulate modern Japanese music from J-Pop to movie scoring giants such as Joe Hisaishi and the like. I have a great appreciation for the culture because it has probably influenced me the most in my musical writing and has opened my eyes to different forms a musical thought can take.

Now here we are with my new piece, Wishes & Wantings, a modern Japanese-inspired piece that speaks to my own personal experience being surrounded by Japanese culture growing up and what it also means to so many other people that I know and relate to from all walks of life.

– Program Note by composer

From the composer of the best-seller American Hymnsong Suite comes Meditation. By combining two tunes, the Lutheran hymn If Thou But Suffer God to Guide Thee and the American folk song Poor Wayfarin’ Stranger, the composer expertly crafts a moving tribute to the memory of those who have passed.

– Program Note from publisher

In early 2004, I was contacted by Mr. Jeff Looman, director of instrumental music for the Calvin Christian Schools in Michigan. Looman entrusted me to create a special composition in memory of a former student, Nick Stegeman, who had lost his life several years earlier. Meditation combines two tunes, the Lutheran hymn If Thou But Suffer God to Guide Thee and the American folk song Poor Wayfarin’ Stranger. It is actually the second of three movements that comprise a suite entitled Music for Bright Youth. The title refers not only to Nick, but all the young musicians with whom it has been my pleasure to work over the years as well. In February of 2005, the combined bands of the Calvin Christian Schools, under the direction of Mr. Looman, premiered the entire suite as a part of their annual winter concert.

– Program Note by composer

As I’ve often said, composing music to honor the memory of a loved one is never
an easy task. And to the family and friends of Mr. Jim Melhart, this piece comes
with sincere condolences and a heavy heart.

As music written a departed loved one is generally solemn and introspective, I was
quite elated to be afforded the opportunity to compose a work of a festive nature.
While being granted complete artistic freedom, my one caveat was for the piece to
be quite reflective of the gentleman it honors. As Jim was a man who truly
embodied vitality, generosity and joy, the idea of latin dances immediately came to
mind; the ultimate result being Los Bailes Calientes (The Sultry Dances). The
work consists of three distinct sections/dances:

From the outset, the Flemenco Salvaje (wild flamenco) exudes high spirit and a
wonderful exuberance. Driving rhythms and a mariachi-style trumpet duet are at
the forefront of this rather spicy phase.
Slow and introspective in nature, the Rumba Lenta (slow rumba) portrays the
profound void felt by family and friends. While the music is a celebration of life,
the anguish that comes with the loss of a loved one simply cannot be dismissed.
By way of the melancholy oboe melody, the music transitions into a beautiful
haunting melody by way of the saxophone, gradually blossoming into a song of
“gleeful lament” by the full ensemble.
Offering a vivid depiction of a carefree spirit, the upbeat Samba Divertida (fun
samba) is quite literally a celebratory “happy dance”! While the man himself is no
longer among us, the beautiful memories and strong legacy he leaves will most
certainly endure. Driving rhythms and memorable melodic statements, including
that of an intrepid trombone duet, quite aptly define this riveting final statement.
Los Bailes Calientes was commissioned by the Band Directors of the Rio Grande
Valley (Texas), and lovingly dedicated to the memory, family, and friends of
Jim Melhart.

Originally for piano, The Old Boatman is a shining presentation of Price’s signature style, reminiscent of Grieg and Dvorak. Veteran arranger Dana Paul Perna expertly brings to life the lyricism and harmonic creativity of Price’s original composition in his arrangement for concert band. Florence Price was born in Little Rock, Arkansas. She began learning music from her mother at an early age and gave her first piano performance at age four, reportedly publishing a composition at age elevent. She graduate high school at the age of sixteen and in that same year was accepted into the New England Conservatory. Though a large part of her compositional output were works for piano and songs, Price is noted as the first African-American woman to be recognized as a symphonic composer, as well as the first to have a composition played by a major orchestral. This took place in 1933, when Price’s Symphony No 1 in E minor was performed by the Chicago Symphony Orchestra conducted by Frederick Stock, as part of the Century of Progress World’s Fair. Price left behind a handful of published works and hundreds of unpublished ones that are only recently beginning to become known. In 2009, a substantial collection of her works and papers was found in an abandoned dilapidated house on the outskirts of St. Anne, Illinois, which Price had used as a summer home.

