Engines of WonderNEW
Year(s)
2025
Difficulty
Easy
Duration
04:00 min
Engines of Wonder seeks to enthrall the players and audience alike with a soundworld of energizing hope. The piece opens with an optional ethereal introduction, and is then propelled by the pulsing groove of the electronics in an ever-growing sense of amazement and wonder.
I hope this music demonstrates to musicians at the very beginning of their musical journey, as well as more advanced players, the power and joy of playing music together in a community, and spurs them to actively make music their entire lives.
Commissioners:
| Bellmont Middle School | Rachel Kesar |
| Classen SAS Middle School Band | Christiaan Osborn |
| Dauphin Jr. High School Band, Enterprise, AL | D. Justin Compton, Director |
| East Allen Community Youth Band (Ft. Wayne, IN) | Josh Rakoczy, Andrew McElhaney, Rachel Kesar |
| East Lansing Band | Erin Hill |
| Eastland ISD Bands, Eastland, TX | Cody Knott |
| Edmond P. Talbot Middle School | Brandon Chan |
| Eureka Middle School | Ben Wyland |
| Folly Quarter Middle School | Bentley Corbett-Wilson |
| Garrett Middle School | Josh Hettinger |
| Hinsdale Middle School | Meghan Fulton and George Andrikokus |
| Hopewell Middle School | Jessica Thomas |
| Liberty Middle School Bands (Spanaway, WA) | Tristan Roush |
| Lisbon Central School | Glenn Roberts |
| Lufkin Road Middle School Band | Ryan Wing |
| MacDonald Middle School Band | Holly Thornton |
| Needville Junior High School | Alex AsKew |
| Oklahoma City Public Schools Visual & Performing Arts Department | Christine Mueller |
| Osceola Middle School, Okeechobee, FL | Chris Bowen- Director of Bands |
| PEI Intermediate Honour Band 2026, Canada | Jason Caslor, guest conductor |
| Rhode Island Wind Ensemble | Robert Franzblau |
| Robinson Secondary School | Tiffany Hitz |
| The Brittany Hill Band Program of Blue Springs, Missouri | Matthew Willis |
| The Yale Concert Band | Thomas C. Duffy |
| União Filarmonica do Troviscal | Andre Granjo |
| University of Wisconsin Madison Bands | Scott Teeple |
| Wonewoc-Union Center Schools | Jacon Klingbeil |
Commissioned by: Consortium led by Rachel Kesar (full list below)
Dedicated to: Rachel Kesar
Technical Info
Electronics are triggered from an Ableton Live set, similar to several of my other works. I plan to eventually develop an iOS app as well, but for the time being, you’ll need a laptop with Ableton Live Demo (the free demo download will work even beyond the stated 30 days – no need to pay for it). In performance, there are several triggers (buttons) someone must press at specific times in the piece, and there are extra safety triggers for use in rehearsal, so that you may start at any rehearsal number.
FLUTE
OBOE
BASSOON
CLARINET in Bb
BASS CLARINET
ALTO SAXOPHONE
TENOR SAXOPHONE
BARITONE SAXOPHONE
TRUMPET in Bb
HORN in F
TROMBONE / BARITONE (TC part included)
TUBA
TIMPANI (optional)
PERCUSSION (minimum 2 players required):
1) Glockenspiel
2) Vibraphone (optional, but strongly preferred)
3) Tambourine (optional)
4) Suspended Cymbal (optional)
5) Bass Drum