Sasparilla (2005)
for wind ensemble
duration: 8'30"
Commissioned by Lamar University; California State University Stanislaus; Emory University; Florida State University; University of Kansas; Louisiana State University; and Michigan State University.
Consortium organized by Scott Weiss of Lamar University.
World premiere on April 17, 2005, at Lamar University, conducted by Scott Weiss.
This work -- my first original, non-transcribed piece for wind ensemble -- tells the story of an Old West saloon. "Sasparilla" (that's the slangified spelling) used to be a liquor, but now it's essentially a type of root beer. As you listen to "Sasparilla," imagine Bugs Bunny in 1860, somewhere out West, getting drunk, riding to Mexico on horseback, and getting into trouble.