James Marshall Music

A new Flute score is Brookgreen Suite for Flute Choir. It was premiered December 9 at Colorado State University Pueblo with Andrea Artley conducting. The music came to mind after experiencing the bronze sculpure garden “The Fountain of the Muses” in the Brookgren Gardens in Myrtle Beach. I walked the gardens while visitng George and Sharon Hummel. The gardens is comprosed of themed sculpture gardens which are enhanced by trees, seasonal flowers, and trees. The music started to take shape after reconnecting with Leo Welsh Snow who was a friend in my undergraduate studies at SMU and is fond of flute choir music. The choir consists of 4 Soprano Flutes, Bass Flute and Contrabass Flute (with alternate substitutions for the Bass and Contrabass). Of the three movements
(Gardens, Sculpture, Trees) the Sculpture movement was composed first. The piece is abstract, constructed from an imaginary silver, metallic sculpture (the ue of the flute) that begins to sound and sing in sympathetic harmonic
and melodic vibrations.

June 16 at St John’s the Evangelist in Hemel Hempstead, Anna le Hair premiered Ballad for Anna
which was inspired by a sunset photo she took from her home window. She will perform it again
on her piano recital on July 27.

 Beyond Dusk is a new project for Clarinet Octet (Eb, 4 Bb, Bass, Contra Alto). It is serious and expressive in
nature with dusk being the inspirational image. Although the majority of recent ensemble music is arrangements
of popular classics and tunes, the blending tones of the clarinet family offer unique
and attractive sonorities for original music. The piece expresses a yearning for light in a time of
prolonged sorrowful violence. Rather than being violent itself, the piece reflects yearning for light in a darkened reality.

Another new Flute piece is Autumn Gray for Flute/Alto Flute and Piano for Leo. We recently visited Stowe and Burlington, Vermont. In this photo we are in Smugglers Notch surrounded by large, gray rock formations.
We visited past the peak of brilliant Fall foliage. In this piece, the leaves are the light. Shades of yellow, orange and red engulfed by early morning clouds and fog. The music contrasts color and gray.
The evocative and illusive low tones of the alto flute are enhanced by subsequent passages in the higher, illuminating, singing tones of the concert flute. The music, shifting in mood and perspective is illuminated by piano shadings of the evolving flute passages.
Listen to Leo’s premiere recording:

My Score JW Pepper is a new outlet for my Clarinet music as well as new scores for band.
Dorian Saga, scored for symphonic band is a single movement piece drawing on the human struggle thought history to control our destiny. In the Dorian realm, we fear, yet conquer.
Prelude to Us was premiered by the Falls Church Concert Band on a Memorial Day concert. It is an uplifiting piece for any occasion.

My dabbling in band scoring has produced American Heritage Suite for Band. This is a four movement suite:
Morning/ Hills and Valleys/ Rivers and Streams/ Lakes and Sunsets. The second and third movements were premiered by the Falls Chrusch Concert Band directed by Robert Little on July 3, 2022. On November 6, 2022 my own Richardson Community Band premiered the Morning movement. The music is drawn from American folk and spiritual songs including songs from the Kentucky Harmony in the first movement.

Enchanted London was premiered October 9, 2021 with me participating via Zoom.
Alison Eales and the Gregynog Ensemble gave a sterling perfomance.
The first concert at CityLit College since March, 2019.
See Featured Music for the You Tube video of the Soliloquies movement.
September 3, 2022 Alison and Ann le Hair premiered the new Sonata Semplice.

Two 2021 projects were completed to edit and notate in Finale Four Cantos and Journey both for Solo Piano.
The Four Cantos date back to 1978 and utilize monochromatic textures that build “blocks of sound”
that are varied by pitch and rhythm sustained and built by use of the piano pedal.
Journey dates from 2005 and is also impressionistic and textural in seven movements
reflecting the stages of an extended trip or journey:
View - Sunset by the Cliffs, Departure, Voyage, The Muse, Waterfall, Dusk, Return.

A commission from long time friend Joyce Albrecht Wilcox was for Festive Suite for Violin, Cello and Harpsichord.
Joyce retired as church musician (organ, piano, harpsichord, Handbell Choir Director) at Parkway Presbyterian Church in Corpus Christi, Texas.
The suite draws on neo Baroque elements in form and melody with a mild sprinkling of more contemporary techniques.
The Harpsichord is an equal voice in the piece rather than just serving as accompaniment for the Violin and Cello. The five movements are:
Prelude, Allemande on a Theme of Michael Praterious, Sarabande, Interlude and Gigue. The concert scheduled for November, 2021 was posponed.

The long awaited premiere of London Concerto for Clarinet, Piano and String Orchestra which
Alison Ealeas and Anna le Hair commisioned following their premiere of the English Sonatina was October 15, 2022
at Church of St Peter and St Paul in Tringh. Alison and Anna premiered the Six Bagatelles for Beethoven 250
in September, 2021. September 3, 2022 they also premiered the new Sonata Semplice (Simple Sonata)
which is at a more advanced playing level for Clarinet than the educational English Sonatina.
We met in London (see photo below) in March, 2018 while I was traveling there.
For the Concerto they wanted a substantial concerto to fill the first half of a concert following the overture.
In order to do this I proposed adding an interlude movement after the slow movement in the traditional fast, slow, fast concerto form.
The piece runs 25 minutes in four movements:
Dawn to Dusk
Pastoral Thoughts
Interlude: Country Chase
On the Town

Alison and Anna commissioned a new sonata during a visit to London inAugust, 2023. Pastoral Sonata
will be premiered in early 2024.