Drive!
Doug Opel
About this work:
I quickly grew to appreciate the atmosphere and character of Fort Wayne after moving here in late 1999. So when Anna Ross approached me in the summer of 2004 about writing a piece for the Fort Wayne Philharmonic, I felt it was only appropriate that I try to capture some of what I like best about/encounter most in Fort Wayne for the piece that ultimately became Drive! For the brainstorming portion of the composition process, I conjured several images and derived from them the following observations (some with tongue-in-cheek!):
1. Fort Wayne has many nicknames, but the most widely recognized seems to be "City of Churches".
2. In Fort Wayne, virtually any occasion for which public crowds gather is inevitably deemed special enough to require fireworks.
3. Like most towns in Indiana and throughout the Midwest, Fort Wayne has grown geographically outward more than upward. Given this continued growth, owning a car is not only a must, but a passion for most Fort Wayne citizens. . . a love for actually driving however, is optional.
Initially, I had given Drive! the longer title "Driving thru the moonglow in a City of Churches. . .with fireworks" in the hope that this would give audiences all the information needed to discover the various ways I chose to realize Fort Wayne in musical terms: rush hour on Coliseum Blvd; the steeples of the downtown area; the moonlight over Foster Park and the sky lighting up in celebration of New Years Eve, the 4th of July, the Three Rivers Festival, baseball games, etc. Ultimately however, I opted for the briefer title for practical reasons (after all, thats what program notes are for!).
My eternal gratitude to Anna Ross, the Fort Wayne alumnae of Sigma Alpha Iota, Bradley Thachuk, Deb Welter and the musicians of the Fort Wayne Philharmonic for making this opportunity possible.
Version: Chamber Orchestra
Year composed: 2005
Duration: 00:11:00
Ensemble type: Orchestra:Chamber Orchestra
Instrumentation: 3 Flute, 2 Oboe, 2 Clarinet, 2 Bassoon, 3 Horn in F, 2 Trumpet, 1 Trombone, 1 Bass Trombone, 1 Tuba, 1 Timpani, 2 Percussion (General), 1 Piano, 1 Strings (General), 1 Harp
Instrumentation notes: 3rd flute doubling piccolo, double bass with c-extension preferred