Aria for Winds: Concert Band Conductor Score

Glen Gillis transforms a deeply personal work (his daughter's birth gift) into a concert piece that brings genuine lyricism to the concert band medium. The Aeolian mode and hollow open 5th harmonies create an emotional landscape that feels both modern and timeless, giving your ensemble a chance to play something with real artistic substance rather than routine filler.

Sparse and introspective. Open fifths and Aeolian mode create a harmonic hollowness that feels neither major nor minor but instead suspended, contemplative. Colorful percussion textures drift through sustained wind writing, building an atmosphere that is both intimate and expansive.

Concert band directors seeking repertoire that challenges students musically and emotionally without extreme technical demands. This Grade 2 piece works for developing ensembles that can sustain tone and shape phrasing.

• Balance the haunting melodic lines carefully across sections so the primary theme remains luminous even when supported by sustained harmony.
• Attend closely to the percussion writing; those colors are integral to the piece's character and deserve rehearsal time equal to the wind parts.
• Explore the subtle dissonances with your ensemble so they land as intentional and poignant rather than sloppy, clarifying how they resolve or sit within the harmonic framework.

This works beautifully as a contest or festival selection where the emotional maturity of the piece impresses adjudicators and audiences alike. It also serves as an excellent bridge repertoire choice on concerts featuring heavier works, giving your program breathing room and variety.

• Sustaining tone quality within modal harmonies
• Balancing accompaniment parts with thematic material
• Interpreting and performing subtle dissonances with musicality
• Coordinating with percussion to create unified harmonic color