Australian Music Centre | Breaking sound barriers

Work Overview

Reflecting on my time as a student at St Columba, I began composing this piece by trying to describe how it feels to grow up at SCAS, and the word that came to mind very clearly was safe. Above all, SCAS is a safe place - to find friends, to figure out who you are, to discover your passion, to dream big... even to love Star Wars or join the choir. Musically, it seemed fitting to capture the school's warmth and quirkiness, stitched together with a driving youthful energy.

This fanfare maps out the journey of growing up in a community like SCAS, with each stage having its own musical theme in the piece:

• The first step - starting school wide-eyed and ambitious.

• Curiosity - asking questions and finding your feet.

• Thriving - settling in with friends and routine.

• Passion - finding your passion and a thirst for knowledge.

• Farewell - graduation; saying goodbye to the community that shaped you.

• A new adventure - the next school, the next job, the next step; the journey starts again.

Work Details

Year: 2022

Instrumentation: 2 Flutes, oboe, clarinet in B flat, bass clarinet in B flat, bassoon, horn in F, 2 trumpets in B flat, trombone, euphonium, tuba, timpani, percussion (4 players), bass drum, bass guitar, strings.  

Duration: 6 min.

Difficulty: Medium — Suitable for high school orchestras

Contents note: I. Curiosity -- II. Thriving - III. Passion -- IV. Farewell -- V. A new adventure.

Commission note: Commissioned by St Columba Anglican School, Port Macquarie for their 20th anniversary.

First performance: 7 Dec 22. Glasshouse, Port Macquarie, NSW