3.3.3.3 / 4.3.3.1 / timp.3 perc. harp.pno / strings
5’30”
composed 2009
composed for and premiered by the Fresno State Symphony Orchestra (Fresno, California)
Composer’s Note
In the fall of 1941, several counties from Northern California and Southern Oregon banded together in protest of their respective state governments. While the issue of the time had to do with road construction, the people of the region were well aware that this was not the first time that they had felt neglected and ignored by their leadership. The citizens, pushed to the brink, chose to rebel and secede from their states, forming the unofficial 49th state - the state of Jefferson.
Jefferson Rising was composed as an “unofficial” overture to an opera on this secession movement, to be composed in the next few years. Elements of Hollywood film scores from the golden age, classic bluegrass, military fanfare, and folk music are all weaved together to create a tapestry of musical style representing both the time and the region. Operatic themes are interspersed throughout the piece, intentionally underdeveloped so they can eventually be constructed into full arias for the opera. Sonic elements, such as drums muted with towels, violins performed fiddle-style, and piano strings hit with mallets, are all used to further establish a folk-like sound not typically found in a standard orchestra.