Riff Raff
for symphonic winds & percussion
Riff Raff was born out of a recently renewed interest in post-war jazz and big-band. The works of composers and arrangers like Kenton, Riddle, Graettinger, Ellington, and even the jazz-inspired sounds in some of Bernstein's symphonic music conjure up images (in my mind anyway) of the "urban rebel" found within mid-century American pop culture.
This idea of the brooding lone figure who forges through life on their own terms can be found in some of the fictional film characters played by James Dean and Marlon Brando or in the hard-boiled detectives and heroes within pulp novels and film noir. What I find interesting about these character's is the double-persona that they usually possess. On one hand they exude an über-cool toughness and an "I don't care what the world thinks" bravado. Yet internally there is often a conflicted and troubled soul in need of redemption.
This work was commissioned by the Consortium for the Advancement of Wind Band Literature and was premiered by the St. Charles East High School band, Jim Kull conducting, at Carnegie Hall NY in the Spring of 2012.
PDF copy of the score and parts will be watermarked with the purchasing ensemble or buyer’s name. Note that PDF scores are eligible for a single printing. If you need multiple scores for contests or clinics, then multiple hard copies of the score will need to be purchased. Parts can be printed out as needed to fit the personnel of the ensemble.
When you purchase Parts you are also purchasing a Site License. Like computer software a Site License grants the purchasing ensemble/institution unlimited future performances as long as it is the purchasing ensemble/institution that is performing it. I ask then that purchased materials are not shared or distributed with any 3rd parties. If you are a conductor of an ensemble who has purchased one of my pieces and you are planning on using that piece for an honor band (All-State, Region, etc) then the coordinator of that honors ensemble will need to purchase materials for that group as performance materials are not transferable to other groups.