Every year the College Band Directors National Association holds a composition competition, and I'm thinking of entering a piece in it this year. The parameters are that the piece has to have been premiered after January 2012, be written for an advanced middle school band or young high school band, be 6-10 minutes long, and have a recording. I have the perfect fit, my Op. 17 "On We Go". It actually is shorter than 6 minutes long, but the rules clearly state that the length alone will not be a determining force in who wins. I'm really excited about this, because this piece has been pretty well-liked by people who've listened to it. Not only does the winner get a $5000 prize, but they kind of attention that piece would receive would be incredible. In consulting with one of the CBDNA board members (who's not going to be one of the judges, but has done it before), the title "On We Go" may sound a little too "pep-band fight-song-ish", but it speaking with the person who's responsible for the commission of the piece, the title could have a deeper meaning, in his words, the piece is "a great musical journey. It sets out to encourage progress, which is what it did for our band. He suggested to subtitle the piece, "Together we can make a difference". Thanks to Jason Schoonover for that. Thus, with the score I will include program notes with Jason's words, as well as the subtitle. Of course, the very top of the score and each part is marked with the commissioning info.
So aside from composition, I've been playing with a couple orchestras this summer that are volunteer, but I've been having a great time with. With one of the groups, the Milwaukee Summer Philharmonia, I get to play 4th horn on Brahms' 3rd & 4th Symphonies. The other, the Concord Chamber Orchestra, is doing 5 pops concerts that I'm playing principal horn of. Even though they are unpaid, I'm still having a really kick playing with them.