Fantastic Dreams

From Wind Repertory Project
Frank Ticheli

Frank Ticheli


General Info

Year: 2023
Duration: c. 14:05
Difficulty: (see Ratings for explanation)
Publisher: Manhattan Beach Music
Cost: Score and Parts (print) - $425.00; (digital) - $325.00   |   Score Only (print) - $135.00; (digital) - $75.00


Movements

  1. Dancing with the Muses - 3:30
  2. Gently Lilting - 3:50
  3. Magic Carpet - 2:25
  4. L.A. Noir - 3:50


Instrumentation

  • Full Score
  • C Piccolo
  • Flute I-II
  • Oboe I-II
  • Bassoon I-II
  • B-flat Soprano Clarinet I-II-III
  • B-flat Bass Clarinet
  • B-flat Contrabass Clarinet
  • E-flat Alto Saxophone I-II
  • B-flat Tenor Saxophone
  • E-flat Baritone Saxophone
  • B-flat Trumpet I-II-III
  • Horn in F I-II-III-IV
  • Trombone I-II-III
  • Euphonium
  • Tuba
  • Contra-Bass
  • Piano
  • Timpani
  • Percussion I-II-III-IV, including:
*Bongos
*China Cymbals
*Crotales
*Hi-Hat
*Marimba
*Ratchet
*Slapstick
*Snare Drum
*Temple Blocks
*Triangle
*Vibraphone
*Xylophone

Players clapping


Errata

(The following changes were made by the composer in early December, 2024, and are reflected in the 2nd printing, distributed starting mid-March 2025):

In Score and Parts:

  • Horn in F III-IV, mvt.1, mm.49-56 (Pages 9 and 10 of score): Should play the cues, thereby doubling Horn in F I-II
  • All (except Perc. 1, 2, & 3), mvt.4, m.151 (last bar of entire piece): The final note should be extended to a full whole note in all parts (except Perc. 1, 2, & 3)


Program Notes

Fantastic Dreams was composed during a six-week residency in the late summer and early fall of 2023 at the McDowell Colony in Petersborough, New Hampshire. The work's four short movements – really dreamscapes – are wide ranging in mood and style, yet connected via shared musical motives, gestures and themes.

Dancing with the Muses bursts for ecstatically, settling into a series of short, light-hearted variations, each showcasing a different instrument or group – bassoon, oboe, horns, alto saxophones, trumpets. Short episodes and ghostly gestures interrupt the variations, like unrelated thoughts interrupting a dream.

Elysian Fields is a meditation directly influenced by my quiet morning walks at the MacDowell Colony amid peaceful forests and meadows. Unhurried lyrical lines float over a gentle walking motif that lilts back and forth like a lullaby.

Magic Carpet is a brisk two-minute scherzo that whirls and whisks in daring flight. At the midpoint, a respite – featuring solo oboe and flute with celesta – is but a moment to catch one's breath before hurtling on again in magical flight.

The dream journey takes a dark turn:

L.A. Noir pays tribute to old Hollywood's film noir tradition – a frantic chase scene, a dark figure lurking in the shadows, a moment of quiet, anxious anticipation. Midway through, the calm oboe melody from the scherzo's middle section reappears, now in a more menacing atmosphere. The suspense builds relentlessly, the music culminating in a ferocious roar that suggests the melodramatic endings typical of many film noir pictures.

- Program Note by composer


Commissioned by the Davis Commissioning Project for the San Diego State University Wind Symphony, Shannon Kitelinger, conductor.

- Program Note from score


Media

None discovered thus far.


State Ratings

  • Texas: IV (separate movements)
  • Texas: V (complete)


Performances

To submit a performance please join The Wind Repertory Project


Works for Winds by This Composer

Adaptable Music


All Wind Works


Resources

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