Bravado was written for the Tanglewood Music Festival 2023 orchestral readings and explores the many connotations of the word “bravado,” a descendant of the old Italian adjective bravo, meaning “wild” or “courageous.” A person with bravado can be seen as bold or reckless, daring or arrogant, confident or overbearing. The ensemble musically embodies this range of traits through the transformation of the piece’s primary melody. Bravado opens with a lilting theme accented in unexpected places, punctuated by bell tones throughout the ensemble. After three statements of this melody, a whirling transition introduces a new theme from the horns. This second theme starts with a gesture reminiscent of West Side Story — perhaps a nod to Leonard Bernstein, a fixture at Tanglewood for 50 years — before breaking into a series of intervallic leaps that propel the music forward.
Gala Flagello is an American composer, educator, student and nonprofit director. Flagello holds a Bachelor of Music in Composition degree from The Hartt School, a Master of Music in Composition degree from the University of Michigan, and a Doctor of Musical Arts in Composition degree at the University of Michigan, where she was awarded the Dorothy Greenwald Graduate Fellowship. Flagello’s compositional work is inspired by a passion for lyricism, rhythmic vitality and fostering meaningful collaboration. She strives to use music as a vehicle for social change, frequently engaging with topics such as environmental advocacy, gender equity, and mental health in her work.
Meditations (2023) (24’)
Pete Meechan (b. 1980)
During a particularly bad episode of depression, I couldn’t compose. I simply couldn’t write, didn’t have any ideas to write with, and because of all of that I didn’t want to compose. Worse still was that I didn’t know if I would be able to compose again. I certainly felt as though it was a real possibility that I wouldn’t compose again (or at least, compose anything I considered of any value), and the idea that I wouldn’t be able to compose again only made the depression worse. I don’t ever remember a time when I didn’t compose and the thought that I wouldn’t be able to led to what felt like a never-ending cycle that was diminishing my health at an almosthourly basis.
Time became a strange construct in my life – on one hand it was impossible to tell one day from another, or if an event (a phone call, seeing a friend, etc.) had happened today, yesterday, or last week. On the other hand, I knew that there was a deadline for this commission (it turns out that even when time ceases to function in a normal way your brain can still sense an impending deadline!).
As the days passed, I spent a lot of time focusing on the idea of time and how we perceive it. It led to me considering how we view and perceive time in music. Gradually, little by little, I started to realize that this thought process was something I had to write; the very thing that had caused me to think there was a chance I wouldn’t be able to compose again became the very thing that was now helping me to compose again.
As this happened, I began to get a little better. Ideas of value started presenting themselves again, and I could - for the first time in what felt like a very long time - see through the mist.
This process became meditative and, within that, also became spiritual.
I don’t think time will ever feel quite the same to me again, and I’ve embraced that whilst in the process of continual healing.
Meditations is the result of my continuing journey of time and of spirituality, and a journey of healing and discovery.
Program Note by the Composer
Peter Meechan is a British composer who resides in Canada. Meechan began his composition studies at the North Warwickshire College, under Simon Hall and Ben Markland. In 1998, he accepted a place at the Royal Northern College of Music, studying composition with Anthony Gilbert, Elena Firsova, David Horne and Adam Gorb. Following his undergraduate studies at the RNCM Peter was appointed as the first ever ‘Young Composer in Association’ with the prestigious Black Dyke Band, and later served as ‘Composer in Residence’ between 20062007.
Jubilee! (2025) (9’)
Valerie Coleman (b. 1970)
Jubilee! is a celebratory piece that draws upon a variety of musical influences. The work opens with a mysterious but inspiring beginning section, introducing themes and melodies that reference jazz and other modern music styles. The second section, the “Juba,” imitates the complex dance and music style brought to the United States by enslaved peoples. The dance was popularized in the nineteenth century, and Florence Price drew inspiration from the Juba in several of her symphonies. Jubilee! was commissioned by the SEC Band Directors Association.
Valerie Coleman is regarded by many as an iconic artist who continues to pave her own unique path as a composer, GRAMMY-nominated flutist, and entrepreneur. Highlighted as one of the “Top 35 Women Composers” by The Washington Post, she was named Performance Today’s 2020 Classical Woman of the Year, an honor bestowed to an individual who has made a significant contribution to classical music as a performer, composer or educator. Her works have garnered awards such as the MAPFund, ASCAP Honors Award, Chamber Music America’s Classical Commissioning Program, Herb Alpert Ragdale Residency Award, and nominations from The American Academy of Arts and Letters and United States Artists. Umoja, Anthem for Unity was chosen by Chamber Music America as one of the “Top 101 Great American Ensemble Works” and is now a staple of woodwind literature. The former flutist of the Imani Winds, Coleman is the creator and founder of this acclaimed ensemble whose twenty-four year legacy is documented and featured in a dedicated exhibit at the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington, D.C.
