Rise to the Occasion (2021, rev. 2023)
for Orchestra
Composed August 2021, rev. January 2023
8 Minutes
Instrumentation: 2 Flutes, 2 Oboes, 2 Clarinets, Bass Clarinet, 2 Bassoons, 4 Horns, 3 Trumpets, 3 Trombones, Tuba, Timpani, 3 Percussion, Harp, Strings
Percussion 1: Glockenspiel, Vibraphone
Percussion 2: Triangle, Suspended/Crash Cymbal
Percussion 3: Bass Drum, Tam-tam
Premiere: Greater Dallas Youth Orchestra; the composer conducting – October 17, 2021
Subsequent performances:
Manhattan School of Music Philharmonia; George Manahan conducting - September 22, 2022
Springfield Symphony Orchestra; Kevin Scott conducting - January 14, 2023
Chattanooga Symphony and Chattanooga Youth Orchestra; Ismael Sandoval conducting - February 27, 2023
Maryland Symphony Orchestra; Elizabeth Schulze conducting - July 1, 2023
Portland Symphony Orchestra; Conner Gray Covington conducting - January 21, 2024
WorldStrides National Youth Symphony Orchestra; Dr. Jason Noble conducting - February 10, 2024 (Carnegie Hall Debut)
Program Note:
When one “Rises to the Occasion”, they face a challenge right on and overcome it successfully, doing good work in the process. This is a piece that is both celebratory and festive, yet thoughtful and occasionally introspective. The jovial mood is established from the start, and it finds its way through these different moods in order to maintain that feeling. The piece is, in a sense, rising to the challenge of keeping the musical material fresh throughout.
It is dedicated with gratitude to Richard Giangiulio, music director of the Greater Dallas Youth Orchestra, who I had the honor of apprenticing under as a conductor during 2019-2020 and who is a great example of someone who rose to the occasion with his successful building of the youth orchestra and inspiring of many generations of musicians. “Mr. G” (as he is affectionately called by his students) likes to refer to himself as a “music educator with a baton”, but the quality of work he has done shows him to be more than that; I personally refer to him as one of the best teachers anyone could ask for.
-Quinn Mason