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Fanfare for Brass and Percussion

(3 C Tpt, 4 Hn, 3 Tbn, Euph, Tba, Timp+3)

Completed in 2014

Duration: 3 Minutes

 

 

     Theodore Roosevelt is by far and away my favorite president. Suffering from severe asthma as a child, Teddy grew up to become the first major influential figure of the 20th century. He reshaped America’s foreign policy, called attention to the beauty and importance of nature and its conservation, read several books a day (in multiple languages) and authored over 35 of his own, was the first to dub the presidential residence the “White House”, and was the first American to receive the Nobel Peace Prize. Not to mention all of this while blind in one eye! (Boxing accident at the White House...)

     “To Dare Mighty Things” pays homage to Teddy’s incredible legacy by drawing inspiration from a line from Roosevelt’s popular 1899 speech, The Strenuous Life, "Far better it is to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs, even though checkered by failure, than to take rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy much nor suffer much, because they live in the gray twilight that knows neither victory nor defeat.” This sense of courageous action permeated Roosevelt’s existence and is an ideal I strive towards in my own life. The main tune of the piece utilizes the melodic contour of the national anthem as a subtle tribute to one of America’s greatest leaders, and the work’s unrelenting energy reflects the towering, indefatigable figure that was President Theodore Roosevelt. Bully! 

To Dare Mighty Things - MIDI
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To Dare Mighty THings

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