Band

For the second year in a row, composer Steven Bryant took home top prize in the prestigious NBA/Revelli Composition Contest. The winner for 2008, Suite Dreams, draws primarily from the inverted chaconne melody in Holst's First Suite in E-Flat, recasting it in a dreamlike atmosphere, almost as if (sometimes warped) memories of the original are drifting across the stage. Dur: 8:45 (Grade 5)

This energetic new work fuses the percussion of street musicians, the wind and brass colors of modern jazz, and the form and structure of classical music. Percussionists play everything from plastic buckets to clay flowerpots while laying down a heavily syncopated groove. There is an open section that allows any instrument you desire the unique opportunity to show off their improvisational skills in a wind ensemble setting. This piece is as rhythmically and melodically infectious as it is soulfully uplifting - a guaranteed crowd-pleaser. (Grade 4)

The term pastorale originally meant a (musical) poem extolling the virtues of rural life. Beethoven's Sixth Symphony is a fine example of this. In his Hymnus Pastorale, Bert Appermont has dressed this concept in a modern guise with a composition featuring a magnificent and broad chorale that can be played by any ensemble. It is ideal as an interlude in your concert, or as a warm-up piece. Dur: 3:00

This work by Spanish composer and conductor Teo Aparicio Barbern is a fantasy based on typical Spanish music. It starts with an exquisite seguidilla with a compelling rhythm, and continues with a magnificent and exotic Andalusian romance. We are then treated to a dash of fandango, and the piece ends with a Mediterranean copla. This is the perfect challenge for musicians who love Spanish music and style. Dur: 9:30