Description
Order from Boosey & Hawkes or music retailer.
Wind ensemble. Duration: 5’30”
Metamorphosis (on an Original Cakewalk) is is also included in Teaching Music Through Performance in Band, Volume 6. This landmark series provides teacher resource guides for 100 works for wind band, Grades 2-6. An Individual Digital Teacher Resource Guide for this piece is also available.
This work is on music association repertoire lists in Indiana, Texas and Louisiana.
Listen
(Boosey & Hawkes promo recording)
Composer’s Notes
This was a commission from the Hudson (WI) High School Concert Band. It premiered at the Wisconsin State Conference of Music Educators in 1986 with Kris Tjornehoj conducting. The piece begins with a playful cakewalk (alto saxophone and euphonium solos) but quickly “metamorphoses” into a minimalistic section where only the characteristic cakewalk rhythm remains. A strong xylophone player who can count independently is a necessity here. Actually, most of the percussionists and woodwinds play their own patterns independently of one another in this section, so everybody has to count while the conductor basically beats in four. The cakewalk tune returns at the end. This is suitable for strong high school and college programs. Recorded in 2008 by the North Texas Wind Symphony on their CD, Homage.
