Aurora Awakes By John Mackey

This beautiful piece of music is one of John Mackey's most famous and widely performed works. Winner of two national composition contests, this piece symbolizes the coming of light. Its two distinct sections...one slow, one fast...contrast, but carry the same rising mood and beauty. I hope you enjoy this great work by John Mackey :-)
Performed by the North Texas Wind Symphony.

[@matthewmorgan2763]

I especially enjoyed 0:00-10:53

[@geckocave]

+Matthew Morgan My favorite is 4:46 - 10:53

[@natelawson3816]

Mines 0:00-0:01

[@halwaffles]

Lol yeah I agree

[@codytaylor2772]

same and kingfishers catch fire

[@ericli1224]

yeah especially that last nonexistent second

[@jackpellegrini5333]

I would just like to clarify that John Mackey didn't write this song about the aurora borealis. It is about Aurora, the Roman goddess of dawn. In the first section, the song is slow and somber, representing the darkness. Then in the second section, things start to pick up and more energy is added to the song. This is because Aurora "awakes" and brings dawn/light. That is the story John Mackey is telling with this piece.

[@k1ttenofborg187]

Jack Pellegrini my marching band is doing something like this. Our show this year is called Dusk to Dawn and this is our last movement.

[@hannah_sparkleemoji5538]

ZeldaFanMarvelDc 123 my marching band did the same thing the show was called dusk to dawn and this was our last movement.

[@nathanjackson3730]

@Jack Pellegrini thank you so much, that really helps. I was pretty confused for a bit, even though the piece was absolutely beautiful, cause I had no clue how any of it related to big pretty bright lights at all 😂

[@SpiralKipz]

I thought Mackey was the guy who had his wife name the songs after he wrote them and they had nothing to do with his writing process.

[@harrychalfin5835]

@@SpiralKipz that is correct. Mackey wrote the second movement first, his wife told him that the song was about a sunrise, and then told him that he therefore needed to write the first movement too.

[@LondonHatsuneMikuo1]

So this is why I'm proud that the underdogs, the Bass Clarinet, is showing their true beauty, that we are not simply just an another instrument but a sister or bother of a cello. Low can be beautiful.

[@LemonNerdBird]

Absolutely. I've always thought it sounds similar to a cello much of the time. I love playing the bass clarinet!! We are underappreciated but we're a staple!!

[@harrietbaker2233]

I learned base clarinet for this piece and it was amazing. Low instruments truly are more spectacular.

[@porsche911sbs]

you should listen to Joseph Holbrooke's Ballade for bass clarinet

[@johnp51d]

Had the awesome pleasure of playing bass clarinet on this for a year. It’s deceptively difficult and interesting yet so beautiful.

[@bluesteno64]

I absolutely loved playing Bass Clarinet in high school. Super underrated instrument that definitely deserves more recognition

[@IvoryMelodies86]

This piece is solid proof that wind band music deserves a higher place of regard in the classical world.

[@ctrunner7126]

We met john mackey and did a workshop with him today at my high school. Did you know he doesn't even play an instrument! Also his wife comes up with all of the titles for his songs. This song wasn't even supposed to be slow at the beginning, his wife told him to change it to make it slow so that the whole piece would sound like the sun rising. He's also so chill!

[@stuntman2011]

Joe Smith Mind Blown.

[@natelawson3816]

+Joe Smith Do you know the difficulty in level and the time signature?

[@nbrister1]

+Nate Lawson (Mofegren) it has a lot of time signature changes, but I'm not entirely sure the grade level.

[@natelawson3816]

Thanks for letting me know. I'll just try and igure out the time signature for myself.

[@twilightchik11]

+Nate Lawson (Mofegren) It's a level five piece, I think!

[@ClassyMarching14]

Trombones in this piece have 193 measures of rest. I counted....because I had nothing else to do when we played this.

