Through Pillars
Distributed via Murphy Music Press, LLC. Purchase here:
Version A (Grade 5):
https://murphymusicpress.com/products/w-1,548
Version B (Grade 3.5):
Grade 3.5 or Grade 5
5-6 minutes
ScoreABLE
This piece is the first in a series of works written for ScoreAble, an effort to bring musicians of all levels together performing the same music. Through Pillars has two versions, A and B, intended for two different experience levels (roughly Grade 5 and Grade 3, respectively). The versions can be performed standalone or parts can be mixed together. For example, half of a trumpet section could play Version A while the other half performs Version B in the same space. Alternatively, the music can be performed “side-by-side” (a professional and an educational group rehearsing and performing on stage together). I think the idea of giving all performers a foundation to grow from and lifting students up to create the most ideal, individually-tailored musical experience possible speaks to the symbolism “pillars” hold in this music. Please enjoy!
Click the icon to view perusal score
(Version A):
Click the icon to view perusal score
(Version B):
Notes
Composed for The University of Texas at Austin Rainwater Grant
I started writing the main ideas for Through Pillars when I first moved to Washington D.C. Seeing the iconic pillars on the landmarks throughout the National Mall for the first time from the window of my flight was an emotional and monumental moment for me. Following Basic Combat Training for my position with the U.S. Army Band, it became clear that I had started a new phase of life. I had to move forward and plant my own pillars to lift myself up. The night I landed in D.C. thinking of the columns on the monuments, I composed a melody that I put away in a journal that later became the backbone of this piece.
Through Pillars also dually references the famous Pillars of Creation photograph taken by the Hubble Space Telescope. I continually recalled this image during the orchestration process. While textures are often dense and intentionally nebulous, recognizable themes always seem to pop out and reveal themselves as if they were peeking between pillars. While musical “pillars” may block the full view of what is going on in the music, they also contribute the structural integrity of the piece.