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Birthday Gala – Waltz for Orchestra Scoring: 2 Flutes, 2 Oboes, 2 Clarinets in B-flat, 2 Bassoons, 3 Horns in F, 2 Trumpets in C, 3 Trombones, 2 Percussion Players (Cymbals, Triangle, Snare Drum, Bass Drum, Glockenspiel), Timpani, Harp, and Strings. Style: Late-Romantic, ca. 1880-1900. Composed: November 10 – December 1, 2017 at Austin, Texas. A little something different from my usual Classical-style fare! As its title might suggest, this work – my second waltz for full orchestra – was composed as a (somewhat belated) birthday gift to my husband Max. I began writing it on his birthday and completed it exactly three weeks later – a rather quick turnaround for more than nine minutes of music for full orchestra, but I was inspired! It’s marvelous what love can move us to accomplish. Like most Viennese waltzes, the piece begins with an introduction, starting with a glittering fanfare interspersed with rushing scales in the violins, and followed closely by a zany, almost Disneyesque section evoking fun and celebration. The fanfare returns once more in the brass, modulating to A-flat from the tonic C major and slowing down. A languid “love theme” follows (this was written for my husband, after all), eventually modulating back to the tonic. After a frenetic connecting section building excitement, the waltz itself begins in earnest. After the main themes reprise at the end of the waltz, a faster coda dramatically concludes the piece. It should come as no surprise that Johann Strauss II (1825-1899), the Waltz King, was a significant influence in writing this piece; but perhaps a more important model, and one from whom I learnt quite a few handy tricks of the trade, was the later composer Franz Lehár (1870-1948) – famous for his operettas, but who also wrote some very nice waltzes full of interesting orchestral colours, different from Strauss. While my models were Viennese, and the pattern of the piece is Viennese (Introduction – Waltz – Coda), some of the melodies have taken on a flavour more reminiscent of American popular music from around the turn of the last century, giving the work a somewhat American feeling overall. I have never before made such extensive use of brass, harp, and percussion in any of my work, and learning as I went how best to employ forces relatively new to me was quite an adventure. I really must apologize for the score – it’s a wretched mess, I know. I wrote this piece very quickly in short score, with multiple instruments on each staff, and the glockenspiel line slipped in below the strings as an afterthought. My primary interest was in playback, not readability. Add to that a few bizarre glitches Finale inserted that I can’t delete, and the wreck is irreparable. Eventually, I’m going to have to redo the entire score, but that’s a task for another day. Apologies again, and I hope you’re able to figure out what I was doing. By the way, in case you were wondering, Max was thrilled with his gift, I’m pleased to say! He’s always supportive of my efforts, and with his fine ear and keen sensibilities, he often gives me excellent advice on how my music might be improved. In that, along with everything else in my perfect marriage, I am indeed the most fortunate of men. Happy listening, and I hope you enjoy this lighthearted celebration in sound.

Nice jazzy sound, and classic.