[@shaders3864]

When my band played this piece, all my trombone friend could do is complain. Glad to see he wasn’t the only one. Heh heh

[@littledrummergirl_19]

Lol welcome to the world of percussionists 😂

[@caleb_rogerz]

Trumpets have 110 if u dont have the solo on lead, 93

[@porsche911sbs]

being an orchestral trombonist is probably even worse

[@sr3ds]

I actually like having that much rest, I like being able to just listen while I wait, it's such a good song (I never thought I'd say that lol)

[@rachelreagan3520]

She had never seen a thing, blind her whole life, and then that one day, she woke up and everything around her became clear. She could see mountains, trees, she could see the stars, and that was the day she truly woke for the first time.

[@daniellord6535]

THE DEEP FEELS…BEAUTIFUL

[@Adrian-cr6tf]

wow, i did not expect this comment. wow

[@pastelhotmess9299]

RachelReagan best comment 10/10 I like the way you think

[@maxalain9948]

She woke af

[@danielrivera9788]

Wow, a moment of new wind, new light. Aurora Awakes, magnificent light. May I invite you to listen to "Paris 1789" World Premiere for Saxophone and Orchestra ? Elements of tension and odd-meter low strings converge with the turbulent and expressive solo saxophone. A piece everyone that listens comes to love

[@AtlanticGiantPumpkin]

It's been 9 months since I first heard this piece and I still love it. I have sound-color synesthesia and this is by far the most beautiful song I've ever seen! The colors really are beautiful!

[@IsaiahWu]

I KNOW!!!

[@AtlanticGiantPumpkin]

Though the entire song, everybody pictures Aurora Borealis, when, in reality, it's about the sun rising. Aurora is the name of a sun goddess. And if you ever meet John Mackey, he is a hipster.

[@IsaiahWu]

Josie Alyvia did john tell u guys that?? and he's actually coming to our school next month to conduct us for a day :)

[@AtlanticGiantPumpkin]

Yup! He actually doesn't conduct. He said it scares him to death. He said our first clarinet played her opening solo the most angelic he's ever heard. Which she kept on rubbing in our faces for months to come.

[@noah7172]

Sometimes I wish I had sound-color synesthesia. But anytime I pick anything up to read I am bombarded by colors, it is so overwhelming. It's sort of nice to be able to listen and just...not see colors for once. All the notes are the same...colorless. What is it like to see the colors of the notes?

[@spike423]

I love his tribute to Holst at the end with the Eflat major chord from the Chaconne in First Suite in E Flat. Makes me smile.

[@carlyn.c]

YES

[@bellacrawl2302]

I played this song in my high school's Wind Symphony when I was a sophomore. This song changed my life. Makes me cry every time. Absolutely beautiful. This is why I love music.

[@dawson4218]

Azalea Hawthorne Same here. Also, I'm pretty sure we made some of the audience cry as well lol

[@stephaniediaz4395]

What grade is it?

[@julianruiz8524]

@@stephaniediaz4395 Grade 5. Really not an easy piece to put together.

[@jonathanyang1423]

@@julianruiz8524 Depends on the band. I played this in my college band and we performed it after 4-5 rehearsals.

[@tpetkid777]

Same here, except it happend to be my Band director's last year. Not a single dry eye in the entire Hodgson Hall, and the audience had no idea why, but they where all crying as well.

[@laurapitner7573]

The massive crescendo at 7:32 is hands-down my favourite part of the entire piece, it gives me chills every time. My high school full orchestra (Westwood, TX) is playing this at Midwest in December, and our entire brass section just blasts that thing as loud as humanly possible and it's so cool, it's like you're caught up in this huge sound wave. There aren't any words to describe it, it's just incredible.

[@savannaperry329]

My band director is obsessed with john mackey (he even fangirled to us when they became friends on Facebook), we played undertow last year. This piece is beautiful!

[@cosmicchasm2838]

Lol my band director fangirled after her and Brian Balmages became friends on Facebook.

