Three Attempts at Time Travel is a piece for wind ensemble that is approximately ten minutes in length. It consists of a brief introduction and three continuous movements based on the same starting material. It is semi-programmatic, but it is not an attempt to depict a specific narrative. Rather, it portrays a scenario involving time travel. The concept of the piece begins with a person who uses a time machine to travel back to a certain point in time to change the result of an event in the their own life. During the piece, the person goes back to the same starting point three times with each “restart” resulting in a different outcome. On the final restart, a positive resolution is reached, but it is ultimately a conflicted ending because it is not the ending that the time traveler was aiming for. At the end of the introduction and each of the first two movements, a “time machine” motive consisting of: a Mahler hammer, a concert bass drum, a drum set, a thunder sheet, a suspended cymbal and a triangle occurs to signal the return to the original point in time.

This piece is five movements for Wind Ensemble. Each movement includes unaccompanied vocal introductions. I have chosen five poems by Sara Teasdale as the text for these introductions. The large ensemble then expands and comments on the themes introduced by the voice. The five Teasdale poems outline a narrative arc partially inspired by the book The Giver by Lois Lowry, but also hopefully encourage the listener to imagine their own story of how one’s view of things changes as new experiences and knowledge change the perspective.

abstract: Symphonic Movement: On Works of H. P. Lovecraft is a single movement composition for wind band lasting approximately 11 minutes. The instrumentation for the work is as follows: piccolo, 2 flutes, 2 oboes, English horn, 3 clarinets, bass clarinet, contrabass clarinet, 2 bassoons, contrabassoon, soprano saxophone, alto saxophone, tenor saxophone, baritone saxophone, 4 horns, 4 trumpets, 2 trombones, bass trombone, euphonium, tuba, string bass, timpani, 5 percussionists, and piano. Symphonic Movement: On Works of H. P. Lovecraft is inspired by the horror fiction writer H. P. Lovecraft. Lovecraft was famous for his ability to create a sense of creeping dread and terror in his stories. The composition evokes this dark atmosphere and uses a combination of melodic, harmonic, and orchestrational devices to imitate this ambience. The primary musical material of the work is a melody consisting of all twelve tones. The composition explores this melody through motivic development and phrase segmentation derived from the source material. This heavy use of chromaticism helps to create a dissonant and brooding atmosphere throughout. The work fluctuates between soft, lyrical passages and loud, cacophonous sections. The alternation of exposed melodic lines with large bombastic climaxes is a major component of the overall structure of the composition. / Dissertation/Thesis / Doctoral Dissertation Music 2016

As Darkness Falls is a composition that explores our interaction with several aspects of darkness through the use of musical imagery. The imagery attempts to reflect the moods, feelings, and impressions of a person as he or she interacts with darkness. The non-programmatic character of the composition allows listeners to superimpose their own experiences onto the musical tapestry in order to manifest a personal connection between the listener and the music. As Darkness Falls is a composition scored for a minimum instrumentation of piccolo, 6 flutes, 3 oboes, 3 bassoons, 9 B-flat clarinets, B-flat bass clarinet, 2 E-flat alto saxophones, B-flat tenor saxophone, E-flat baritone saxophone, 4 B-flat trumpets, 4 horns in F, 3 tenor trombones, bass trombone, 2 euphoniums, 2 tubas, timpani, and 4 percussionists. The music consists of three movements (slow-slow-fast) lasting a total of approximately seventeen minutes. The duration of each of the three movements is six minutes, four and one-half minutes, and six and one-half minutes, respectively. The document also contains an analysis of the work by the composer. The analysis explores the compositional style of the work, focusing on musical aspects within each movement that were governing parameters in the compositional process.

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I Am Not Frightened is a work for wind ensemble. This piece lasts around ten minutes and is inspired by confrontations with death and how to move past them. Musical inspiration comes from Pink Floyd, Greta Van Fleet, John Mackey, and James Stephenson. The title of the piece refers to the spoken lyrics found in Pink Floyd's “The Great Gig in the Sky” from their 1973 album The Darkside of the Moon. These lyrics come from the band asking Abby Road Studio workers while recording the album, if they are afraid of dying. A janitor named Gerry O’Driscoll provided the lyrics that inspired this piece: “And I am not frightened of dying. Any time will do, I don't mind. Why should I be frightened of dying? There's no reason for it – you've got to go some time.” This thought process of accepting that death is as much a part of life as

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The Eastman Wind Ensemble is known as the pioneer ensemble of modern wind music in North America and abroad. Its founder and conductor, Frederick Fennell, was instrumental in facilitating the creation and performance of a large number of new works written for the specific instrumentation of the wind ensemble. Created in 1952, the EWE developed a new one-to-a-part instrumentation that could be varied based on the wishes of the composer. This change in instrumentation allowed for many more compositional choices when composing. The instrumentation was a dramatic shift from the densely populated ensembles that were standard in North America by 1952. The information on the EWE and Fennell is available at the Eastman School of Music’s Ruth Watanabe Archive. By comparing the repertory and instrumentation of the Eastman ensembles with other contemporary ensembles, Fennell’s revolutionary ideas are shown to be unique in the wind music community.

The Eastman Wind Ensemble is known as the pioneer ensemble of modern wind music in North America and abroad. Its founder and conductor, Frederick Fennell, was instrumental in facilitating the creation and performance of a large number of new works written for the specific instrumentation of the wind ensemble. Created in 1952, the EWE developed a new one-to-a-part instrumentation that could be varied based on the wishes of the composer. This change in instrumentation allowed for many more compositional choices when composing. The instrumentation was a dramatic shift from the densely populated ensembles that were standard in North America by 1952. The information on the EWE and Fennell is available at the Eastman School of Music’s Ruth Watanabe Archive. By comparing the repertory and instrumentation of the Eastman ensembles with other contemporary ensembles, Fennell’s revolutionary ideas are shown to be unique in the wind music community.

Thesis (M.M.)--Missouri State University, 2008. / "May 2008." Instrumentation: piccolo, 2 flutes, 2 oboes, 2 bassoons, 3 clarinets in Bb, bass clarinet, 2 alto saxophones, tenor saxophone, bass saxophone, solo alto saxophone, 3 trumpets in Bb, 4 horns in F, 2 trombones, bass trombone, euphonium, tuba, timpani, percussion. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 64-68). Also available online.