A Sampling of the Music
Perpetual Emotion (from Symphony No. 5 1/2): Albany Symphony Orchestra (2000), David Alan Miller, Conductor, Excerpt - 81sec (mp3)
From the Albany Records liner notes: Composed in 1946, Symphony No. 5 1/2 is Don Gillis' best known work. Why the fraction? Because, the composer tells us, the writing of the piece came halfway between the Fifth and Sixth Symphonies, actually interrupting work on the Sixth. The music is based on idiomatic devices found in jazz and other folk sources indigenous to the American music scene. The four short movements are characterized by sly good humor and brilliant orchestration. The movement headings are: Perpetual Emotion, Spiritual?, Scherzophrenia, Conclusion! (Stuart Triff, Albany Records)
The Vision (from Symphony No. 7: Saga of a Prairie School): Sinfonia Varsovia (2006), Ian Hobson, Conductor, Excerpt - 3min (mp3)
From Don Gillis' notes: The program for the symphony follows a spiritual rather than a realistic or historical approach, and its four movements, played without pause, are: The Vision, The People, The Dedication, and The Fulfillment. The Vision opens with a pastoral theme reflecting the land, the prayerful willingness of the founding fathers to devote their lives to a cause; from the spiritual theme the entire symphony is built. (source: Liner Notes, Ray Bono, Albany Records)
Celebration (from Star-Spangled Symphony): Sinfonia Varsovia (2003), Ian Hobson, Conductor, Excerpt - 97sec (mp3)
From the Albany Records liner notes: The Star-Spangled Symphony might be considered a companion piece to (Gillis') Dance Symphony, as it offers four additional portraits of America during World War II and the years immediately following...the finale ("Celebration"), an all stops pulled out July 4th celebration, is replete with patriotic marches, fireworks, and indigenous dances of all kinds - all of this supported by the requisite "Music Man" snarling trombones. (source: Stuart Triff, Albany Records)
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