Commissioned by Matthew Roeder and Allan McMurray for a case of choice wines. Premiered at the Southwest CBDNA Regional Conference in Las Cruces, NM, April 2010

Click here to listen to the premiere of A SPANISH SILHOUETTE (2010) as performed by the University of Colorado Symphonic Band under the direction of Matthew Roeder

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www.shattingermusic.com (800.444.2408) – full score only

Soprano Saxophone B-flat
Alto Saxophone E-flat
Tenor Saxophone B-flat
Baritone Saxophone E-flat

2 Trumpets I (A/B) B-flat
2 Trumpets II (A/B) B-flat
2 Trumpets III (A/B) B-flat
2 Trumpets IV (A/B) B-flat
2 Tenor Trombones I (A/B)
2 Tenor Trombones II (A/B)
2 Bass Trombones (1 and 2)
2 Euphoniums I (A/B)
2 Euphoniums II (A/B)
2 Tubas I (A/B)
2 Tubas II (A/B)

Contrabass
Timpani
2 Percussion

Program Note:

About a year ago I was sitting at the piano playing and singing melodies, one after the other, as they came into my head (I don’t even want to think about how many hours I spend doing just this)... somewhat akin to "zoning out" at the piano.  Stumbling upon one I immediately liked, I wrote it down with a few supporting harmonies.  I can remember that it sounded either Brazilian or Spanish to me at the time, with guitars and double basses playing the tune... very sultry, very patient. 

The opportunity to flesh out my melody came when Matt Roeder asked me to write a piece for the Southwest Regional CBDNA Conference in Las Cruces, New Mexico after learning that he was invited to bring the band down for a performance. 

The instrumentation both intrigued and frightened me. Could I really write a slow, silky tune for nothing but brass ensemble?  That was the challenge, I thought.  After a bit of orchestrating, I discovered that I needed a solo instrument or group to play lead in the piece, as if they were indeed singing this melody with an accompanying body (the brass)…enter Saxophone Quartet.  After adding a contrabass and three percussionists it became apparent that I was heading into personally untrodden territory: a tango hybrid.  I am not of Spanish heritage, but I do love and have played the tangos of Astor Piazzola and Ernesto Nazareth quite a bit.  I can even find myself moved by the interior of George Gershwin's Cuban Overture.