Brazilian Fanfare: PROGRAM NOTES BY THE COMPOSER
Composing a Brazilian orchestral work has been a very exciting experience for me. I was thrilled with the immense arsenal of possibilities that this entailed; but I was also a bit sceptical because I knew that it would be virtually impossible to incorporate all aspects of Brazilian music into one single piece. Brazil is a very young country with a very young history, but it is also the largest country in South America. Consequently, there is a great variety of cultures and sub-cultures within each little region. It would be extremely difficult to describe the many different styles and genres that make up the music of Brazil.

Still...I wanted Brazilian Fanfare to comprise as many of these elements as possible, por- traying a portion of every region as a caricature; while focusing on the joyful, light, humorous and warm aspect of this country because this is how most people relate to Brazil. I also wanted this work to be easily recognizable as 'Brazilian' without having to write a 'bossa nova' section in the middle!

This piece uses the most commonly known Brazilian rhythms in their raw form. There are at least as many as five and they all come from different origins within Brazil. For example, the Olo- dum from Bahia, the Samba from Rio de Janeiro, Chorinho from Sao Paulo, Baiao from the North- east part of the country, as well as some other rhythms that may be derivative of those regions or variations on the rhythms themselves.

This work is not, however, based solely on the rhythms and regions of Brazil. It also has the tendency to "time travel" throughout the years of Brazilian styles comprising elements from early Brazilian music of the 17th century ( slow/waltz )to the more recent trends.

There exists a few definitions of the word Fanfare. One is... a brief ceremonial piece of music normally played solely by the brass family of instruments. A Fanfare is also known to be played as an introduction to something or someone of certain importance. And lastly, Fanfares have been traditionally pretty loud selections practically screaming for attention. To that effect, this piece con- tains solid use of the winds and brass as it definitely makes its statement in a loud, clear and hu- morous way. It was my wish that Brazilian Fanfare showcase a little bit of all of these definitions... introducing the listener to many different styles and genres of Brazilian music.