Three Preludes
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Wind Band
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The composer as a young man, wanting to go somewhere.
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Music of Anticipation: Are we there yet?
Written for a more flexible (concert-band-y) line up of wind instruments, these are fun little 'overture' pieces that each playfully refuse to finish what they begin! Program note:
Mum and Dad used to wake us up before dawn when we went on family camping trips. The destination would be somewhere hundreds of kilometres away, like Broken Hill or Alice Springs, and we’d all get into the car, drive up the street, and pull into the local petrol station for a last minute tyre check. A voice would come from the back seat: “Are we there yet?”
Originally, a Prelude was meant to be a sign that pointed forwards to whatever came after it. It was an entrée at a fancy restaurant, a movie trailer at the cinema, a police motorbike at the Christmas pageant. You wanted it to be over. It was the voice from the back seat of the car: the Anticipation, not the Destination. But you know what they say these days. “It’s all about the journey.” Somewhere between Bach and Chopin, the Prelude lost its way and became a Destination in its own right. People started enjoying Preludes for what they were, not for what they pointed towards. Which is like stopping to admire a road sign that says “Alice Springs: 1503km”. These Three Preludes recapture the spirit of Anticipation. They never get to the point. They are an extended clearing of the throat. A relentlessly repeated “Are we there yet?” I hope there is something to play after them… © David John Lang 2014 The third of the Three Preludes was premiered in 2013 by the Band of the South Australia Police, conducted by David Polain. The full set was first performed in its entirety in 2014 by the Adelaide Wind Orchestra, conducted by the composer.
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