Projects
Christmas Tunes
Are YOU a band director? Looking for new arrangements for your band for Christmas? Tired of playing the same 2 tunes every year? Want to challenge your students? Then check out some of my new arrangements on SheetMusicPlus.com and HalLeonard.com! We’ve got intermediate to advanced tunes such as “Mele Kalikimaka” featuring your brass section and vocalist, as well as “You’re a mean one, Mr. Grinch.” to join your orchestra, jazz band, and vocalist together! Don’t care for Christmas tunes? There’s other stuff on there too! Check ‘em out! 🎄
Athena
I'm very grateful to Dr. Bodnar and the musicians of the University of North Florida for premiering my wind band piece "Athena"! While my husband and I were in Greece, we fell in love with the Greek culture, food, and mythology.
"Athena" is a musical snapshot of one of the most famous Ancient Greek Goddesses "Pallas Athena". Most notably known as the goddess of war and wisdom, this goddess was also seen as the protector of the city of Athens, the goddess of handicraft, as well as a protector over the women of Ancient Greece. The concept of this piece started as storytelling of the constellations, and later evolved into storytelling of the Grecian women and their relationships with the Goddess. This piece is an encapsulation of Greek legend and mythology explained in the form of selected phrasing, instrumental groupings, harmonic color choices, and extended technique. Many instruments are chosen as representations of characters and roles in the mythology being told. For example, The alto saxophone is the representation of ‘Athena’s companion and patron animal’, the owl, the bassoonists, and low reeds, representing the olive trees, the horn section, representing the horns of war, and the bass drum and timpani representing the heartbeat of the Grecian men of war, and the 10 fortissimo hits representing the estimated 10 years of the trojan war.
I would like to thank the people of Athens for their kindness and hospitality during the creation of this piece and emphasize the importance of history and preservation of literature. I would also like to thank Dr. Bodnar for her kindness and incredible mentorship and every single musician sitting upon this stage this evening for all of their hard work and dedication this semester, and am very grateful to have met all of you and see you excel further as our future educators and performers. I would also like to thank my family for supporting me through many sleepless nights of my composition career and their encouragement to continue writing music for you, the most important member of the ensemble, the audience.
This performance is the world premiere of this piece, and therefore I would like to dedicate this performance to a very important mentor from the University of New Mexico, Professor Eric Rombach-Kendall. We lost Professor Rombach in 2022 to a fatal heart attack. Professor Rombach-Kendall always encouraged my leadership and experimentation with repertoire, and always found the beauty in even the most avante garde pieces. My favorite memory of Professor Rombach as an undergraduate jazz student was when he would bring me into his office and ask me “So when are you going to double major in Music education?” “When are you going to come study with me?” “There’s jazz in music education!” We would laugh together and smile, but I believe he truly meant it. He believed that I could make a difference in the music education world by having tenacity and compassion for young musicians. I unfortunately never got to say goodbye to Professor Rombach-Kendall, as Covid-19 cheated many out of an in person graduation among many other things, so tonight will be my official goodbye to him. Therefore, tonight, I ask that you please keep his legacy alive and please support your local artists and composers by continuing to see the beauty in all music, even the most avante garde. Thank you.
Dr. Aaron Burr
Aaron Burr, a saxophonist and educator based in northern Arizona, advocates for student success and new music. He runs a thriving studio in Dallas and online, where his students excel in competitions and regional bands.
Aaron performs actively, collaborates with orchestras, and co-founded Duo Velox, focusing on new music commissions. He's a respected guest artist and clinician in the southwest, known for his masterclasses.
You can read all about Aaron here: https://www.aaronburrsaxophone.com/
As a new doctoral school graduate, he has commissioned Sarah Griego for his first saxophone concerto. Sarah is actively developing this modern concerto and the piece is set to be premiered in 2025.
I feel honored and blessed to have the opportunity to collaborate with the APO for their special concert, honoring and celebrating the great Dionne Warwick. She is truly an icon and influencer for women and minorities in music, setting the stage for my own opportunities in the industry. Thank you to Ms. Warwick, The APO, and Maestro Luke Frazier.
Founded in 2015, The American Pops Orchestra (APO) aims to build community by preserving and reimagining American popular music through live performances and educational initiatives. Under the leadership of Founder and Music Director Luke Frazier, APO challenges traditional orchestral repertoire by blending classical elements with contemporary programming, making orchestral music more accessible and engaging for diverse audiences.
