Travis J. Weller

Now available at C.L. Barnhouse, check out Siege of the Dark Castle from the Rising Band Series. It is programmatic work with a 3 part fugue that was commissioned by the East Stroudsburg North 5th Grade Band. Lots of good choices out there I know, but consider this piece in your music selections next year!

My thanks to Tad Greig and the Westminster College Wind Ensemble for their recording of “Rising Winds from the Valley”. The piece written for the Seneca Valley Freshmen Concert Band debuts tonight under the direction of good friends and colleagues Varden Armstrong and Bob Matchett.  The piece is now available from Bandworks, alongside great music from Patrick J. Burns and Chris Bernotas!

I am very pleased to have received an Editor’s Choice for “Festival and Ballade for Winds”, a piece I wrote for the 2009 Pittsburgh Diocesan Honor Band.  A recording should be up in the coming weeks at Wingert-Jones. Other new works coming this summer include “Moravian Dance” and “A West Highland Fanfare” from FJH, and “Siege of the Dark Castle” from Barnhouse.

It was a great day yesterday at Marion Center with the PMEA District 3 Junior High Honor Band. I was able to share some good music with a great bunch of students and directors – including “Supsended Animation” (Patrick Burns), “Marching Song” (Holst), and the world debut of “For the Love a Soldier”.  The 6th Grade Honor Band was under the direction of friend and colleague Mike Grady – it was great catching up with him and hearing the debut of his “Gift for Band”.

Be sure to bump on over to Travis J. Weller on myspace to hear the PMEA District 5 Band recording of “Moravian Dance”.  Jack Anderson did a great job with the band, and I am so proud of the students for what they did with the music.  The piece will be available from FJH this summer.

I am honored to have “Moravian Dance” make its world debut on Friday, February 11, 2011 by the students in the PMEA District 5 Band.  Being an educator in this district and having worked alongside their directors (many whom are great friends and colleagues) I am eagerly looking forward to their performance.  There are many fine directors in this district and I know their students are up to the challenge of this program.  Mr. Jack Anderson is the guest conductor, and Steve Garay, Jim Scanga, and Donnie White are the on-site hosts for the event.  I am indebted to these gentlemen for asking me to write a piece to be debuted at the festival, and their long-time support and friendship is a blessing each day.

I am pleased to announce that two new pieces are available for preview at FJH Music.  The first is a piece for middle school/junior high band entitled “Tales of A Medieval Warrior”.  It is a three movement work full of brash fanfares, opportunities for small chamber groups within the ensemble, and a thundering conclusion portraying a joust!  The second piece is a transcription of a piece I originally wrote for the River City Youth Brass Band.  “A Frontier Fought and A City Found” chronicles the final capture of “The Point” in Pittsburgh by British Forces during the Seven Years War.  On the FJH Site you are able to preview the score while listening to the recordings by The Washington Winds.  As always, thank you for your support of this music, and I hope it can a wonderful musical experience for directors, students, and audiences alike!