Northern Ballad (1907) (14’)
Mona McBurney (1862-1932)
In 1907 the Exhibition of Women’s Work was held, and Mona McBurney was requested by Lady Northcote to write something for the occasion. This took the form of a concerto for piano and orchestra entitled A Northern Ballad, which was performed at the exhibition by Miss Una Bourne and an orchestra of a hundred women, under the baton of the composer. This was received with such enthusiasm that it had to be repeated. The following year Professor Marshall-Hall
PROGRAM NOTES
gave the next performance of the concerto at one of his orchestral concerts, and insisted that the composer should conduct her own work. Northern Ballad was inspired by the legendary King Orry, a Viking ruler who was said to have landed on the Isle of Man intent on pillage and genocide, but was instead moved to spare the islanders by the voice of a young girl singing a song remembered from his childhood. He persuaded the islanders to accept him as their ruler, introducing the first representative government in the world. The melody of the song, “Näcken’s Polska,” introduced by the oboe, is still a familiar folk song in Sweden.
Program Note by The Australasian Newspapers, Melbourne, Vic., June 1926
McBurney was born on the Isle of Man in 1862 and emigrated to Australia with her family during her teens. McBurney, who generously allowed a first performance of her opera, The Dalmatian, to be given on June Twenty Fifth and Twenty Sixth (1926) in aid of the funds of the Queen Victoria Hospital, was probably the most noted woman composer Australia had produced at that date. Miss McBurney was a student of the late Professor Marshall-Hall at the University of Melbourne Conservatorium, and taught other successful composers. She was the first woman, and only the fourth person, to graduate with a Bachelor of Music degree in all of Australia.
Gazebo Dances (1972/1974) (16’)
John Corigliano (b.1938)
Gazebo Dances was originally written as a set of four-hand pieces dedicated to certain of my pianist friends. I later arranged the suite for orchestra and for concert band, and it is from the latter version that the title is drawn. The title Gazebo Dances was suggested by the pavilions often seen on village greens in towns throughout the countryside, where public band concerts were given on summer evenings. The delights of that sort of entertainment are portrayed in this set of dances, which begins with a Rossini-like overture, followed by a rather peg-legged waltz, a long-lined adagio and a bouncy tarantella. Each movement was given a dedication, as follows:
I. Overture - for Rose Corigliano (my mother) and Etta Feinbert (my mother’s best friend)
II. Waltz - for John Ardoin (music critic for the Dallas Morning News and author)
III. Adagio - for Heida Hermanns (composer’s father’s accompanist)
IV. Tarantella - for Jack Romann (head of Baldwin pianos and close friend) and
Christian Steiner (photographer)
Program note by the Composer
John Corigiliano is an American composer. Corigliano’s father was concertmaster for the New York Philharmonic and his mother was an accomplished piano soloist. He studied composition with Otto Luening at Columbia University, with Vittorio Giannini at the Manhattan School of Music, and independently with Paul Creston. The first notoriety he gained was from winning the 1964 Spoleto Festival chamber music prize. Mr. Corigliano continues to add to one of the richest, most unusual, and most widely celebrated bodies of work any composer has created over the last forty years. Corigliano’s numerous scores - including three symphonies and eight concerti among over one hundred chamber, vocal, choral, and orchestral works - have been performed and recorded by many of the most prominent orchestras, soloists, and chamber musicians in the world. Corigliano won a Pulitzer Prize for his Symphony No. 2, an Academy Award for Best Original Score to the film The Red Violin, and he is a five-time GRAMMY award winner.
Nicholas Enrico Williams is a Professor of Music and serves as the Director of Bands at the University of Georgia, where he coordinates one of the country’s largest and most comprehensive university band programs, conducts the University of Georgia Wind Ensemble, and oversees the graduate wind band conducting area. Prior to his time in Athens, he was the Director of Wind Bands at the University of Melbourne Conservatorium of Music (Melbourne, Australia). Before venturing to Australia, Williams flourished for sixteen years as the Assistant Director of Wind Studies, the Conductor of the Wind Ensemble, Brass Band, and Concert Band, as well as the Director of Athletic Bands at the University of North Texas. For a decade, he was the Conductor of the Greater Dallas Youth Orchestra Wind Symphony and continues to be a frequent guest conductor of the Dallas Winds (formerly Dallas Wind Symphony), one of America’s few professional civic wind bands. Professor Williams earned the Bachelor of Music (music education), MM (performance-conducting), and DMA (conducting) degrees from the University of North Texas.