Shawn E. Okpebholo is a Grammy-nominated, critically acclaimed, and widely performed composer whose music has been praised by critics worldwide. The Washington Post describes his work as “fresh, new, and fearless,” as well as “devastatingly beautiful,” while The Guardian hails it as “lyrical, complex, and singular.” His artistry has garnered him many awards, including The Academy of Arts and Letters Walter Hinrichsen Award and the 2020 American Prize in Composition. Okpebholo has collaborated with some of today’s most renowned artists and ensembles, including Rhiannon Giddens, Lawrence Brownlee, J’Nai Bridges, Will Liverman, eighth blackbird, Copland House Ensemble, and the Cincinnati and Houston Symphony Orchestras. His music has been featured in prestigious performance venues, including Carnegie and Wigmore Halls, as well as the Lincoln, Kennedy, and Kimmel Centers, and the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Recently, Okpebholo completed a residency with the Chicago Opera Theater, culminating in the production of his opera “The Cook-Off,” in collaboration with acclaimed librettist Mark Campbell. He holds the position of Johnathan Blanchard Professor of Composition at Wheaton College-Conservatory of Music and also serves as the Saykaly Garbulinska Composer-in-Residence at the Lexington Philharmonic. For more information about Shawn E. Okpebholo and his work, please visit shawnokpebholo.com.

The composer writes: When I set out to create this work for wind ensemble, I decided to explore the idea of wind as a natural phenomenon, particularly its fluidity as both a dynamic and gentle force. The title of the piece, Gale and Zephyr, refers to this exploration and my ultimate artistic response to this duality: gale a strong wind, and zephyr, a gentle breeze. The composition begins with a powerful solo trumpet statement, embodying the forceful onset of a gale. I imagined this section as a musical squall that not only portrays a violent gust of wind but also expresses its command and beauty, realized with bold brass gestures, swirling winds, and vibrant percussion. As the piece progresses, it transitions into a slower, quasi-impressionistic middle section, reminiscent of a gentle breeze, or zephyr. Here, delicate melodies and soft harmonies take over. While I aimed to create a calmer and more tranquil soundscape, there are unexpected interruptions that calm winds can bring. The energetic return serves as a bod and exciting climax, featuring a fierce interplay of the full ensemble, exploring the wind ensemble’s versatility.

1. Requiem
2. Beloved
3. Be content, be calm

Featuring:
Andrew Glendening, trombone soloist,
Cheng-Hou Lee, cello,
Carol Rosing, bassoon,
Christian Dillingham, double bass

Conversations with Gary Green and Tim Conner of the University of Miami, who commissioned this Concerto for Trombone and Wind Ensemble, led to the idea that it should be a “cross-over” piece, one that could be played by either a wind ensemble or a symphony orchestra minus most of the strings. Before I began composing, word came of the untimely death of Christine Nield Capote, wonderful flutist and teacher, and dear friend to Gary, Tim and me. In July of 2006, Gary, Christine and I worked together at Interlochen on a deeply moving performance of my Song Book for Flute and Wind Ensemble. It was one of Christine’s favorite pieces. She had only nine months to live.

It became clear that the trombone concerto would be a memorial for Christine. To that end I chose an ensemble of orchestral winds, plus piano, double bass, percussion and one solo cello – for Christine’s cellist husband Manny Capote. It feels presumptuous for me to say anything at all about this music! — presumptious een to have written the piece, trying to embody Christine’s still-living presence for us who are left behind. Following her death I saw Christine in a meditative vision. She gave me the most brilliant smile of recognition and assurance. She then turned and walked away. Requiem – Beloved – Be Content, Be Calm.