[@crlxmas2012]

lol my band director went to school with Brian balmages

[@savannaperry329]

Haha we are playing a brian balmages song in band rn

[@willpestka2745]

My entire High School band and director are super fans. We got to perform for him a couple times

[@PostLagone]

Apparently Undertow had heavy influence from Zelda Wind Waker

[@hideh2013]

He is famous in japan too. And i like .... no i love his music pieces. From a japanese student Im sorry but im not a good english speaker

[@harrisonfreiman1402]

Hide H this made perfect sense! Your English is great.

[@gen15mello]

Your English is fine! Nothing to worry about! Totally comprehensible.

[@FreekHoekstra]

My Japanese is far worse ;) and yes your english was perfect here.

[@fleurpayne3620]

im sorry our language is so awful

[@austinhernandez2716]

Mackey is such an inspiration to me, he inspires me to also be a composer. It is my dream to go to The Juilliard School just as he did for a masters in composition. Sadly I don't think I have a good chance and definitely not enough money, I've arranged many songs for marching band but never composed any. I most likely will not be going there. My life goal is to spread music education and performances before it dies away, as it seems to be happening today.

[@MiracleJohnsonchannel]

Don't doubt your dream. There's always a way if you want something bad enough. Never give up :)

[@noodle5682]

I don't feel that it is dying away, music has been with us for millennia

[@austinhernandez2716]

ian vaillancourt Most people only know about pop music because they are either not familiar with other music, like "underground" music, or they have become accustomed to having to hear a catchy melody in the beginning to keep their interest. Some are only interested in lyrics too, and not the music itself.

[@haydenthompson8242]

Austin Hernández Just a heads up, Juilliard is definitely not the best school for musical composition. USC Thornton is significantly better. It has produced more successful composers.

[@austinhernandez2716]

Hayden Thompson Mackey seems to be doing an amazing job.

[@gabbynichole3820]

One of the most beautiful pieces I have ever heard.

[@stephensim3480]

if your band is good though

[@annakersting8323]

I can just see me romantically and hopefully staring out the window into the night on the bus after a marching band competition just going over and over in my head about the most beautiful parts of my life and how I'm okay and safe now, and just quite how far I've come. This is the most beautiful piece and I want to ask my band director to play it at some point

[@Sarah-nj6iq]

I've listened to this song so many times in the past year. It's my stress reliever song and it calms me down so much. I almost cried when I first listened to it

[@fr8train224]

Coming back to this after a 13 year hiatus away from Percussion and Ensembles. I was 18 when I performed this piece, our Ensemble had the great pleasure of having John come in-person and work on this beautiful arrangement with us. Such a moving piece. The ebb and flow of the Flute throughout, powerful, thundering Brass against docile, calculated Percussion. You couldn't ask for more. Proud to say I got to play this. Rock Bridge High School Ensemble, Class of 2012.

[@BLUEPLANETJAZZ]

I played in the Vanderbilt Concert Band in college. I was only a percussionist and not very good. Oh, but what joy to listen to the trumpets, trombones, French horns, clarinets, and the rest. I would have been in heaven if I could have sat back and listened to this treasure. And then maybe in hell, trying to nail the cymbal and tympani parts at the end!

[@おひさま-q6y]

ほんとにかっこ良すぎる。4年くらい前の、山形十中の聴いた時は鳥肌たった。大好きな曲になった

[@livvelvin1057]

My band is playing this song to represent this past school year for us. We are the last school in the Houston area that is still out of place due to Hurricane Harvey. This piece represents our struggles, hardships, and accomplishments over this past school year. This will always and forever be my favorite Mackey song.

[@NicholasGreen91]

I have this interpretation- in the beginning, slow and free, it represents the cold yet beautiful landscape of the North. When the key change hits to an extremely bright key of Gb, and loud tutti- it is depicting the sunset over the land... the bright yellows and whites. At which point the song almost seems to end. But at that point, the Aurora awakes! It is introduced by the fine little points of sound. Eventually evolving into a rich scene of constant, slightly changing, yet mostly consistent ideas. Just like the way the aurora moves and shifts in the sky. I know the piece isn't explicitly written about the Aurora Borealis... but this view just stood out to me so strongly. It goes to show until the composer comes out and says what he/she thought, its literally up to our interpretations!

