Leaps and Rounds

Grade 5 (solo brass quintet–Grade 6)

5.5 minutes

Premiered March 13, 2010 at the Ferguson Center for the Arts of Christopher Newport University by Boston Brass and the United States Army Training and Doctrine Command Band

World-renowned brass quintet Boston Brass celebrated its 25th anniversary during the 2010-11 concert season and therefore solicited 25 fanfares to premiere.  I missed the part about the pieces being “fanfares” and came up with this piece instead.

‘Leaps and Rounds’ challenges the quintet (and the entire band) with acrobatic intervals at a breakneck pace.  The “rounds” of the title refer to the several canonic passages featured in the work (an appropriate way, I thought, to feature each of the soloists). If you don’t have a world-class brass quintet at your disposal, this piece is reminiscent of ‘Groovy Loops,’ which would be a alternative comparable in style and length.