Professor Williams has been a guest conductor with the Opole (Poland) Philharmonic Orchestra; the United States Army Band “Pershing’s Own”; United States Navy Band; United States Army Field Band; United States Air Force Band; Royal Australian Defence Force Bands; World Youth Wind Symphony at the Interlochen Arts Camp; Dallas Winds; Lone Star Wind Orchestra; at the annual Midwest International Band and Orchestra Clinic in Chicago, Illinois; the College Band Directors National Association national and regional conferences; the Texas Bandmasters Association Convention; and the Texas Music Educators Association Annual Clinic/Convention in San Antonio, Texas.
Williams is active in Australia, Canada, Europe, Southeast Asia, and the United States as a conductor, clinician, adjudicator, consultant, and arranger; his arrangements and transcriptions for wind band, percussion ensembles, drum corps, and school pageantry ensembles are performed by outstanding organizations throughout the world. A member of the Recording Academy (GRAMMYs), he is a sought-after recording session producer, associate producer, editor, and conductor, having been involved with numerous CDs and DVDs on the Klavier, Mark Records, and GIA labels, as well as UNT and UGA projects, including the 2024 release of “Never a Reason to Stop” by the University of Georgia Wind Ensemble, and the 2019 release of “FIESTAS” by the University of North Texas Wind Ensemble. In addition to his work in the recording arts, he has written several conductor study guides published in the multivolume series of Teaching Music Through Performance in Band. He was a primary consultant of the book Women of Influence in Contemporary Music and is an honorary member of Sigma Alpha Iota International Music Fraternity for women. His professional affiliations include the Georgia Music Educators Association, Australian Band and Orchestra Directors Association, Texas Music Educators Association, Texas Bandmasters Association, College Band Directors National Association, Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia, and Phi Beta Mu, an international bandmasters fraternity.
James Kim has appeared as soloist with orchestras such as Boston Symphony and Royal Philharmonic, working with conductors David Zinman, Michael Sanderling, Alexander Shelley, Keith Lockhart, onstage at Carnegie Stern Auditorium, Zankel Hall, Boston Symphony Hall, Jordan Hall, and Metropolitan Museum of Art. He has given solo recitals at Carnegie Weill Hall, Greene Space, Seoul Arts Center IBK Hall, and Kumho Art Hall. His performances have been broadcasted on radio stations NPR and WQXR.
He has also collaborated with numerous orchestras in his native Korea, concertizing at Lotte Concert Hall—where he is the first soloist in its history—Tongyeong Concert Hall, Daegu Concert House, Seoul Arts Center, and DITTO Festival. In 2021, Sony Classical released his album Death and Offering presenting works dedicated to him by Korean composer Shinuh Lee.
He is a recipient of Salon de Virtuosi’s Sony Career Grant and a top prizewinner of Isang Yun and David Popper International Cello Competitions. From 2016 to 2021, he performed on a Matteo Goffriller cello from Venice ca. 1715, generously loaned by Samsung Cultural Foundation and Stradivari Society® of Chicago, Illinois.
Tracy Videon shares her passion for conducting and wind band repertoire as a teacher/Concert Band Coordinator at McKinnon Secondary College, and as a PhD researcher at the Melbourne Conservatorium of Music, University of Melbourne, under the academic supervision of Nicholas Enrico Williams. Tracy directs ensembles of all levels, including as a regular guest conductor with the University of Melbourne Wind Symphony and Concert Band. During a forty-year career as a music educator, Tracy has taught instrumental music and directed ensembles in schools across Melbourne (Victoria) and in the Riverina district of New South Wales. She also served as a musician in the Australian Army Reserve for twenty-four years, performing as a euphonium and tuba player and a vocalist, and has been an enthusiastic practitioner and supporter of community music-making. Currently, she sings with the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra Chorus. A former state president in the Australian Band and Orchestra Directors’ Association and editor of the journal Interlude, Tracy was recently recognized with ABODA Victoria’s Certificate of Excellence for outstanding achievement and contribution to music education. In 2022, she received Melbourne University’s State Music Camp scholarship for excellence in orchestral conducting.
