Symphony No. 1 (In Memoriam Dresden, 1945)

[jarhead9887]

This piece of music is so moving! Although very dissonant and sometime makes my eyes twitch with the tone clusters Bukvich uses. The final movement always brings me to tears. I can almost picture the city of Dresden being obliterated by flames and smoke- and the single flute at the end is supposed to sound like a person moaning in pain. It's a very touching piece of music that I will always find to be brilliantly written, even though it is quite experimental.

[lillysperson]

is there a bassoon solo?

[usaa300]

@lillysperson There are two :) I get to play o :D

[frizz148]

ive played this year and the trumpet solo around 2:25 was a pain to play cuz the constant change in embochure

[hfontaine8]

The whistling still sends chills up my spine. whenever anyone whistles like that, this piece is all I think of and I get the creeps.

[hfontaine8]

I remember the day that my band directors sat us in the auditorium to hear an amazing recording of this full blast. I was 15 & was in tears by the end. We worked on the 1st 3 movements for a long time before we moved onto the 4th, & they played it for the 1st time @ a night rehearsal I didn't make it to. The next day in school, they started the 4th movement, and hearing the sounds surrounding me brought me to full fledged sobbing mode, I could not even participate. Still brings tears to my eyes.

[LadyeXo]

This is the piece that showed me how much I hate war. When we did it with the band at UGA, the recording was so beautiful, so /realistic/ I was shocked by the end of the fourth movement.

[DemonDrummerZukaZ]

Turns out after further discussion with my old band members and rewatching a video from the performance I was wrong, the screaming chord I heard during their performance was actually screams, but they all screamed at once and in the dark I thought it was their instruments at triple-forte playing some creepy chord. It was intense X_X

[DemonDrummerZukaZ]

I'm so confused, I never played this, I graduated HS the year before my HS band played this but I went to their concert. Their was an intentionally sinister/hideous chord played by the band during the bombing that just MADE the moment when my old band performed this. It upsets me that it wasn't in this performance. I don't know if it was in the score but it definitely fit the intensity and the horror of the moment. (continued in next message)

[DemonDrummerZukaZ]

@DemonDrummerZukaZ (myself) Also, my band turned off the stage and audience lights during the bombing and had bass drums positioned around and behind the audience for a surrounding effect. While the percussionists simulated the bombs being dropped the crew controlling the lights flashed white lights simulating a night-time bomb explosion. The conductor warned the audience before he started the performance but it really made the performance hit home. He conducted the chord w/ a light-up baton.

[DemonDrummerZukaZ]

@DemonDrummerZukaZ As a final note, this performance was outstanding. I just have witnessed a different ending. Thanks very much for posting, if I find a video taken from that night's performance I will post it for any who are curious to what I was talking about. :)

[calvindef1]

This piece, although very hectic, has become one of my favorites. We're playing it in our class, and I'm the only bassoon, so I play a lot of the time, which also contributes to my liking of it(:

Our conductor is also adding light effects to it which makes it even more haunting. The one thing that I truly adore about this piece is the lone Middle C played by a flute at the end. Every time, no matter when we play it, it sends a shiver through my spine....

[hfontaine8]

@calvindef1, I played this in my sophomore year of high school in spring of '07 I believe, and I never fully appreciated the flute's C at the end until I listened to this again today. So haunting.

[lindenlindenlinden]

Chills every time I hear this piece

[magicalfaeriechick]

I played this piece in high school! It was such a fun piece to play! :) Bukvich is my favorite composer of all time. He is also a really amazing person in real life. If you ever get the chance to speak with him you all should. He's a genius. He composed a piece for my high school that would blow your little minds! :)

[doghipoop]

My band director said once of his past bands played this and he got with the light director person so that the lights would be flickering and changing colors with the music. Apparently, people started crying and screaming.

[KarenTheRetroHippie]

I played this with my college symphonic band...I was the "sobbing" woman at the end of the 4th movement. I can't listen to this without emotionally reacting. My heart starts racing when I hear bassoons play a low C anymore....

[somethinglikeaparty]

the high school band i'm in played this tonight at our concert.

we weren't going to do it because people were afraid to scream so it was kind of a shot in the dark.

when we did it my heart started beating really fast and i started shaking because it was so believable.

definately life changing.

[mistalovalova10]

last year we played the same arrangement, but in the 4th movement we switched the light off and we got a siren...it was so scary some people started cryin! It was unbelievable

[aquarius036]

Ok I read through this music with my band today for the furst time yesterday but I had not heard a recording of it (my teacher forgot his). After hearing this, I am a little disappointed... there was hardy any yelling, and the Fire-Storm movement didn't sound very scary. But maybe it would be different if I had been in the audience listening to this?

[drummer4422]

This piece certainly works well as a recollection of the events of the Dresden bombing, yet, it doesn't work as a stand-alone piece of music. We're playing it for our band and unless everybody in the audience is thinking on the same level in terms of the music's story then it just sounds like a bunch of noise. Babies are going to be crying, parents are going to get headaches, etc. It doesn't make any sense for a concert band piece.

Nontheless, you guys played it excellently. Good job!

[InterrobangMusique]

@drummer4422 My school is currently playing it and we're making it more of a performance piece...

We'll be projecting old news reels about the bombing of Dresden, the bass drums will be up in the catwalk of our auditorium, and it will be played entirely in the dark, save for our standlights. And as it ends, we'll all stagger and shut off our standlights. And immediately after the piece ends, we are going into Amazing Grace.

