mANSFIELD WIND SYMPHONY
Program Notes
And With This New Day… by William Owens is a new work first published in 2024 and pays tribute to Eleanor Roosevelt. Widely recognized as one of America’s most formidable and influential First Ladies, Roosevelt strove to make better the lives of those less fortunate than herself.
“With this new day comes new strength and new thoughts” — Eleanor Roosevelt.
The music is inspired by this simple yet powerful quote, which encourages us to be open to positive change and recognizes that no matter how difficult previous times were, the new day always brings a fresh start. And With This New Day… comes through the generosity and creativity of the IDEA (Inclusion, Diversity, Equality, Access) Commissioning Project, proudly sponsored by the American Bandmasters Association.
“Everyday Heroes is an attempt to say “thank you” to the countless men and women in the military, police, fire, and EMT services who keep us safe every single day. These individuals are literally putting their lives at risk for people they don’t even know as a part of their job. As a teacher, I know that my work is important, meaningful and affects many people. However, when someone has an emergency, they don't call me, they call these heroes. There are many ways we can thank these individuals for their service, but I wanted to use music to communicate my gratitude, and hopefully this is something that live on in posterity for future generations of teachers and musicians to use in thanking our service men and women.” – Nathan Hervey
The opening is intended to sound like the opening credits of your favorite superhero movie. This is my way of recognizing the heroic nature of the work these men and women perform. The melody is intended to be memorable, and stick with you long after you hear the song. There is a slower section in the middle that acts as an “in memoriam” moment for those who’ve made the ultimate sacrifice to keep us safe. The harmony and melody used here is indicative of church hymns, something that I participate in each week at my local church. The ending is reminiscent of the beginning, but in a new key for a fresh take on a familiar theme, with a big ending and a huge “THANK YOU!” to our veterans and first responders. I hope you enjoy this tribute to our Everyday Heroes!
“I absolutely love writing dance music! Symphonic Dance No. 1 is what I would call an American dance of instruments. Sometimes the dance is between only a few solo instruments and sounds a bit mysterious, while other moments call for an entirely different group taking the lead, creating an almost comical effect. No doubt there are times when everyone joins the party, combining a fusion of elements and styles such as classical, jazz, latin, and even rock. I have been tremendously influenced by the music of Aaron Copland and Leonard Bernstein and feel certain it has shaped the creation of this work.” — Carol Brittin Chambers
A Thousand Hearts to Give is a line from the popular Wesleyan hymn O For A Thousand Tongues. It was a favorite of both Richard and Gayle Crain and is the culminating melody in this piece.
The work opens with an “Amen” cadence and goes immediately into What a Friend We Have in Jesus set in a contemporary up-beat gospel style and featuring Mr. Crain’s instrument, the trombone! It then segues into a flowing rendition of Blessed Assurance, a lightly orchestrated oboe solo. This section closes quietly with a brief quote of Amazing Grace in solo tuba. A playful, lively version of Jesus Loves Me, set in 7/8, gives way to brass fanfares introducing an organ style prelude of O For a Thousand Tongues. The coda utilizes fragments from previous hymns in combination with brass fanfares and ascending lines from the woodwinds and horns bringing the work to an uplifting optimistic conclusion. The work ends as it began, with a plagal cadence reaffirming Mr. Crain’s faith.
In a career that spans five decades, John Williams has become one of America’s most accomplished and successful composers for film and for the concert stage. He has served as music director and laureate conductor of one of the country’s treasured musical institutions, the Boston Pops Orchestra, and he maintains thriving artistic relationships with many of the world’s great orchestras, including the Boston Symphony Orchestra, the New York Philharmonic, the Chicago Symphony and the Los Angeles Philharmonic. Mr. Williams has received a variety of prestigious awards, including the National Medal of Arts, the Kennedy Center Honor, the Olympic Order, and numerous Academy Awards, Grammy Awards, Emmy Awards and Golden Globe Awards. He remains one of our nation’s most distinguished and contributive musical voices.
Mr. Williams has composed the music and served as music director for more than one hundred films. His 40-year artistic partnership with director Steven Spielberg has resulted in many of Hollywood’s most acclaimed and successful films, including Schindler’s List, E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial, Jaws, Jurassic Park, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, four Indiana Jones films, Saving Private Ryan, Amistad, Munich, Hook, Catch Me If You Can, Minority Report, A.I.: Artificial Intelligence, Empire of the Sun, The Adventures of TinTin and War Horse. Mr. Williams has composed the scores for all seven Star Wars films, the first three Harry Potter films, Superman: The Movie, JFK, Born on the Fourth of July, Memoirs of a Geisha, Far and Away, The Accidental Tourist, Home Alone, Nixon, The Patriot, Angela’s Ashes, Seven Years in Tibet, The Witches of Eastwick, Rosewood, Sleepers, Sabrina, Presumed Innocent, The Cowboys and The Reivers, among many others. He has worked with many legendary directors, including Alfred Hitchcock, William Wyler and Robert Altman. In 1971, he adapted the score for the film version of Fiddler on the Roof, for which he composed original violin cadenzas for renowned virtuoso Isaac Stern. He has appeared on recordings as pianist and conductor with Itzhak Perlman, Joshua Bell, Jessye Norman and others. Mr. Williams has received five Academy Awards and 50 Oscar nominations, making him the Academy’s most-nominated living person and the second-most nominated person in the history of the Oscars.