GRAND MONADNOCK MEASURES, commissioned by Gil Rose for the Monadnock Music Festival, was written in memory of the English composer Steve Martland, who died of a heart attack in his sleep early in the summer of 2013, at the age of 53. Steve, like his music, was forthright, direct, energetic, stubborn, and vital. This piece is a little hommage to his spirit and uses many of the kinds of sounds found in his own work; riffs, brass punches, modal harmony, hockets – all melded to a post-minimalist love of loudness, syncopation, and clear textures. My own music gravitates toward a crunchier and more fractured aesthetic, and this piece has these elements folded in too: after a grand oompah, a blaring dissonant chord opens the work and returns periodically to remind us that the context for the bright music is the passing of a kinetic and distinctive compositional voice.
The Boston Conservatory Wind Ensemble
more information and (free) pdf score at
www.andyvores.com
released April 20, 2020