[@NicholasGreen91]

The landscape is becoming sleepy, 2:00

[@NicholasGreen91]

2:15 the sun is coming closer to the horizon

[@NicholasGreen91]

2:32 the sun is crossing below the horizon, the vibrancy of color and emotions, gradually growing beautiful yet dark with each passing moment.

[@NicholasGreen91]

3:10 the landscape is almost entirely dark

[@NicholasGreen91]

4:10 the Aurora awakes! Bright shapes and colors begin to trickle in and appear!

[@Waffles252]

The Euphonium part has so many rests that I can take a nap during part of it in band class.

[@icewater82]

+Waffles252 welcome to the percussion section

[@andrewprawat8199]

+Waffles252 is it just me, or do the clarinets get the least rests out of any section

[@trinitybess4212]

+Geatle that's cause clarinets are awesome

[@ihaveagun22]

+Waffles252 that pretty much how it is with most euph parts i know your pain

[@darbykeeley4337]

+ihaveagun22 i play Euphonium also and that's our life

[@BlackMarketManda]

Makes you feel like every thing will be alright.

[@roxanajohnson9310]

4:53- 4:57 is the reason that I wake up every morning. Slay bass clarinet!!!!!

[@mason3845]

9:52: The most glorious and heart-wrenching chord of the entire piece.

[@northwoods_larss7648]

For some reason I could see this being a theme in the Legend of Zelda.

[@32RH]

Undertow was inspired by the Water Temple

[@myfolder5388]

is it just me or has the North Texas symphony played like every song

[@daniellord6535]

Between 3:43 - 3:50, that clarinet feature emanates a 1920s New York City detective vibe & IT SEND CHILLS DOWN MY WHOLE BODY EVERY TIME, I LOVE IT!!

[@somfp]

I thought the theme at 4:10 and 4:50 was reminiscent of the music from "Catch Me if You Can."

[@L0Ldude11]

Daniel Lord If Mackey wrote movie scores...

[@lizacaroline5105]

I got to meet Mackey this morning! He came to my school and I was like, "OMG IT'S JOHN MACKEY!"

[@thegothchick67]

So happy and honoured to be playing this piece with the best musicians in my province :) it is just astounding

[@soyeechoi3631]

First time listening to this piece. Got introduced to Mackey by band director with Sheltering Sky. The staccatos (I think)from the piece by the clarinet and flutes really remind me of the small stars in our sky. :)

[@zachbelles7101]

sheltering sky is a great piece I played it my senior year

[@larissabell5653]

+Soyee Choi absolutely loved playing Sheltering Sky. We played it last year. it was kind of hard though because it reminded us all of a dear friend all of the students had lost to a terrible tragedy earlier in the year. :( and a few people in our band had lost one of their parents before we did that piece. so it was a very emotional piece to play. I actually cried playing it on stage. sorry for the weird speech from a stranger lol

[@jazzlyntimper8405]

We read sheltering sky the other day in my band, But I'd honestly rather play this because low notes >:) (I play bass clarinet btw)

[@Arjun-jq1wx]

So John Mackey is arranging this for full orchestra exclusively for my school's top orchestra for the Midwest clinic this December. Professor Junkin from the university of Texas is going to conduct it. It's gonna be amazing!!

[@Sepiatroce979]

Is there a recording of this yet? I would love to hear it Edit: I found one, but it’s not a pro recording. Hopefully one will surface soon.

[@c17rox]

would love to hear it

[@Arjun-jq1wx]

@@c17rox kzbin.info/www/bejne/e2bTYqt6mNd-sMk I don't have a video handy of our performance in Chicago, but this was our concert right before leaving Texas. Unfortunately professor Junkin was unable to conduct us, so our conductor here is Professor Gary Lewis from the University of Colorado Boulder. I played 1st horn in this concert. Enjoy :)

[@michaelbaldenegro5841]

I'm disappointed not a single euphonium player has mentioned Shenandoah by Ticheli, that's definitely my favorite piece by him.