Tracy returned to part-time postgraduate study in 2020, and she expects to complete her PhD in Music Performance (Conducting) in 2028. Her PhD project reveals the musical legacy of Australian heritage women composers through the wind band medium, advocating for neglected works through performance. She is thrilled to have the opportunity to attend the University of Georgia as an International Visiting Researcher Scholar to enrich her experience and complete a portion of her PhD project. Tracy’s research in the USA is supported by the Macgeorge Bequest.
UNIVERSITY OF GEORGIA BANDS GRADUATE STAFF
Jordan M. Fansler, Doctoral Conducting Associate
R. Scott Mullen, Doctoral Conducting Associate
Derik Wright, Doctoral Conducting Associate
Joseph Johnson, Graduate Assistant
Michelle Moeller, Graduate Assistant
David MacPherson, Graduate Assistant
Nicholas Enrico Williams, conductor
Flute
Blair Carrier
Emily Elmore
Jadyn Hairston
Alexia Toma
Oboe
Triston Fielding
Marcus Lewis
Michelle Moeller
Amanda Withrow
Clarinet
Tim Fitzgerald
Ryan Hanling
Riley Hartman
Eleanor Love
Jonathan Mack
Yash Mahadkar
Avery Pate
Ruwien Su
Caleb Weber
Bassoon
Jazmyn Barajas-Trujillo
J.T. Holdbrooks
Caleb Jackson
Saxophone
Manya Das
Aidan Eclavea
Bridget Sheridan
Yun Qu Tan
Jon Erik Tripp
Horn
Daniel Alford
Jonah Hammett
Patrick Malone
Ian Welch
Josh Wood
Trumpet
Will Cuneo
Palmer Hartley
Tim Jackson
Toby Johnson
Jack Rozza
Antonio Urias
James Vaughn
Trombone
Nichole Botsoe
Thomas Pajares
Jose Vasquez
Ian Wolff
Bass Trombone
Victor Guevara
Jonah Madaris
Euphonium
Jared Barry
Andrew Haynes
Tuba
Jack Gordon
Jack Neja
String Bass
Michael Farrick
Piano
David MacPherson
Carl Weber
Danmeng Zhang
Percussion
Henry Campbell
Thomas Huff
Carrington Lauck
Jorjana Marin
Grayson Pruitt
Jacien Thorne
Angelina Vasquez
Angelica Wright
*Members of the University of Georgia Wind Ensemble are listed alphabetically to acknowledge each performer’s unique contribution to our shared artistic endeavors.
HUGH HODGSON SCHOOL OF MUSIC FACULTY
Daniel Bara, Interim Director
Brandon Craswell, Associate Director, Director of Undergraduate Studies
Emily Gertsch, Associate Director, Director of Graduate Studies
Amy Pollard, Associate Director, Director of Performance Activities
percussion percussion voice voice voice voice voice voice organ piano piano piano piano piano piano piano piano
violin violin guitar
harp
violin cello
Suziki
double bass viola
BANDS
Mia Athanas
Brett Bawcum
Jack A. Eaddy, Jr.
*Nicholas Enrico Williams
CHORAL
Daniel Bara
Colin Mann
Daniel Shafer
COMMUNITY MUSIC SCHOOL
SUMMER CAMPS
Stephen Fischer
COMPOSITION & THEORY
Tyler Beckett
Adrian Childs
Emily Gertsch
Daniel Karcher
*Emily Koh
Peter Lane
Dickie Lee
Jared Tubbs
Trinity Vélez-Justo
JAZZ STUDIES
David D’Angelo
Gregory Satterthwaite
James Weidman
MUSIC EDUCATION
*Rebecca Atkins
Alison Farley
Tyler Goehring
Roy Legette
Kristen Lynch
Michael Robinson
Johanna Royo
Brian Wesolowski
Edith Hollander, Administrative Assistant to the Director
Director of Public Relations
Development Associate Music Library Manager
Undergraduate Academic Advisor
Piano Technician
Senior Piano Technician
Marcus Morris
Kathleen Powell
Rocky Raffle
James Sewell
Jared Tubbs
Marshall Williams
MUSIC THERAPY
*Ellyn Evans
Sally Ann Nichols
Jenny Stull
MUSICOLOGY & ETHNOMUSICOLOGY
Karen Bergmann
Naomi Graber
*David Haas
Jared Holton
Jean Kidula
Sarah Pickett
Rumya Putcha
Joanna Smolko
OPERA
Daniel Ellis
Andrew Voelker
ORCHESTRA
Mark Cedel
RECORDING & STREAMING
Eric Dluzniewski
Paul Griffith
*Area Chair
Assistant Director of Athletic Bands
Graduate Program Administrator
Administrative Associate in Bands
Production & Events Manager
Sectioning Officer
Director of Admissions
HUGH HODGSON SCHOOL OF MUSIC STAFF
JOIN US FOR A FULL SEASON OF FINE AND PERFORMING ARTS AT UGA
On stage and in the gallery — over 100 performances, exhibitions and lectures await you this season at the Franklin College of Arts and Sciences. Enjoy a dazzling variety of free events plus explore our ticketed seasons in dance, theatre and music starting at just $15. Students, faculty and guests of UGA fine and performing arts offer Athens premier programming all year round.
