| dc.description.abstract | Far From Home: Suite for Jazz Big Band is a large scale, four movement suite for large jazz ensemble of five saxophones with various woodwind doubles, four trombones, four trumpets with flugelhorn doubles, and rhythm section consisting of bass, guitar, piano, and drums. Each movement is an original composition that can be presented as a standalone piece though collectively the piece is programmatic in nature and tells a story. The goal of this work is to present a story that each listener can take and make their own. While each movement was written with a personal interpretation in mind, the listener should use their own personal experiences to create their story using the music as a guide. The piece has a runtime of approximately 23-25 minutes and features many members of the ensemble either as presenters of the melody or improvised soloists. Far From Home is meant to encapsulate what it is like to be on a journey, a path where one must take a leap of faith into the unknown in order to better themselves. “Home” in the title does not explicitly mean where you live. “Home” is meant to convey where you want to be, where you need to be, where you once were, or where you can be most successful, personally or professionally. Each movement takes an aspect of the journey and puts it into music. For example, the first movement Distance, is a slow and dark intro to the work. The first melody note is a minor ninth above the bass note, giving the music a heavy sense of dissonance. This movement shows the weariness and anxiousness of taking that leap of faith. The movement is in a 3/4 time signature but every fourth measure, a quarter note is added making it a 4/4 measure. This represents the unsteadiness of the start of a journey. All movements of Far From Home have their own melody that is first presented by one or two members of the ensemble then by a larger group of players. While each movement has its own harmonic language, there are similarities between each movement such as open fifths in the lower horns and bass rhythm voices, or similar chord qualities such as Major 7th chords. The melodic content of each movement is meant to be clear and simple with a single challenging aspect to give the listeners a motive that is easy to grasp but is still interesting to listen to. There are also aleatoric or improvised chance music in each movement which represents the unknown aspects of a journey. This suite’s first two movements are centered in minor keys, Bb minor and E minor respectively, with the third movement being based in a major key, G major. The final movement uses harmonic elements of each of the previous movements and has heavy use of modal mixture, moving between Db major and Db minor. Collectively, these pieces tell a story and provide performers with accessible and challenging music and gives listeners a music guide to create their own story. | |