Thomas Bough joined the faculty of Northern Illinois University in the fall of 2005 as the Director of Athletic Bands. He also conducts the Wind Ensemble and the Wind Symphony and teaches graduate conducting and instrumental arranging. Bough holds MM and DMA degrees in Tuba Performance from Arizona State University, where he was a student of Sam Pilafian and Dan Perantoni. He holds the degree Bachelor of Science in Music Education from Missouri State University, where he was active in both vocal and instrumental music. From 1999 – 2005 Bough served as the Assistant Director of Bands and Professor of Tuba and Euphonium at Southern Illinois University in Carbondale, Illinois, and from 1992-1999 as the Band Director at Westwood High School in Mesa, Arizona. He served as the founding conductor and music director of the Fox Valley Brass Band in Aurora, Illinois from 2017 – 2021.

Bough’s diverse performance background includes wind bands, brass bands, orchestras, chamber music, jazz bands, Dixieland, the Walt Disney World All American College Band and the Phantom Regiment Drum and Bugle Corps. He is a Yamaha sponsored artist, and performs on the Yamaha 822 CC tuba and Yamaha 822 F tuba. In this capacity, he served as a brass consultant and guest instructor with the Cavaliers Drum and Bugle Corps for six years. He was also an instructor with the Phantom Regiment Alumni Corps in 2016. Bough has contributed over twenty articles and hundreds of new music reviews to the Instrumentalist magazine, School Band and Orchestra magazine, and DCI Today, as well as articles to five volumes of the Teaching Music Through Performance series as well as Teaching Music Through Performance in Jazz. He is also an ambassador for the Denis Wick company, and a lifetime performer on their mouthpieces and mutes.

Bough is an active conductor, arranger, composer, clinician, and adjudicator for concert band, marching band, and brass band, with dozens of appearances per year to his credit across the United States. His music is published by Alfred Publications, Cimarron Music and GPG Publications. He has served as a frequent masterclass clinician and/or conductor for the Music For All Summer Symposium and the Music For All National Concert Band Festival for over fifteen years. He has presented masterclasses at the Eastman School of Music, the Crane School of Music, Arizona State University, the University of Michigan, the University of Toledo, and UNC-Greensboro, among many others. Bough has presented four times at the Midwest Clinic and twice at the U.S. Army Band Tuba-Euphonium Conference, as well as the International Society for Music Education Conference in Beijing, China, and Helsinki, Finland, four NAFME multi-state regional conventions, the International Horn Society Conference, the International Women’s Brass Conference, and the Midwest Regional Tuba Euphonium Conference. In addition, he has presented at Music Educators Association State Conventions in Illinois, Arizona, Texas, Iowa, Tennessee, Alaska, Missouri, Kentucky, Ohio, Colorado, Nebraska, Arkansas, North Carolina, Indiana, New York, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, South Carolina, Alabama, Georgia, Washington, Florida and the Texas Bandmasters Association.

 

In May of 2014, his first compact disc was released, entitled, Concertos for Brass: The Music of Thomas Bough. This disc features three original concerti for solo brass instruments and wind band, as well as a transcription of the Concerto in Eb by Neruda. It is available on the Summit Records label at www.summitrecords.com. Since then, recent commissions have included “Ring the Bell” for The University of Texas, Rio Grande Valley; “Esse Quam Videri” for Olivet Nazarene University; “Chester’s Diadem” for Hauser Junior High School; “Musings on Mahler” for Solo Trumpet and Band; “Legacy of Luther” for Concordia University in Chicago; “Air Mobility Fanfare” for the U.S. Air Force Band at Scott Air Force Base; and “Poorest of the Poor: Music for Mother Teresa”, for the University of San Diego.

Learn more about his work at www.TomBough.com.