[@sunder9363]

I love that piece :)

[@AgentMo]

well i play the euphonium

[@debzfiedler6100]

Brings tears to my eyes every time.

[@violetr7296]

thats my favorite aaaah

[@LilyTreeArt]

This is my first time listening to him.If I ever create an animated film, I want this guy to compose the soundtrack!

[@TheComedyHistorian]

Played this back in high school in a honor band and loved it. Super infectious melodies all throughout

[@samerissa5731]

7:00-7:45 for me is my favorite part of the whole piece. Just makes you go "yes."

[@Jack-ko4bg]

Hope that eventually I'll be able to play this. Probably my favorite piece of music ever composed. It just speaks to me. :)

[@ahsanmohammed08]

This and American Elegy, I can listen to these for 10 hours

[@marshallanevlogs5583]

YESSSSS

[@L0Ldude11]

OMG YES YES

[@jacobmartinez9339]

I'd also recommend "Give Us This Day"

[@genettec]

Add sheltering sky and this cruel moon

[@connorutegg2486]

My constant is “Wine-Dark Sea”. I recommend anyone to listen to “Song for Lyndsay” by Boysen (coming from a horn player)

[@alternative_piccolo3130]

this is by far my favorite band piece ever. from the dissonance to the crazy rhythms and time signature changes, mackey never fails to amaze me. this piece is amazing.

[@brandonpaine1032]

I love and appreciate the subtlety of the percussion and the piano and the vibraphone, it truly sounds like a new discovery with all the bright noises and syncopated melodies pitching in and out with the background noises. Especially love 08:00 to 10:53, roughly the right time. It is just a wonderful balance and it feels like the aurora of the night flaring out and passing in through time. So excited to play this in 3 months!!

[@TobyVisuals808]

John Mackey should be a Hollywood sound track composer!

[@coloraturaElise]

I'm so glad he's a wind band composer!

[@jasonstanciu5410]

I remember playing Undertow my freshman year in highschool and it was my first Mackey piece. Come senior year my band played this song and we went to superstate with it and it quickly became my favorite song not only by Mackey, but in general. Despite only playing bass drum/gong I had a blast playing it. This song is just one more reason why music is the greatest creation ever.

[@davidmartinez6204]

Played this in my wind symphony back when I was a freshman, I'll never forget how beautiful it was 🥹

[@IsaacParks]

I had the pleasure of hearing this piece performed live at Limestone College. I will never forget how utterly mesmerized I was when I heard this magnificent piece. This recording really doesn't do it justice, and if you ever have the opportunity to hear it performed live I would highly recommend the experience.

[@gabrielleakasuna5883]

My heart just kind of dies when I listen. Probably one of the best songs John Mackey had ever made.

[@beastofbussycreek]

Freshman year's marching show, and we played the fast section in our woodwind feature. Seems like it was just yesterday, and now I'm graduating. I'm gonna miss things like this

[@golbfishie]

I remember seeing this song preformed my freshmen year by a band in Washington with yellow uniforms and it was probably one of the coolest shows I have ever seen.

[@beastofbussycreek]

This piece is so damn gorgeous, and it's always really cool to see how people do it in marching shows

[@META_mahn]

Luna Blackheart our band decided to transpose it to key of E flat and it still sounds beast

[@drews5798]

Same!!! Vita Pulsus

[@hootiehoo3000]

I just love this song so much, it reminds me that there is an unseeable world in music and it just washes away all my problems at times.

[@etaoin-shrdlu]

I love how well the riff to Where The Streets Have No Name is implemented here. Beautiful piece indeed!

[@glennsewell6980]

The sound/engineering of the bass drum in this recording is incredible!

