Fanfare for a City (2001)

The opening piece of an orchestral concert has traditionally been the ubiquitous “overture;” whether it be a concert piece of short duration, or a real overture belonging to a stage work.  A “fanfare”, however, conjures up visions of red-coated trumpeters standing majestically in a row and playing as loudly as possible.  An orchestral fanfare to open a concert is an unusual animal, somewhat akin to the “concerto for orchestra”, and can happily be left open to interpretation by the lucky composer who gets to write one. 

Fanfare for a City begins with a brief opening brass chorale hinting at things to come, a fanfare with a sense of excitement and jubilation culminating in a return to the opening chorale written in Bach style that would never have been written by Bach.  Fanfare for a City was commissioned by the Symphony Australia for the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra’s 2001 fanfare series, celebrating 100 years of Federation in Australia.

Instrumentation: 2*.2.2.2 4.2.3.1 timp+1 hp strings

Duration: 5 minutes