The History of the Universe

General Info

Instrumentation: Wind Band

Duration: 3 min.

Grade: 4

Year Composed: 2024

More like this: Atlantic for Wind Ensemble, The Remains for Chamber Winds + Percussion Ensemble, Sankofa for Wind Ensemble

Program Notes

This is the first piece written for “History of Something in 3 minutes” series. The History of the Universe starts off with a pretty literal big bang, and then stays for as long as it can in the realm of hot and dense atoms bumping into each other. After that, the music is all about expansion. Intervals get bigger and bigger and the randomness gradually organizes itself into recognizable rhythms and motifs. The melody in the brass at the very end is simply an interval that widens further and further up to the last note. I purposefully did not end this piece with a resolved chord, as the history of the universe is not over yet.

View Full Program Notes for Instrumentation with 6 Percussionists.

View Full Program Notes for Instrumentation with 4 Percussionists.

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