I think it can work if done in a different way.

[drummer4422]

@InterrobangMusique Yeah, it can. Having the audience be able to focus on the event with the music as a supplement is the way it should be played. It does work as a concert band piece in that light, I just wish we could be doing it the same way because it's definitely an interesting piece that will push our band's skill level in different styles.

Props to the person who came up with the interesting and effective add-ons to the piece though, you should have it recorded and put on youtube.

[Padoinkle1]

@InterrobangMusique Awesome idea with the drums above the audience. My band tis playing this song too, and I'm very excited to play it!

[drummaboy2346]

Fantastic peice

[MisplacedBoxes]

Such an EPIC piece!!!!! I LOVE Firestorm. This was my favorite piece to perform . Ever.

[VAW666]

i played this as a junior in high school in a little town in Minnesota and by far it was one of my strongest memories and still keeps me routed in classical music. when we dispersed our percussion section amongst the audience and when they simulated the bomb blasts in the 4 movement and we heard and saw the effect. and if anyone from SRRHS class of 05 please let your comments on this piece

[jpulate1]

I PLAYED THIS IN HIGH SCHOOL MANY YEARS AGO AND I LOVE THE DISSONANCE WITHIN THE CHORDS AND SEEDS IN THE WINDS IS CRAZY LOVE THIS PIECE

[Blashyrkh22]

Truly haunting melodies at 3:11 through 5:14. I believe that is Movement III

[pedrocks1312]

i hear lots of energy.... but for a piece as hectic as this, tuning has to be precise!! tune please!!! other than that... GOOD performance!!

[pleasemugmeimdumb]

Wow... I can only hope our school band can play it as well as this...

[DucksAndLlamas]

Hilfe = Help

[marianmackenzie12]

thank you for posting this and the band does a really nice job too! we played this in HS 3 years ago now with the drums spread out in the auditorium...no one clapped, no one made a sound...it was definitely a moving moment. I think we played a hymn after it because it's not one of those pieces you can just play Grainger or Gershwin afterwords.

[RandomanProductions5]

If I had to play this song in band class I don't think I would be able to handle it. I would probably be the one in the 4th movement, where everyone is screaming, being the only person that's just sitting there not doing anything... just starring into the distance. Just a question... what are the people in the last movement saying? (not the people screaming)

[foxprincessaileen]

German words for help, fire, and... I can't remember... fire raid?

[Padoinkle1]

@foxprincessaileen feur= fire, hilfe=help, and feursturm= firestorm (which was the third word) :)

[KamikazeEmo1331]

I played this song two days ago. I loved it. it was so emotional. I really wanted to cry while i played. To think what those people went through... But i think its a wonderful piece, I love all of Bukvichs work

[t0cableguy]

I participated in this arrangement in my high school band and it was great. We even had a power outage that went with the end of the song during one of our performances. And as for you not having but 3 notes, maybe you should deal with it, because I got a very ample part when most the parts in other arrangements had to play involved playing under some "more important" section. Sometimes you get great parts, and sometimes you have to sit back and allow other sections to take the glory.

[SWgoalie09]

exactly what is the base concept of musicianship?? maybe it's your base concept of musicianship...maybe the western culture's base of music...you forget where in the world this took place and where it was written, a person from asia or a person from europe has a total different "base of musicality"...it is because of this that I embrace music like this...it's not everyday you get to hear and play music as unique as this

[APJleader]

the type of song that you dont clap and cheer for at the end...

[Tswizzle10]

District IV in Louisiana if so i was in the band and this song was really fun to play but also depressing knokwing the story

[haggman7]

My high school band played this about 6 years ago, it was pretty sweet, they set drums all around the gym they were playing in. We are now learning this to play it this year. Its going to be sweet.

[etstop1]

It gets pretty disturbing at the end, I was at a concert recently, and they set up massive drums around the audience and absolutely WHALED on them. It was deafening and with the screaming and such it felt like you were under attack. Truly disturbing, but amazing as well because it is real.

[whsbandnerd2011]

This is my band a my freshman year!!!!!!

They did a wonderful job and made a lot of people cry because it was so emotional.

I miss these guys...

[PTStylin58]

I got the chance to perform this back in the mid 90's at Mt. Eden High School. This is the first time I have heard it being played since. Great job. What a powerful piece of music.

[thetrumpetscall]

trumpets--not so good in this one.

[bassgirl14]

Goosebumps O_O

[Vicky11294]

My band did this song and it was soooo much fun you guys did a great job it sounded fantastic :D

[OrangeFreak1394]

wow im speechless its that awesome!!!!!!!!

[TheSchwhoaShow]

I'm in love with this piece. So much emotion... Inspirational.

I love the sudden transition for the solemn portion of the song (the third movement) to the "Fire Storm" sequence at 5:15.

[MCR216AFI]

the solemn portion was the Ave Maria.

sort of a prayer for help.

we played this song, and it was so hard not to cry!

[dxarmy94]

A pretty chilling song.

[TigerlilyBLGM]

Back in '04 our band got to perform this at Boston Symphony Hall..... Was pretty cool!!!

I notice they did something different at the end. When they were shouting, they had people screaming as well...... What we did was start shouting and then wait till the very end and then 1 person screamed leading it to silence.

Gives you chills

[TheyGrewAgain]

my school band did this for there last consert, the aduance was just sitting in silence for almost a minn after the end

[axeinthehead14]

i love this song