Wednesday, Oct. 7, 2026  •  7:30 p.m.

Weigel Auditorium | Columbus, OH

SYMPHONIC BAND
Scott A. Jones, conductor
Uiliami Fihaki, graduate student conductor
 

Welcome

Thank you for joining us this evening for the first performance of the academic year by the musicians of the Ohio State Symphonic Band … a program entitled “Hands Across the Sea.” The repertoire presented this evening highlights musical riches with origins in our own country and those of our international neighbors. We hope you find the musical perspective to be both enjoyable and enriching.

The musicians and I are grateful for all who aid and support our journey as an ensemble including faculty, staff, and administration of not only our School of Music, but also the College of Arts and Sciences, and the university at large. Enjoy the performance and we look forward to visiting with you at the reception sponsored by the Chi chapter of national collegiate music sorority Tau Beta Sigma afterwards!

Scott A. Jones
Conductor 
 

PROGRAM

The Star-Spangled Banner (1814 / 2014)

John Stafford Smith (1750–1836) / Brian Balmages

Brian Balmages is known worldwide as a composer and conductor whose creative work spans the mediums of orchestral, band, and chamber music. His music has been performed by professional symphony orchestras as well as elementary schools in venues such as Carnegie Hall, the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, Sydney Opera House, Toronto Centre for the Arts, and others. Balmages holds degrees from James Madison University and the University of Miami (FL), and is currently director of MakeMusic Publications and Digital Education for Alfred and MakeMusic.

Of this arrangement, Balmages states, “When I was asked to conduct the Ohio All-State Band, I was told that they always start the program … with The Star-Spangled Banner. I had recently revisited one of the most stunning arrangements I can recall — a performance by Bruce Hornsby and Branford Marsalis at the 1991 NBA All-Star Game. The arrangement visibly stunned the audience, many with tears in their eyes by the end. It truly struck me as well and I wanted to write a version that stayed true in form (and time signature) to the original yet brought a more intense emotional element. This version is the result. It begins in a soft and unassuming manner and steadily builds, rises and falls throughout. Just as it hits its peak, the music returns to the opening textures and concludes in a very heartwarming, compassionate way.”

Hands Across the Sea (1899 / 1997)

John Philip Sousa (1884–1947) / K. Brion and L. Schissel

Composer John Philip Sousa is known far and wide, by musician and non-musician alike, perhaps most notably for The Stars and Stripes Forever which became the “national march of the United States” in 1987. Sousa was born in Washington, DC, the third of ten children of a father who was born in Spain and a mother who was born in Germany. He enlisted in the Marine Corps at age 13 as an apprentice musician (his rank listed as “boy”) and at age 26 began a 12-year tenure as conductor of the United States Marine Band. Following his discharge from the Marines, he formed The Sousa Band which toured nationally and internationally for nearly 40 years performing nearly 16,000 concerts during that time.

Of determining a title for this march, Sousa wrote: “After the Spanish war there was some feeling in Europe anent [regarding] our republic regarding this war. Some of the nations...thought we were not justified while others gave us credit for the honesty of our purpose. One night I was reading an old play and I came across this line, 'A sudden thought strikes me, — let us swear an eternal friendship.' That almost immediately suggested the title 'Hands Across the Sea' for that composition and within a few weeks that now famous march became a living fact.” At the premiere performance of the march in Philadelphia in 1899, the audience response was so strong that the Sousa Band performed it three additional times.

The musicians of Symphonic Band dedicate this performance to conductor and Sousa expert Keith Brion, whose teaching, research, and passion have impacted countless musicians during his lifetime. Mr. Brion passed away last week at the age of 93 and will be greatly missed.

— Note by Paul Bierley

Four Scottish Dances (1957 / 1978)

Malcolm Arnold (1921–2006) / J. Paynter

1. Pesante
2. Vivace
3. Allegretto
4. Con brio

Uiliami Fihaki, conductor

Malcolm Arnold was born in Northampton to a family of shoemakers. As a rebellious teenager, he was attracted to the creative freedom of jazz. After seeing Louis Armstrong play in Bournemouth, he took up the trumpet at age 12, and five years later won a scholarship to the Royal College of Music (RCM). At the RCM he studied composition with Gordon Jacob and the trumpet with Ernest Hall. In 1941, he joined the London Philharmonic Orchestra as second trumpet and became principal trumpet in 1943. With a remarkable gift for melody, Arnold was among the most sought-after composers of his time in England. His catalogue includes significant numbers of works within virtually every musical medium including film and television scores. 

