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Athabasca - Peter Meechan
The stunning Athabasca Glacier, in the Columbia Icefield in the Canadian Rockies, provided the inspiration for this work. After having visited the Glacier in 2016, I knew that it would find a place in my music - the sheer magnitude of it was stunning, the visual was breath-taking, and the rate at which it is receding (5 meters per year) completely devastating.Now sadly collapsed, beneath the Glacier there were great, expansive ice caves - thankfully they were photographed by explorers, and it is these photos that provided the inspiration for the work; an imaginary walk through these fragile, beautiful structures; what music would sound like in them, what talking would sound like in them; and what moments of listening would sound like in them.When writing the piece I also wanted to try and acknowledge the diminishing nature of the Glacier. Whilst not being something you can visibly notice by simply observing for a short time, it is still happening in front of very eyes. This is represented by the tempos in the piece - almost doubling from the original tempo to the fastest tempo of the work (around 2/3rds of the way through), and - hopefully - almost imperceptibly.When commissioned by Ray Baril and the Edmonton Winds to write a new work for them, the Alberta connection between the group and the Glacier was impossible to resist.Peter Meechan 2018
Estimated dispatch 5-14 working days
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Elegie - Peter Meechan
The opening unaccompanied passage of this work was originally written as a short memorial piece for saxophone, but was later adapted as the basis of this more developed work for solo euphonium or trombone.The work uses a variation structure, with both the soloist and the accompaniment changing throughout the piece; the harmony, rhythm and melodic lines leading somewhere new and different each time they are heard - similar to the way our memories of a person often wander in different directions, but are still always focused on that person.
Estimated dispatch 5-14 working days
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Fenix Blue - Peter Meechan
Fenix Blue is a solo work for alto saxophone and wind ensemble, commissioned by and written for British saxophonist, Tim Watson.A wild blues inspired opening for unaccompanied saxophone gives way for a slow, dirty blues! More blues elements appear in the following slow funk section, driven by the percussion section and drum kit.Slow reflective music follows before a return to the slow funk - this time with plenty of the original blues music interjected around the band and from the soloist, leading to a loud conclusion!The title makes reference to the large blues influence in the piece, but the Fenix referred to in the title is a dedication to the Phoenix 2 capsule that rescued the 33 Chilean minors who were trapped underground for 69 days last year, the last of whom was brought to the surface in the capsule as I was finishing this piece.
Estimated dispatch 5-14 working days
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Forgotten Children - Peter Meechan
Forgotten Children is a short work for wind orchestra and electronic accompaniment. Adapted from it's original form (for brass quartet and CD, Forgotten Children was written for The Desert Winds and their conductor Chuck Maguire, to whom the piece is dedicated.Whilst conceiving the piece, the subject of the war in Syria dominated news headlines, specifically the refusal by Western nations to intervene. There were, of course, political reasons at the heart of the decision, complicated by a situation that no one understood in a country no one understands. The harrowing images of chemical weapons being used on children was seemingly not enough to persuade the West that their help was needed, but those silent voices fell on even deafer ears. They were, and still are, the Forgotten Children.Please download the electronic accompaniment below.
Estimated dispatch 5-14 working days
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ISS Flyover - Peter Meechan
I.S.S Flyover was written in August 2012, when the International Space Station (I.S.S.) was visible in the sky over my home town of Manchester, UK. This is not an uncommon occurrence (www.heavens-above.com is a useful tool to help you find when the orbit of the I.S.S. passes over), but what was unique about this particular pass was that there would be astronauts carrying out repair work on the outside of the station.The idea that something that seemed to pass so quick in the skies above us juxtaposed with what must have seemed a slow, dangerous journey for the astronaut is what lead me to write this piece.The opening passage is a fast, ostinato driven section; the speed and energy that the I.S.S is perceived from earth. The middle section is desolate and sparse; the astronauts looking down on earth as they slowly orbit around the globe, the loneliness of space. The final section is a return to the original material - this time with even more momentum and drive, provided by the percussion.I.S.S. Flyover was commissioned by a Canadian consortium of: the University of Saskatchewan, Brandon University, the University of Calgary, Harmonie Laval, Memorial University of Newfoundland, the University of Prince Edward Island, the University of Toronto and Anthony Reimer, Calgary, Alberta. The work is dedicated to Darrin Oehlerking who organised the commission consortium.
Estimated dispatch 5-14 working days
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Perpetua - Peter Meechan
When I write music I feel a need to comment on the world around us - which, right now, is not always a happy society. But I also want to write music about the world I want to live in - about the joy, beauty, hope, and love I see in our communities.In writing Perpetua I wanted to compose a piece of perpetual motion, that is challenging, exciting, and fun - all brought together through a sense of joy.Perpetua was commissioned by Foothills Concert Band (Calgary, AB, Canada) and their conductor Anthony Reimer.
Estimated dispatch 5-14 working days
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Shine - Peter Meechan
Shine is my second large scale work for solo tuba, following on from my concerto Episodes and Echoes. Like the concerto, Shine was commissioned and premiered (with the Grimethorpe Band, conducted by Howard Evans) by Les Neish - the title being an anagram of the soloist surname.Although in one movement, Shine has 3 broad sections, each requiring virtuosic skill and dexterity from the soloist. The opening section features lots of bright, metallic sounds - especially in the percussion section - providing the accompaniment to soloist as they demonstrate the range and flexibility of the tuba.The second section gives the soloist the opportunity to demonstrate the considerable lyricism that the tuba is capable of. The solo line weaves in and out of textures in the accompaniment, exchanging snippets of melody with other players in the ensemble.After a short unaccompanied passage, the final section emerges juxtaposing new solo lines and material from the opening section. This builds in momentum - and difficulty for the soloist - as the piece reaches its climatic ending.Shine is dedicated to my good friend, fellow Liverpool supporter, and amazing musician, Les Neish.Peter Meechan, 2011
Estimated dispatch 5-14 working days
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Taking the Fifth - Peter Meechan
Written during the Covid-19 pandemic, originally as an adaptable chart, Taking the Fifth takes its title from both the primary interval of the work as well as from a general British expression that when something is outrageous, remarkable, or the worse of its kind that it "takes the biscuit".Given that the piece was written during the Covid-19, and that even more unpredictable news that followed every day during the pandemic, it seemed an apt title!Upbeat, occasionally dark, but always with drive and a sense of fun, Taking the Fifth was the piece that got my creative juices flowing again, having initially found myself pretty lost for inspiration during the early stages of pandemic.Taking the Fifth is dedicated to my dear friend, Robert Ambrose.Peter Meechan 2021Anthony Reimer, Calgary, CanadaBenedictine College - Tom Davoren, Director of BandsBrandon University - Wendy Zander McCallum, Conductor, Symphonic BandBrooklyn Wind Symphony - Jeff W. Ball, Artistic Director & ConductorDordt University - Onsby C. Rose, Director of Instrumental StudiesGeorgia State University - Robert Ambrose, Director of BandsGlobal Bandroom Podcast - Keith Kelly, HostKansas State University - Frank Tracz, Director of BandsUniversity of Kansas - Matthew Smith, Associate Director of BandsUniversity of Regina - Brent Ghiglione, Director of BandsWinona State University - Melanie Brooks, Director of Bands
Estimated dispatch 5-14 working days
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