[@johnp51d]

The best way to describe the feelings of this piece is as if you're flying. I am a pilot, and the feeling I get when I fly is of absolute control, awareness, and exhilaration. The exact same feeling is present whenever I listen to this, which is why I will always remember it.

[@ashbaek3578]

John Papas Dennerline this is an awesome description of how i feel when i listen to this song

[@johnp51d]

Ash Baek That’s amazing, and hopefully everybody has that sort of feeling with something or another in their life at some point. It’s one of the single greatest feelings I have ever felt, and will remain that way. That’s why I will always love this piece ✈️✈️✈️✈️✈️✈️✈️✈️

[@MrXtuba]

Mackey is by far the best wind composer to ever exist. This piece and Kingfishers Catch Fire are definitely his best works. I would give anything to be able to work with him someday.

[@SJ-gy2rf]

I personally prefer Frank Ticheli, but Mackey is great to.

[@SJ-gy2rf]

+Samreet Juneja too*

[@coloraturaElise]

I hope you get to experience all the great band composers, so you have more perspective from which to judge.

[@francesca6851]

When the playful piano part came in at 4:19, I got chills all over my body! This is such an amazing and moving piece!

[@larsthescout]

This is a chop killer for bass clarinet parts, hardly any rests and all the dynamic contrast??? Ugh it's beautiful and deceivingly difficult

[@targettrap6113]

Agree. I had the great pleasure of playing this in high school, and the first movement is deceptively difficult especially on intonation. Still my favorite song of any genre though.

[@LemonNerdBird]

Bass clarinet represent!!!!!!

[@halwaffles]

I got goosebumps while watching this. Thoroughly enjoyed this song. We will be playing this piece for marching band so I'm so excited.

[@halwaffles]

Of course we are playing a much shortened version, but it still sounds amazing.

[@ametia.]

my favorite piece for the past 10 years.

[@101drummergrl]

Performed this with my HS Wind Ensemble my senior year...probably one of my favorite pieces I've ever played (coming from a percussionist)

[@EighteenMoon18]

I got to know this song through a youtube channel of classical student who do reactions, they dedicated this song to the wonderful an beautiful sulli, who sadly passed away in 2017. Even though I got to know her after her passing, I always felt connected to her in some ways, even if I never knew her. This piece describes perfectly the warm and calming energy of sulli, how full of life she was, always smilling and you could see that she wanted everyone to be happy. So everytime I listen to this piece I am reminded of how great of a person she was, who always stood for what she believed in, she was not afraid to speak her mind and how she could easly brighten your day. But also that just like her I should always stood up for what I bealive in, I shouldn't be ashamed of myself and see myself less worthy of others just because I'm not smart as them, I should just be me. I hope she is in a better place now, where she doesn't have to worry about what the people think of her and she can be herself without deaming her light.

[@sydneyburke6505]

This song makes me so sad. We had gotten it last year, and it was going to be a beautiful final piece for a lot of the band as many of them were graduating. We sucked for a while, but then just as we were getting better at it, Corona hit, and we never got to perform it. Everytime I listen to it I am immediately reminded of all of the great band kids who have graduated or aren't getting to play this year and it almost brings me to tears.

[@matthewstell8430]

Still get the chills every time I hear this. So glad I got the opportunity to perform this amazing piece.

[@slippinndippin1421]

Listening to this is really giving me feels today. We got to play this piece for judges and parents a day before the coronavirus hit, after spending months working on it. It turned out amazing and was one of my favorite band experiences. For this whole quarantine, I had always just been working day by day, spending time with friends virtually, not really feeling too much on it. But listening to this, it really brings me back and makes me miss all that we had a year ago. We'll get through this, but damn if it won't be soon enough.

[@kris9324]

Absolutely beautiful. Such vivid colors and lights come to mind with this song.

[@salemquinn2067]

john mackey is my favorite composer, and i’m hella excited cause this piece is gonna be in my marching show this year !!!

[@vwstud84]

Yes!! I played Bass Clarinet as well. This piece truly does emulate the beauty of what that instrument can produce.