Of Four Scottish Dances, the composer writes, “These dances were composed early in 1957 and are dedicated to the BBC Light Music Festival. They are all based on original melodies but one, the melody of which is composed by Robert Burns. The first dance is in the style of a slow strathspey — a slow Scottish dance in 4/4 meter — with many dotted notes, frequently in the inverted arrangement of the 'Scottish snap.' … The second, a lively reel, begins in the key of E-flat and rises a semi-tone each time it is played until the bassoon plays it, at a greatly reduced speed, in the key of G. The final statement of the dance is at the original speed in the home key of E-flat. The third dance is in the style of a Hebridean song and attempts to give an impression of the sea and mountain scenery on a calm summer's day in the Hebrides. The last dance is a lively fling, which makes a great deal of use of the open string pitches of the violin (saxophones in the band edition).”

Tuttarana (2014 / 2024) 

Reena Esmail (b. 1983)

Reena Esmail is an Indian-American composer who holds degrees in composition from The Juilliard School and the Yale School of Music. Dr. Esmail’s primary teachers include Susan Botti, Aaron Jay Kernis, Christopher Theofanidis, Christopher Rouse and Samuel Adler. She received a Fulbright–Nehru grant to study Hindustani music in India. Her Hindustani music teachers include Srimati Lakshmi Shankar and Gaurav Mazumdar, and she currently studies and collaborates with Saili Oak. Her doctoral thesis, entitled Finding Common Ground: Uniting Practices in Hindustani and Western Art Musicians, explores the methods and challenges of the collaborative process between Hindustani musicians and Western composers. Dr. Esmail works between the worlds of Indian and Western classical music and brings communities together through the creation of equitable musical spaces. She divides her attention evenly between orchestral, chamber and choral work. 

Of Tuttarana, the composer writes, “The title of this piece is a conglomeration of two words: the Italian word 'tutti,' means 'all' or 'everyone,' and the term 'tarana' designates a specific Hindustani (North Indian) musical form, whose closest western counterpart is the ‘scat’ in jazz. The tarana is a place where musicians can put their greatest virtuosity on display, leaving an audience in awe. While a tarana is a solo form, I wanted to bring that same energy to an ensemble form. This work was originally written for treble chorus, then arranged for brass quintet, and is now in its third iteration for concert band.”

Temperance (2016)        

Aaron Perrine (b. 1979)

Minnesota-based composer Aaron Perrine finds tremendous inspiration in natural world. Compositions in his catalogue are performed regularly by outstanding university and professional ensembles around the world. Perrine holds degrees from the University of Minnesota–Morris, the University of Minnesota–Twin Cities, and the University of Iowa. Dr. Perrine was in residence in our School of Music last week and attended two Symphonic Band rehearsals of the composition.

Of Temperance, the composer writes, “From the start, I knew I wanted the piece to be connected to the state of Minnesota: the place I’ve called home for most of my life. When I think of Minnesota, my mind tends to drift to the scenic stretch of Lake Superior between Duluth and Canada, locally referred to as the North Shore. While there are seemingly countless outdoor destinations along the North Shore from which to choose, the Temperance River has always been a personal favorite. Further, I knew this was an area many of the members of the consortium had likely visited.

After contemplating some of the different directions I might take the work, I became intrigued by the word 'temperance.' Most simply, the word is defined as 'restraint.' From the chorale-like passages to the moments of nearly static harmony, the idea of 'restraint' permeated my thoughts as I composed. Temperance is my response to the beauty, serenity and solitude found along Minnesota’s North Shore.”

The Merry Widow Selections (1909 / 1999)  

Franz Lehár Jr. (1870–1948) / E. Suzuki 

Franz Lehár was an Austrio-Hungarian composer mainly known for his operettas. Born in Komarom (now Slovakia), Lehár studied at the Prague Conservatory, where he was advised by Antonín Dvořák to pursue composition. While he is most famous for his operettas, he also wrote sonatas, symphonic poems, marches, and many waltzes. 

A comic operetta, The Merry Widow premiered in 1905 in Vienna. It was Lehár's first major success and quickly became the best-known operetta of its era internationally. The work has continued to enjoy success since its premiere and is often revived and recorded. The opera is based on a comedic story about a rich widow and her countrymen’s attempts to keep her money “in-house” by finding her a husband. 

— Note by Nikk Pilato