Wildflowers

Mathias Wehr (*1984)

“Nothing is as constant as change. All things are in eternal flux, in the process of becoming, their persistence is only an appearance”. Heraclitus – Philosopher

The world is changing rapidly. International events such as the effects of climate change, economic turbulence and acts of war come thick and fast. Where is all this leading? What does the future hold for us? What world do we imagine in our mind’s eye? Matthias Wehr addresses these questions in Earthern Echoes Unveiled. In a brilliant and energetic overture full of different timbres, he invites us to listen to the echoes of our world in the course of time.

Earthern Echoes Unveiled was commissioned by the Landesblasorchester Baden-Württemberg and its conductor Björn Bus on the occasion of the 20th International WASBE Conference 2024 in Gwangju-Gyeonggi (South Korea).

Alexandre Kosmicki (*1978)

The French composer Alexandre Kosmicki began his musical training at the Douai Conservatory, where he studied the clarinet. He also studied composition, orchestration and orchestral conducting. In 2001 he continued his studies in Paris at the Conservatoire National Supérieur de musique de Paris, where he was awarded the Prize of the City of Paris for his achievements in musical analysis. He is currently head of the Naval Music Corps in Brest. He is also keen to pass on his knowledge and frequently receives requests to publish his educational work.

Deeply attached to French sound aesthetics, he strives to expand the original repertoire for wind orchestra. He does this with great success, so much so that his work Danse Satanique , published in 2015, was recently selected as a compulsory piece for the European Wind Band Championships.

The work begins with the invocation of the dark forces by a single horn. This incantation is then taken up by the clarinets in the form of a litany. Here, an evil force emerges from the depths, symbolized by the rampant, disorderly trembling of the orchestra and the wild glissandi of the trombones.

An evil world very quickly breaks out and finally leads to a satanic dance. This dance represents the realm of Satan with his demons, some of whom behave completely uninhibited, while another part prepares the arrival of the devil. The sensational appearance of the devil is represented by heavy brass sounds that emphasize his power. This plunges the listener into a maelstrom of malicious irony, extreme sarcasm and disrespect. The last echoes of the invocation theme are washed away by biting mockery, which provides evidence that the satanic world has inevitably gained the upper hand.

José Suñer Oriola (*1964)

The Spanish composer José Suñer Oriola was born in Valencia in 1964. He first studied percussion and music theory and then conducting and composition at the Valencia Conservatory. In addition to his extensive activities as a musician and conductor, he has successfully devoted himself to composition, which has already won him prestigious competitions, such as the Fennell Special Prize Award at the FirstTokyo Kosei Wind Orchestra Composition Competition.

Imagesis a commissioned composition for the Asociación y Fundación Musical Manuel de Falla de Illescas, with which the orchestra was able to present itself and its Castilian homeland at its performance at the 2017 World Music Contest in Kerkrade, Netherlands.

The wonderful programmatic work is cast in a single movement and describes places and sights of the city in five musical images. Spanish town of Illescas. Although the composer mainly refers to modern times, the impressive monuments are evidence of Spain’s rich history, which is also repeatedly reflected in the music.

As soon as they arrive, visitors are treated to an impressive view of the monumental Roman city gate Arco de Ugena. The route continues past the traditional oil mill, the Almazara, whose architecture is reminiscent of the heyday of the Moors. Pious songs float up from the bright vaults of the Iglesia de Santa Maria. Here you will find five paintings by the famous Castilian painter El Greco, which he created between 1603 and 1605 as a commission especially for this church. The varied tour through the city ends where it began, at the Arco de Ugena.

Christiaan Janssen (*1974)

The Dutch composer Christiaan Janssen deepened his musical skills while studying orchestral conducting and concert organ at the Maastricht Conservatory.

He also began composing during his youth and his oeuvre now comprises more than a hundred works for wind orchestra, including numerous commissioned compositions and competition pieces.

The Capriccio is a brilliant work with unmistakable roots in late German Romanticism, especially Richard Strauss. Christiaan Janssen describes his work as follows:

A capriccio is a piece of music that is usually quite free in form and lively in character. The typical capriccio is fast, intense and often virtuosic in nature. In painting, a capriccio is in particular an architectural fantasy that combines buildings, archaeological finds and other elements of architecture in fictional and often fantastic contexts, sometimes with figures as accessories.

For his Capriccio, Christiaan Janssen was inspired by the 1758 painting “Capriccio of Rome” by the Italian Baroque painter Giovanni Paolo Pannini (1691-1765).

Bert Appermont (*1973)

The Belgian composer Bert Appermont was born in Bilzen in 1973. He studied composition, orchestral and wind orchestra conducting in Leuven with Jan Hadermann and Jan Van der Roost, among others. He then honed his skills in composing for film, television and musicals at the Bournemouth Media School in the UK.

In addition to numerous engagements as a sought-after conductor, he is a co-founder of a new generation of Belgian composers in the circle of Jan Van der Roost. Compositional role models such as Philip Sparke and Johan de Meij inspired him to write numerous compositions in various genres such as musicals, choral and chamber music as well as works for symphony and wind orchestra.

A Brussels Requiem is a commissioned composition that the Brass Band Oberösterreich premiered at the European Brass Band Championships in Oostende in 2017.

The work reflects the tragic circumstances of a series of terrorist attacks that shook the Belgian capital to its foundations on March 22, 2016. They cost 32 people their lives and over 300 people were injured. In the light of comparable attacks that have since taken place in the UK, Europe and around the world, the work is representative of similar tragedies past and future.

A Brussels Requiem is presented in four interwoven movements entitled Innocence, In Cold Blood, In Memoriam – We Shall Rise Again, A New Day: Innocence, Cold-Blooded, In Memory – We Shall Rise Again, A New Day.

The work does not describe the attacks themselves, but sheds light on how these acts of violence came about, what complex feelings were triggered in people as a result, some of which stem from naked fear, but which can also manifest themselves in smaller, much more subtle things, such as trepidation in dealing with others: Anger, sadness and bewilderment.

Bert Appermont remembers the innocent victims and dedicates the central section to their memory, before focusing on the passionate idea of hope and the search for a new age of mutual understanding.

The well-known children’s song Au claire de la lune runs like a red thread through the work, which initially stands for destroyed innocence but ultimately as a symbol of possible reconciliation.