Swirling Prisms: String Bass
By Brian Balmages
Grade: 4
Item: 98-PC-DB1694_SB
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Description
This innovative work uses astonishing colors to convey the abstract concept of optical prisms spinning freely in space while reflecting light in numerous directions. With a strong nod toward Impressionism, the music has a significant focus on harmony, texture and orchestration. Inspiring, and unlike anything this composer has ever done.
Don't just read it, hear it, play along with it, and watch your students grow with it. In MakeMusic Cloud, Swirling Prisms: String Bass comes alive with professional accompaniment, adjustable tempo, and built-in practice tools that turn solo practice into real progress.
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Additional Details
Series:
FJH Symphonic Band
Publisher:
The FJH Music Company, Inc.
SKU:
98-PC-DB1694_SB
More about this title
About the Composer: Brian Balmages
Brian Balmages has established himself as a composer and conductor commanding equal respect across orchestral, band, and chamber music circles. His works have reached audiences at Carnegie Hall, the Kennedy Center, Sydney Opera House, and Toronto Centre for the Arts, performed by ensembles ranging from professional orchestras to school groups. He holds membership in the American Bandmasters Association, received the A. Austin Harding Award from the American School Band Directors Association, and won the 2020 NBA William D. Revelli Composition Contest for Love and Light.
As a guest conductor, Balmages regularly leads all-state and regional ensembles, university groups, and professional orchestras worldwide, appearing at the Midwest Clinic, Western International Band Clinic, and numerous international venues. He earned the inaugural James Madison University Distinguished Alumni Award and was commissioned by the University of Miami to compose for the presidential inauguration of Dr. Julio Frenk. His music has been performed at the 2013 Presidential Inaugural Prayer Service. Balmages currently serves as Director of MakeMusic Publications and Digital Education for Alfred and MakeMusic.
Why we love this
Balmages takes a genuinely novel approach here: instead of relying on his proven strengths in energetic, driving band writing, he commits fully to impressionistic color and harmonic sophistication. The result is a Grade 4 piece that treats texture and orchestration as the main narrative, challenging your section leaders to listen and balance rather than simply play their parts. It programs beautifully on a concert where you want to show your ensemble's maturity and sophistication.
What to expect
Swirling Prisms evokes the sensation of light fragmenting and refracting as it moves through glass. The harmonic language shimmers rather than progresses; instrumental colors dissolve and re-emerge like light shifting across a turning prism. The overall effect is contemplative and visually immersive, painting an abstract image through pure orchestration.
Who it's for
Grade 4 concert bands seeking a sophisticated, competition-ready work that expands their palette beyond traditional march and chorale forms. This piece suits ensembles with solid fundamentals who are ready to tackle impressionistic scoring and nuanced balance.
How to get the most out of it
- Balance the texture constantly; this work lives in the interplay of colors rather than bold melodic lines. Encourage your ensemble to listen across sections and adjust dynamics to reveal the harmonic movement beneath.
- Lean into the Impressionistic language by softening attacks on sustained harmony and letting resonance bloom. A dry, overstated approach will flatten the optical effect the composer intends.
- Resist the urge to overstate any single voice. Even when a section carries the primary material, it should sit within the overall harmonic wash rather than cutting through it.
- Take time in rehearsal to discuss the extra-musical concept. When students understand they are conveying light refracted through spinning prisms, their approach to phrasing, color, and ensemble balance shifts meaningfully.
How to use it
Position this as a centerpiece on a concert focused on modern concert band literature or as the sophisticated anchor in a program that mixes traditional and contemporary works. Its impressionistic character and competition credentials make it equally at home in a festival setting or a concert hall program seeking to showcase artistic depth.
Skills your students will build
- Listening and balance in impressionistic textures
- Harmonic awareness and resonance control
- Color differentiation across instrument families
- Sustained ensemble cohesion without a dominant melodic line
- Soft attack and blended articulation in a modern idiom