Tribute was commissioned for the final concert of longtime Appleton West High School Band Director Mike Ross, and premiered May 18, 2017. Tribute acknowledges Mike Ross by paralleling one of his favorite pieces of music, Carmina Burana. Through direct musical quotes and a similar overall cyclic structure, Tribute reveals latent aspects of the United States education system in the same way Carmina Burana reveals salacious details of religious institutions. This piece is designed to underscore the beauty, ugliness, inspiration, challenges, successes, failures, criticism and praise our public educators face daily.
Approximately 3,100,000 teachers in about 98,600 public schools throughout the United States teach around 50,400,000 students. I have made an effort to emphasize the immense influences and consequences of our public education system while celebrating the binding force public educators offer our communities. My hope is that Tribute will inspire further insight into the daily lives of public educators, and embody Mike’s love of music, his enthusiasm for his students, and his dry sense of humor.
View the Score in the slideshow below
Link to SoundCloud to listen to the recording below
Approximately 3,100,000 teachers in about 98,600 public schools throughout the United States teach around 50,400,000 students. I have made an effort to emphasize the immense influences and consequences of our public education system while celebrating the binding force public educators offer our communities. My hope is that Tribute will inspire further insight into the daily lives of public educators, and embody Mike’s love of music, his enthusiasm for his students, and his dry sense of humor.
View the Score in the slideshow below
Link to SoundCloud to listen to the recording below