Spring
Randall Standridge
Grade: 1
2021

Program Notes:
"I love the season. I love the way they mark our lives and provide different context and emotions throughout the year. Spring, to me, is a season of new beginnings and rebirth. Today, the day I am writing this, is March 14th, 2021, and I feel a sense of renewed hope and optimism, as our world finds its way out of the darkness of the previous year.
Spring paints a portrait of a field of wildflowers gently swaying in the Spring winds as a storm rolls across the sky, bringing rain. The gently rising and falling of dynamics represents the stems of the flowers rising and bending in the wake of the storm, crying soft tears of joy onto the rich earth below. The audience will hear the gentle rumble of thunder in the distance and drops of rain portrayed by the percussion, piano, and snapping fingers of the ensemble.
This work also represents a challenge I wanted to undertake, that of writing a work that strictly used 6 pitches (typically the first 6 pitches beginning band students are taught) and creating something expressive, artistic, and colorful. My hope is that this work will serve as a vehicle for developing musicians to explore dynamic shaping, phrasing and independence without the burden of extended range."

About the Composer:
Randall Standridge (b. 1976) received his Bachelor of Music Education from Arkansas State University. During this time, he studied composition with Dr. Tom O'Connor, before returning to Arkansas State University to earn his Master's in Music Composition, studying with Dr. Tom O'Connor and Dr. Tim Crist. From 2001 to 2013, he served as the Director of Bands at Harrisburg High School in Harrisburg,  Arkansas.
Mr. Standridge's music is performed internationally. He has had numerous works selected for the J.W. Pepper's editor's choice. His compositions Snake Charmer, Gently Blows the Summer Wind, and Angelic Celebrations have been included in the "Teaching Music Through Performance in Band" series. He has had numerous works performed at the prestigious Midwest Clinic in Chicago, Illinois. The Arkansas State University Wind Ensemble premiered his work Art(isms) at the 2010 CBDNA conference in Las Cruces, New Mexico, and his work Stonewall: 1969 was premiered at the National LGBA conference in 2019. Mr. Standridge is also a contributing composer for Alfred Music's Sound Innovations: Ensemble Development series.  His Symphony no.1: A Ghost Story waspremiered in 2023.

In addition to his career as a composer, Mr. Standridge is the owner and editor of Randall Standridge Music, LLC and Grand Mesa Marching. He is in demand as an arranger/designer for the marching arts.  He lives in Jonesboro, Arkansas, with his husband and their very, very spoiled pets.