SUPPORT THE SCHOOL OF MUSIC
HOW TO GIVE
Under each of the available funds below is a QR code where you can scan and donate directly to that fund. However, if you would like to learn more about alternative ways to donate, scan the QR code now to visit our “How to Give” page with additional details and options.
Scholarships and Graduate assistantships funded by donations to the Thursday Scholarship Fund make it possible for students to learn and pursue their passions at the Hugh Hodgson School of Music. Please consider a taxdeductible gift to the Thursday Scholarship Fund so we may continue to support our students and make their education possible. Scan the QR code now or reach out to Melissa Roberts at roberts@uga.edu or 706-254-2111.
SUPPORT INDIVIDUAL AREAS OF THE SCHOOL OF MUSIC
In addition to our primary Support and Scholarship Funds, many specialized areas of interest, including our orchestra and choral programs, have support and scholarship funds you can contribute to directly. You can now learn more about all the ways and areas you can support the Hugh Hodgson School of Music. Scan the QR code or visit music.uga.edu/giving-and-alumni to the support the Hugh Hodgson School of Music area of your choice.
JOIN THE DIRECTOR’S CIRCLE
Gifts of all amounts are greatly appreciated. However, annual giving at the $1,500 level and higher provides membership in the Director’s Circle, our Hugh Hodgson School of Music Honor Roll. Director’s Circle members are invited to exclusive events and performances throughout the academic year.
For large gifts, please contact Melissa Roberts at roberts@uga.edu or 706-254-2111.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR CONTINUED SUPPORT OF THE UNIVERSITY OF GEORGIA HUGH HODGSON SCHOOL OF MUSIC.
FRI 10/24
3:30 p.m.
Ramsey Concert Hall
FREE CONCERT
TUES 9/9
7:30 p.m.
FRI 10/24
7:30 p.m.
Hodgson Concert Hall
FREE CONCERT
UNIVERSITY OF GEORGIA REPERTORY SINGERS
The Repertory Singers is a mixed chamber choir directed by graduate student conductors. Its format offers laboratory rehearsal and performance experience for conductors and singers alike.
BRITISH BRASS BAND FALL CONCERT
The British Brass Band has become an Athens fan favorite. The repertoire encompasses a wide variety of styles including excellent original works, marvelous transcriptions of orchestral works, as well as marches and other light pieces. British Brass Band is conducted by Gilbert Villagrana.
MON 10/27
7:30 p.m.
Hodgson Concert Hall
FREE CONCERT
TUES 9/9
WED 10/29
7:30 p.m.
5:30 p.m.
Ramsey Concert Hall
FREE CONCERT
WED 10/29
7:30 p.m.
FREE CONCERT FERE
Hodgson Concert Hall
UNIVERSITY OF GEORGIA SYMPHONIC BAND
University of Georgia Symphonic Band is one of the Hugh Hodgson School of Music’s large wind bands. The Symphonic Band focuses on the classic band repertoire as well as exciting new music, and has recorded for C. Alan Publications. Symphonic Band is conducted by Michael C. Robinson.
UNIVERSITY OF GEORGIA JAZZ ENSEMBLES I & II
Jazz Ensemble I is the Hugh Hodgson School of Music’s advanced level big band group, comprised of traditional big band instrumentation: saxophones, trombones, trumpets, and a rhythm section featuring drums, piano, guitar, and bass, conducted by David D’Angelo.
Jazz Ensemble II introduces students to the experience of performing in a traditional big band, and teaches students the evolution of big band music, familiarization with stylistic comparisons, and refinement of improvisational skills.
Jazz Ensemble II is co-conducted by Greg Satterthwaite and James Weidman.
UNIVERISTY OF GEORGIA
WIND SYMPHONY
As one of the University of Georgia’s large wind bands, the Wind Symphony has performed extensively throughout the Southeast, including concerts at regional conferences of the College Band Directors National Association. Wind Symphony is conducted by Jack Eaddy, Jr.
