CONSPIRACY THEORIES

www.andrewdavidperkins.com

For Concert Band
Duration Approximately 6:00
Grade 4

The Traverse City State Hospital in Traverse City, Michigan (previously known as the Northern Michigan Asylum) is the last Kirkbride Building in the state. Completed in 1885, it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1978 and designated a Michigan State Historic Site in 1985. Dr. James Decker Munson was a firm believer in the "beauty is therapy" philosophy. Patients were treated through kindness, comfort, pleasure, and beautiful flowers provided year-round by the asylum's own greenhouses and the variety of trees Munson planted on the grounds. Restraints, such as the straitjacket, were forbidden. Also, as part of the "work is therapy" philosophy, the asylum provided opportunities for patients to gain a sense of purpose through farming, furniture construction, fruit canning, and other trades that kept the institution fully self-sufficient.

Changes in the law and mental health care philosophies brought on the decline of the institution, and it was closed in 1989. Over the next decade, the community struggled with plans for reuse of the hospital grounds, until 2000, when the Grand Traverse Commons Redevelopment Corporation secured an agreement to renovate the historic buildings. Their efforts have led to the gradual but successful preservation and re-use of the former Building 50 as part of The Village at Grand Traverse Commons, a residential and commercial development. The beautiful complex now houses condominiums, stores and shops, bakeries, art galleries and gourmet restaurants.

ASYLUM is a tone poem that that attempts to reflect the complex beauty, pain, and healing of both the people who lived and worked here, as well as the incredible architectural achievement of the Kirkbride building itself.

ASYLUM

NOBLE GASES is a set of six short works for Saxophone Choir, inspired by the six noble gases and their applications: 
Helium (He), Neon (Ne), Argon (Ar), Krypton (Kr), Xenon (Xe), and the radioactive Radon (Rn). Discovered by Sir William Ramsay, these inert chemical elements are extremely rare in nature and have numerous, important applications in science and technology. These short works can be performed as a suite, individually, or in any combination.

NOBLE GASES for Saxophone Quintet

Our dear friends Helene & Arnaud live in an adorable village northwest of Lyon called Villefrance-sur-Saône. It is beyond idyllic. Natalie & I make an effort to wander its ancient streets whenever we're invited to visit. In the summer of 2016, we made our way to the cathedral de Notre Dame Des Calades, and admired it's incredible beauty and stillness. To our good fortune, there was a pair of worshipers singing a gorgeous polyphonic chant, their voices reverberating through the otherwise empty church. I captured a few seconds on my phone before they finished, and while I was unable to identify the original melody, it has haunted me continuously.
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PRAYERS IN VILLEFRANCHE for full orchestra relives that sanctified moment, dislocated from time and space. It is dedicated to Helene & Arnaud, for their incredible hospitality and friendship.

PRAYERS IN VILLEFRANCHE (Full Orchestra version)

This is the preview track for my current commissioned work "GRADIENTS" for Concert Band. Grade 2.5, I'm currently accepting interested parties to join the commissioning consortium. Please contact me (andrewdavidperkins@mac.com) if you would like more info about joining the project!

Andrew Perkins's Album

GRADIENTS for Concert Band (Consortium Preview)

THE RAPTOR RIDES THE WHALE

RUSHLIGHT

Andrew David Perkins (ASCAP) World Premiere, November 29, 2018, BGSU Concert Band, Dr. Michael Thomas King, Conductor

UNTIL THE NIGHT COLLAPSES

CLUTCH. Fanfare for Concert Band. Coming soon...

CLUTCH. (preview)

This fragment of music has been floating around in my mind for decades, and I can't for the life of me remember who composed it, or what it is from. I made a little mockup in Logic that is my IMPRESSION of the piece, it may not be the right key, melody, orchestration, etc. but it's enough to share... anyone who can identify it, please do! I'll buy you a drink!

andrewdavidperkins

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