For David Browne, winning The Florida Orchestra’s Student Composition Contest was a dream come true.
“Shattered Clock Fanfare is a musical depiction of a recurring dream I had as a child wherein I was forever lost in a universe where time never existed,” said Browne, 22, in his artist statement on the short work, which premieres on the Beethoven’s Pastoral Symphony concert May 18-20.
For TFO’s 50th anniversary season, the Student Composition Contest was expanded to university music programs around the state. Browne is a commercial music/composition major at Florida Atlantic University in Boca Raton. He also plays trombone.
“Throughout this piece you will hear sounds depicting heroic misadventure as well as a sense of wonder not unfamiliar to those who have ever dared to dream,” he said. “The beginning section is meant to conjure a feeling of excited uncertainty, as one often feels when they are thrown into an unknown environment or situation.”
The strings carry the melody, conveying an “overall feeling of fascination.”
Someday the FAU senior hopes to compose for video games, media, and professional ensembles of all sorts. After he graduates in the fall 2018 semester, he plans to compose, produce and build a portfolio of classical works and electronic music with an eye toward grad school.
This was Browne’s first experience composing for an orchestra.
“Having had my piece read by the orchestra in February, I came to truly understand that exciting opportunities like this only come so many times in a career if you’re lucky,” Browne said. “The talent and accommodating attitude presented by The Florida Orchestra and staff have been utterly astounding.”
Beethoven’s Pastoral Symphony
Michael Francis, conductor
Javier Perianes, piano
Browne: Shattered Clock Fanfare
Brahms: Piano Concerto No. 2
Beethoven: Symphony No. 6, “Pastoral”
Fri, May 18, 8 pm, Straz Center
Sat, May 19, 8 pm, Mahaffey Theater
Sun, May 20, 7:30 pm, Ruth Eckerd Hall
Free tickets for kids and teens 5-18 in advance
Come early for the pre-concert conversation 1 hour before each performance, free with every concert ticket
Tickets: $15, $30 $45
Saturday evening’s concert is sponsored by Ambassador and Mrs. Mel Sembler
