"Magnetic Fireflies" by Augusta Reed Thomas

Considering the house composer for the Chicago is coming to town next week, I thought I might blog a bit about her.
So this piece is crazy...well, maybe not so much in comparison to her other chamber works for band, but still pretty crazy. Throw out your form and analysis crap, here comes set theory. She uses a lot of cluster chords, giving the piece an unsettling harmonic feel. There is one thing in common though, D. D is found throughout the entire piece, and even concludes into nothingness with a unison D. There are some melodic motives, especially in the higher instruments, such as the trumpet. These glimpses of melody dissapear as quickly as they appear, and often morph into new sounds and harmonies. There are not the kind of melodies one would be whistling home to. She often plays with the colors of instruments, instructing such instruments such as the piccolo to play "brassy." How does a piccolo play brassy? (I don't know, don't ask) Thomas has a nack with interweaving complex rhythmic ideas, using quintuplets, other difficult rhythms, and flutter tonguing to create a schizophrenic band sound. Triple and duple rhythms are mixed together, giving the player something to concentrate on. The end with all instruments, extra percussionists, and director going crazy leads to a climatic conclusion of the piece.
Not gonna lie, I'm not a huge fan of Augusta Reed Thomas. I feel her music is too high pitched, not pleasant to listen to, nor enjoyable to play. It does kinda/sorta sound cool at times, especially with instruments mimicking the solo trumpet. Unfortunately, this still would not be my choice in band literature, give me Lincolnshire Posy any day of the week.