Crossover

Inspired by someone's near-death experience and crossing over to the other side, Crossover powerfully combines the two hymns All Creatures of Our God & King and Lead Me, Lord.

Genre: Band | # of Players: Standard
Level: 5 | Duration: 7:15

Instrumentation
Piccolo
Flute 1
Flute 2
Oboe 1
Oboe 2
Bassoon 1
Bassoon 2
Contrabassoon
Clarinet 1
Clarinet 2
Clarinet 3
Bass Clarinet
Alto Saxophone 1
Alto Saxophone 2
Tenor Saxophone
Baritone Saxophone

Trumpet 1
Trumpet 2
Trumpet 3
Horn in F 1
Horn in F 2
Horn in F 3
Horn in F 4
Trombone 1
Trombone 2
Bass Trombone
Tuba
Piano

Timpani (4 drums)
Percussion 1 (Crotales, Xylophone, Bells)
Percussion 2 (Vibraphone, Chimes, Bells, Tam-Tam)
Percussion 3 (Vibraphone, Suspended Cymbal, Brake Drum, Tam-Tam)
Percussion 4 (Marimba, 4 Tom-Toms, Wind Chimes, Slapstick)
Percussion 5 (Bass Drum, Chimes)
Percussion 6 (Snare Drum, Suspended Cymbal, Crash Cymbals, Triangle)

Program Notes
Crossover was inspired by the book, Proof of Heaven (Simon & Schuster, 2012), by Eben Alexander, a neurosurgeon whose near-death experience took him on a journey into the afterlife and back. As one might expect, the book has been met with both rave reviews and skepticism. Believers and non-believers have always been interested in the phenomenon of near-death experiences. But, this experience is much more convincing since Eben Alexander is a scientist who was, at most, an agnostic before his near-death experience. Out of nowhere, Eben Alexander woke up one morning in excruciating pain and was rushed to the hospital. He slipped into a coma and it seemed that he would not make it, as doctors urgently tried to diagnose the illness. As his life faded away, Dr. Alexander found himself in a very dark place for a while, after which he was then drawn toward very bright light and crossed over to the “other side.” In this very beautiful place with indescribably beautiful music, Eben floated above a rainbow of beauty on the wings of a butterfly, escorted by a beautiful woman. This woman, unknown to Dr. Alexander, turned out to be a dead sister whom he had never met until the crossover. Soon, Eben was jarred back into his body and it took him a long time to recover from what turned out to be a rare form of spinal meningitis. Eben Alexander’s amazing out-of-body experience mandated him to write the book, Proof of Heaven. This near-death experience provides a vivid picture of the “other side” and how the body “crosses over” into the afterlife. It also inspired a wealth of musical fodder for this piece of music!!

The work is based on two Christian hymns, All Creatures of Our God and King and Lead Me, Lord. The former proclaims the joy of life and the latter our reliance on God for guidance.