Firestorm (Band Gr. 5)

Inspired by the recent wildfires in Australia, Firestorm seeks to emulate through music, these fires ranging from their most raging peeks to their more waning lulls.

Genre: Band | # of Players: Standard
Level: 5 | Duration: 5:30

Instrumentation
Piccolo
Flute 1
Flute 2
Oboe
Bassoon
B-flat Clarinet 1
B-flat Clarinet 2
B-flat Clarinet 3
Bass Clarinet
Alto Saxophone 1
Alto Saxophone 2
Tenor Saxophone
Baritone Saxophone

B-flat Trumpet 1
B-flat Trumpet 2
B-flat Trumpet 3
F Horn 1
F Horn 2
F Horn 3
F Horn 4
Trombone 1
Trombone 2
Bass Trombone
Euphonium
B-flat Baritone T.C.
Tuba

Timpani (4 drums)
Percussion 1: Xylophone, Bells [shared]
Percussion 2: Vibraphone
Percussion 3: Marimba [4.3-oct.], Marching Machine, Siren
Percussion 4: Bells [shared], Suspended Cymbal, Slapstick [shared], Tam-Tam
Percussion 5: Slapstick [shared], Hi-Hat, Ribbon Crasher, 2 Small Bass Drums
Percussion 6: 2 Small Bass Drums

Program Notes
Firestorm was commissioned by the Byron Center Band Program, Byron Center, Michigan. This is the fourth commission of a five-year commissioning project. The work was inspired by the recent wildfires in Australia. Some of these fires were so raging that there were "firestorms" within the fires themselves. These firestorms feature pyrocumulonimbus clouds and are described as the "fire-breathing dragon of clouds". Some of these clouds rise up to 9 miles in the sky. Firestorm seeks to emulate, through music, these fires ranging from their most raging peeks to their more waning lulls.

Three themes organize the work: Theme 1 ("firestorm" theme) is ominous and apocalyptic in nature whereas Theme 2 represents a lull in the storm and theme 3 is the hope that we can survive the raging fury. The "fire" remains mostly constant throughout the course of the work and is usually depicted by contrapuntal triplet figures in the woodwinds.

The work ends mysteriously without definitive closure as these fires will remain a threat to the whole world. It should be noted that this work was written during the beginnings of the 2020 Pandemic of Covid-19 and one can see how this piece can easily suffice as a reaction to that crisis.