virtual arrangement for strings
Originally, Commencement was composed for a trombone choir in 2002, and later arranged as a wind ensemble piece soon after. The piece was specifically composed to be used for a commencement ceremony of some type, and even the form and design of the piece would allow repeated sections to fill the duration of graduation candidates as they received their diplomas and awards (much like Elgar’s Pomp and Circumstance which was a great influence for this piece). The piece is very tonal and direct, and sets a majestic mood for the purposed event.
In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted the world as countries all around the globe closed down and went into quarantine – changing people’s lives like never before. Among those changes was all of the schools and learning institutions that suddenly had to migrate from in-person attendance to virtual online learning. This migration to virtual learning would also affect all students who were to graduate that year – as a result, virtual graduations became the norm around the world.
The opportunity to turn my previous piece into a virtual string composition presented itself when Lone Star College at University Park (in Houston, Texas) was planning their 2020 virtual graduation. The college accepted my offer for using my piece (seeing it was a fitting option for original music – rather than using the Elgar’s standard piece) and it was broadcast online on May 28, 2020 over the featured names and faces of the school’s graduates.
The original version of Commencement (for trombone choir) was a Winner of one of two prizes in the Penn State University College of Arts and Architecture’s Competition for Two Commencement Marches for the Penn State University Trombone Choir.