Instrumentation
4 Flutes – 3rd and 4th doubling Piccolo2 Oboes
English Horn
2 Bassoons
Contrabassoon
Eb Clarinet
4 Bb Clarinets
2 Bass Clarinets
Soprano Sax
Alto Sax
Tenor Sax
Baritone Sax
4 Trumpets in C
4 Horns
2 Trombones
Bass Trombone
Euphonium
Tuba
Harp
Piano
4 Percussion
Timpani
Contrabass
Mothership.
for band & electronica
commissioned by: Ohio University, Andrew Trachsel dir., California State University, Stanislaus, Stuart Sims dir., Georgia Southern University, Rob Dunham dir., Georgia State University: Robert Ambrose dir.,
Henderson State University: Jesse Leyva dir., Liberty University: Stephen K err dir., Ohio State University: Russel Mikkelson dir., Southern Illinois University Carbondale: Christopher Morehouse dir., Temple University: Emily Threinen dir., University of British Columbia: Robert Taylor dir., University of California, Berkeley: Bob Calonico dir., University of Georgia: John Lynch and Greg Gausline dir., University of Kentucky: Cody Birdwell dir.
PROGRAM NOTES
The mothership floats high above, an orchestra pulsing rapidly with a heart of techno. At several moments in the piece, various soloists dock with the mothership, dropping in with solos both virtuosic and lyrical. The work was commissioned by Michael Tilson Thomas and the YouTube Symphony , which premiered the work in March 2011 at the Sydney Opera House in Australia.
The piece follows the form of a scherzo with double trio. But while symphonic scherzos historically play with dance rhythms such as the waltz, Mothership looks to 21st Century dance music (such as techno) to enliven its journey. The brief solos can be played as written or improvised.
Many thanks to Michael, whose mentoring greatly helped the work on many levels, and to the musicians from around the world who came together in Sydney and helped Mothership lift off.
PERFORMANCE NOTES: mini-solos
Two passages feature brief virtuosic solos from four players (rehearsal letters G & T, which showcase two solos each) Players can simply follow the written-out solos for a more traditional
performance of the piece. However, in the event that certain musicians can improvise, those players
can be assigned one of the passages to improvise over. Lead sheets containing harmonic information
are in the back of the score. Instruments need not be the same as the written-out solos marked in the score, though treble instruments are preferable as they project best.
RHYTHMIC SOLOS
mm. 68-97 (written as Eb Cl.)
mm. 98-119 (written as marimba)
LYRICAL SOLOS
mm.174-202 (written as alto sax)
mm. 203-236 (written as trumpet)
* It is fine for one improviser to take both solos in either the Rhythmic or Lyrical section, since all the solos are quite short.
