Celebration

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Celebration was Commissioned by and Composed in 2023 especially for The Allentown Band in Celebration of the Band’s 195th Anniversary, Ronald Demkee, Conductor. The Allentown Band is the oldest band in the United States and performs approximately forty concert per year. Celebration was premiered October 19, 2023 at the Christ Lutheran Church in Allentown, PA. Ronald Demkee, Conductor. The duration of the piece is eight minutes and is at a grade 4 difficulty level. Celebration is in a sonata form starting with a fanfare introduction in Allegro tempo. The primary theme is first presented in the trumpets in unison, then again with the full ensemble with a counter melody in the trombones. The contrasting second theme is presented in the horns, the closing section ends the Exposition with a brass fanfare. The development section is based on the three themes in the Exposition and includes some elements of jazz and rock. The Recapitulation of the primary theme is in augmentation then the second theme in a slower tempo featuring some “Big Band” era harmonizations. The fanfare of the closing theme brings the tempo back to Allegro. The coda further develops the themes with an ending flourish. The scoring is for standard concert band with optional harp. The percussion section calls for timpani and 3 (or optional 6) percussionists.