Wisconsin native Erika Svanoe (b. 1976) is a conductor and composer with several engaging and eclectic works to her name. Her piece The Haunted Carousel won the NBA Young Band Composition Contest in 2014, and her Steampunk Suite for band has appeared everywhere from Wisconsin Public Radio to the American Bandmasters Association conference. After undergraduate studies in Music Education and clarinet at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire, she studied conducting at Oklahoma State University and The Ohio State University. After a spell conducting the Augsburg University Wind Symphony in Minneapolis, Minnesota, she is now a full-time composer. She is also an avid gamer and game designer. Learn more about her at her website and Board Game Geek. She has also been interviewed by her alma mater.
Svanoe wrote Ascendant in 2025 for the 50th anniversary of the McHenry County Honor Band in Illinois. Her program notes reveal a circuitous route to her eventual title:
Ascendant was composed for the 50th anniversary of the McHenry County Honor Band. The term “ascendant” means increasingly successful or powerful. In astrology, the term is also known as the “rising sign.” The piece was titled after the music was completed and isn’t inspired by either of these definitions or ideas. However, the word “Ascendant” still somehow seems to reflect the feeling the piece brings to me.
Despite the title coming after the music, she has leaned into its meanings and associations on her score, which features stylized hot air balloons on the cover. Follow along as you listen to the premiere, which features Svanoe’s opening remarks as she also conducts:
See more about Ascendant at Svanoe’s website.