Andrew Pease (b. 1979) got his start as a composer writing rock songs in high school, and he has written and arranged for wind bands and chamber groups ever since. In his day job, he serves as Associate Professor of Music and Director of Instrumental Music at Hartwick College in Oneonta, NY, where he leads the Wind Ensemble and Brass Ensemble. He is also co-conductor of the Catskill Valley Wind Ensemble, a community band also based in Oneonta. His guest conducting work has taken him to several states and the UK, and he has presented nationally and internationally on topics in the wind band field. He studied music and music education at Dartmouth College, Columbia University Teachers College, and Hofstra University. He completed doctoral studies in wind conducting at Arizona State University, studying with Gary Hill. His work there earned him the 2017 American Prize in Collegiate Wind Band Conducting. He started his career in New York City, where he was music director of the Columbia University Wind Ensemble and the community band Columbia Summer Winds (now Manhattan Summer Winds). Throughout his varied career, he has directed players of all ages and ability levels, from elementary beginning band to adult amateurs to professional ensembles. His latest compositions appear at his personal website, www.andypease.com. He also runs two websites dedicated to wind bands. Wind Band Literature (windliterature.org) is a repertoire resource for bands around the world. The Wind Band Symphony Archive (windsymphonies.org) is a dynamic archive of symphonies for wind band.
Me again! I’m taking my Three Reflections suite and creating a separate page for each movement, since they really do stand alone. Adventures and Hijinx is the sunny opener. My program notes say more:
“Adventures and Hijinx” is the opening movement of Three Reflections, a suite of three movements, each written around the same musical theme. While there is no specific program or story behind this music, each movement is its own self-contained character piece, each capturing a moment from this chapter of my life.
“Adventures and Hijinx” begins contemplative, but quickly becomes more restless, ending its first half with a sense of uncertainty and optimism. The second half explores from there, introducing a pair of contrapuntal melodies that dance around each other, combining eventually with the main theme for a big celebration. (Meanwhile, Vincent Persichetti winks at us from the beyond.)
The Catskill Valley Wind Ensemble performed the premiere on November 23, 2025, with me conducting. You can follow along in the score while you listen:
This piece ended up being an accidental tribute to trio of midcentury composers whose music I love and can’t help but emulate. Although I gave Persichetti the most prominent name-drop in the program notes, the piece really owes the most to William Schuman’s Chester:
Broadly speaking, both pieces begin with a double chorale which includes a sensible key change that also changes instrumentation. They then both turn speedy, texturally spare, and thematically fragmented, leading to a big finish. So, thank you, William Schuman, for the inspiration! The details are wildly different though, with Adventures and Hijinx using two primary original themes to Chester‘s single hymntune. This form also broadly mirrors a couple of Persichetti’s pieces, notably Pageant. But I felt most inspired by the final movement of his Symphony no. 6:
In addition, Clifton Williams crept in, particularly in the sort of false climax that closes the slower section, mirroring the opening of his Symphonic Suite:
I was also thinking about Johann Sebastian Bach, particularly towards the beginning of the fast section as we introduce some counterpoint. It never rose to the level of a fugue, but I definitely had fun moving a subject and countersubject of sorts through some key and instrument changes:
I should be clear that I never really openly intend to mimic this other music. But it is music that I love, so it comes out sometimes. I’m sure there are other influences to be found in here!