Over the last couple of years I have encountered a number of exceptionally brief pieces. Some of the shortest are a series of small pieces, usually for two to three like instruments, by Igor Stravinsky. At least two of these are fanfares. The challenge of writing an extremely small, but still musically satisfying piece interests me. I have endeavored to write just this with the following fanfares. Though they are too short to perform alone, it is my hope that they might serve as a sort of sonic appetizer, introducing a larger concert program. The fanfare for two trombones owes an additional debt to Samuel Barber, whose essays for orchestra inspired some of the rhythmic and contrapuntal ideas, and the first of the two trumpet fanfares likewise harks to a fanfare by Benjamin Britten for three natural trumpets in three different keys.

More recently, at the request of a local trumpet instructor, I have attempted to expand a bit on these ideas, writing a more substantial, though still short and hopefully fairly simple, piece for a number of like instruments. In this case, a fanfare and fugue for four trumpets, which I have since rescored for brass quintet. The quintet recording, included below, features John Perkins and Alex Pickard on trumpet, Bruce Gordon on horn, and Dan Witter and Todd Yatsook on trombone.

Fanfare for Two Trombones and here is the score

Fanfare 1 for Two Trumpets score

Fanfare 2 for Two Trumpets score

Fanfare and Fugue for Four Trumpets score

and the above for Brass Quintet score