Ensemble Type: Jazz Orchestra
Grade Level: 4.5
Solos: Trombone 1, Alto Sax 1, Piano (notated) Changes in Alto 1, Tenor 1, Trumpet 2
Duration: 8:40
Price: Free, Courtesy of the University of Saskatchewan
Description:
Scenes of a Plains Peoples is a piece commissioned by the University of Saskatchewan in 2017 to commemorate both the 150th bicentenary of Canada, and the 110th Anniversary of the University of Saskatchewan. This piece is a celebration of the land, and of the different peoples that have inhabited it.
The first movement, The Hunters Where Lillies Grow for Wind Orchestra, offers a glimpse of the land ten thousand years ago, when hunters chased their prey among the tiger lilies. The second movement, The Horsemen Where Rivers Join for Choir, is a retelling of a famous horse race between the Cree and Blackfoot at the forks of the North Saskatchewan and Battle rivers over one hundred years ago.
The third and final movement, The Fiddlers Where Greystones Stand for Jazzn Orchestra, brings us to present day, the Greystones representing the the University of Saskatchewan, a place where the multi-faceted history of this land can be protected and shared.