Leif Albertson is the current graduate assistant for the NIU Huskie Bands and studies wind band conducting with Dr. Thomas Bough. Leif grew up in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, and holds a bachelor’s degree in music education from Iowa State University. Leif has attended conducting symposiums at the University of Minnesota at Minneapolis, the University of Kansas City, Missouri, and Northern Illinois University, Leif has also participated at the Music For All Summer Symposium as a director in 2024.  Leif taught 6th-8th grade middle school band in Elkhorn, Nebraska, for two years before coming to NIU to pursue a master’s degree.

Andrew Glendening is the Director of the School of Music and Professor of Music at Northern Illinois University. Prior to becoming Director, Dr. Glendening was Dean of the School of Music at the University of Redlands, Chair of the Department of Music at Denison University and served on the faculties of Morehead State University and Northeastern Illinois University. A native of Logansport, Indiana, he earned a Bachelor of Music degree in Trombone Performance from the Oberlin Conservatory of Music before attending Indiana University, where he was awarded the school’s highest honor: The Performer’s Certificate. He also earned a Master of Music degree and was the first ever recipient of the Doctor of Music degree in Trombone Performance from the Indiana University School of Music.

For fifteen seasons he served as Principal Trombonist of the Redlands Symphony Orchestra and has performed as a substitute with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, the San Diego Symphony Orchestra and the California Philharmonic. Six of Dr. Glendening’s trombone students have won the U.S. Army Band National Solo Competition. Dr. Glendening was host and artistic advisor for the 2017 International Trombone Festival and has performed, judged and/or presented at the International Trombone Festivals in Cleveland, Illinois, North Texas, Eastman, Iowa, Central Arkansas, Columbus State and Ball State as well as the 2019 International Women’s Brass Festival. In 2017, International Music Diffusion published his book, co-authored with Julia Broome-Robinson, “The Art and Science of Trombone Teaching” in both English and French.

Cellist Cheng-Hou Lee, a native of Taiwan, received both the bachelor’s and master’s degrees from the Juilliard School. He also earned a master’s degree in chamber music at Rice University, where he was a founding member of the award-winning Gotham Quartet. He was a full-scholarship student at New England Conservatory, where he received his Doctorate of Musical Art. Lee has worked with world renowned artists such as Yo-Yo Ma, Harvey Shapiro, Janos Starker, Mstislav Rostropovich, Zara Nelsova, Paul Katz, Steven Iserlis, Raphael Wallfisch, Gary Hoffman, Tim Eddy and members of the Juilliard, Tokyo and Alban Berg Quartets.

Cheng-Hou has won the Chi-Mei Foundation Award for Outstanding Talents, the concerto competition at the Manhattan School of Music, Tuesday Musical Club Competition in Houston and twice the National Cello Competition in Taiwan, and he has appeared on WQXR radio station in New York City, WFMT radio station in Chicago and many others in the U.S.

He was a recipient of a career grant from the Quanta Education Foundation, and he has made solo and chamber music appearances throughout the United States, as well as in Germany, Italy, Hong Kong and Taiwan. Lee served as a teaching assistant to Paul Katz for five years, and he has taught or conducted master classes at schools such as University of Michigan, University of Connecticut, University of Delaware, East Carolina University, Southern Illinois University, UCLA, Wheaton College, California State University, Northeastern Illinois University, Brigham Young University, University of Tennessee, University of Illinois Chicago, Inje University in South Korea and the Tainan Woman’s College of Arts and Technology in Taiwan.

Lee is currently the cellist of the Avalon String Quartet, which previously served as string faculty at Indiana University at South Bend, and in August 2007 the Avalon Quartet succeeded the world-renowned Vermeer Quartet as quartet-in-residence at Northern Illinois University. The quartet presents its own series in downtown Chicago at the Art Institute of Chicago, and has previously showcased the complete Beethoven and Bartók cycles. During summers, the quartet has been on faculty at festivals such as the Interlochen Center for the Arts’ Advanced String Quartet program, Madeline Island Music Camp, the Icicle Creek Chamber Music Festival and the Hot Springs Festival.

Read more: niu.edu/music/faculty/lee