Brandon Nelson
IMAGO DEI
Category: Compositions
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I normally don’t enter competitions, but this one piqued my attention. The Duluth-Superior Symphony Orchestra announced a young composer’s prize and I, being from the same region as Duluth, thought I’d give it a shot. My piece ended up winning and they performed it twice–at the premier and at a concert about a year later.…
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Commissioned by the Gwinn High School Jazz Band (Gwinn, MI), this is a colorful, dramatic setting of Silent Night. With this project, I wanted to compose something “outside the box” for a holiday tune–really see where I could go with jazz expression. The students and audience alike seemed to really appreciate it and I hope…
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A contemplative contemporary alleluia with rich, engaging harmonies and peaceful flow. Perfect for church or concert settings. Get the music here!
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I wrote this piece for my three children. Watching them fall asleep is still a very special time (even as they get older) and I wanted to convey gentleness and a gradual slip into slumber with this music. Technically, the piece makes use of a synthetic pentatonic scale and it’s “modes.” It’s essentially in three…
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El Malei Rachamim (God full of compassion) is a Jewish prayer for the departed that is recited at funeral services, on visiting the graves of relatives (especially during the holy month of Elul), and after having been called up to the reading of the Torah on the anniversary of the death of a close relative.…
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Finding inspiration from traditional Japanese mythology, I explore and illustrate the concept of “wind” from varying perspectives in this piece (from calm breezes to turbulent storms). In addition, the piece uses a Japanese folk tune as the musical basis for the variations. Get the music here!
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I wrote this piece as a gift for a friend of mine and a fellow horn player who went into the U.S. Peace Corps. In order to commemorate her service, I decided to write a fantasia using a North African folk tune (Kadria aârak) as the principle material. While writing I made it one of…
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Dramatic and colorful, this piece (which features a trumpet soloist with flute, clarinet, violin, viola, cello, and piano) will add a distinctive flare to any performance occasion. The industrial structures of the Quincy Mine have loomed over Michigan’s Copper Country since 1846 – imposing, evocative, even hauntingly beautiful, especially as the sun sets on the…
Brandon Nelson 