[@t33nspirit3d]

this was the last song i ever played for my freshman year, this was the first year of the school having our new band director and it was our last show, so all of the seniors were leaving. all of our rehearsals leading up to this point weren't really that great, especially the ending part, so we didn't have a lot of confidence about it. the piece immediately before this was American elegy by frank tichelli, a piece about the columbine high school shooting. the day of the concert was the same day of the shooting in Uvalde, so it added to the importance of the concert. our director asked the audience not to clap after that piece, so, they didn't. I've never heard a silence louder. out of nowhere, our music major was handed the microphone and listed out the names of all of the victims of columbine. this piece had no transition with applause. we started it with dead silence. again, up until now, none of us had really played it as well as we had hoped, especially the ending (which we ended up getting lectured on a good few times) but thii was different. this concert mattered to us. we had literally never played it better than we did on the day of the concert.

[@dylanle8239]

this is my favorite wind band piece. it was one of the first pieces that introduced me to how beautiful band/orchestra music can sound

[@SamboBambo]

This piece is such a beautiful piece. It reminds me of my childhood. I watched a lot of "The Snowman" and "The Polar Bear" and I LIVED in the snow as a kid. This brings back a lot of memories and reminds me what it's like to be a kid again.

[@AtlanticGiantPumpkin]

I'm first French horn, and I got assigned that solo. I couldn't play it for the longest time until my lesson teacher showed me that playing the high A flat T2 instead of T23 made it a lot easier to play without cracking. After that, I didn't crack. But on the day of contest, I cracked pretty bad. Thankfully, we made it to state! I get another chance to redeem myself in about two weeks!

[@connorutegg2486]

Hazel Grey THANK YOU!!!! I’ve been trying to figure that out myself!

[@101whoisthis]

You Need to get some good headphones and listen for each instrument to truly understand how well this piece was put together. Amazing, John Mackey

[@the_kruzdawg]

There go the chills and my soul says "Aaaaaah....." in relief.

[@pinkpiggy976]

LOVE this song. There so much movement and dynamics. Makes me really think of light.

[@TheJamesinator102]

Incredible! The high schools premiere ensemble that I'm going to try out for plays a lot of John Mackeys pieces.

[@mecha5893]

I love all of it, but 4:48 and 7:35 give me chills every time

[@Thecraaze101]

This piece makes me feel some type of way that I can't explain, but it's the best feeling in the world! Wonderful piece by John Mackey.

[@Jwet1100]

Unbelievable! Mackey in my mind is undoubtedly at the highest possible rank of arranging & composing scores. His music is well beyond profound!

[@daftwombat1211]

John Mackey you beautiful legend. First sheltering sky and then THIS. Easily my favorite two pieces ever.

[@TXmedic95]

This piece is so emotional to me for some reason. It is just absolutely beautiful and I up feel so blessed to have perfomed such a beautiful work of art

[@jewellab1003]

This piece is so beautiful, it always gives me goosebumps. I wish I could go back to last year and play it one more time!

[@ronaldonuts5386]

This is one of my all time favorite pieces composed for a wind ensemble/symphony, and it always will be. It just makes me shiver and gives me goosebumps every time I listen to it. I hope that one day i ill have the pleasure of performing it again.

[@MystaMysterio]

Literally goosebumps after the first two notes.

[@asmundpinas3192]

My band is going to compete with this in the Norwegian Championship next year... And We're also going to use Asphalt Coctail....Going to be fun !

[@alyssarunn1162]

My band is playing this and it sounds so magical, great piece of music

[@smol2556]

This was part of my freshmen year’s show repertoire...always have to come back to this gorgeous piece

[@davidyang2981]

The best concert band piece ever known to man. :P

[@mightypowerhouse5769]

+David Yang ai wood liek to counter dat

[@isaiahoh2557]

+David Yang ikr

[@cangzhen56]

Does the little hopeful sounding part that start with the piano remind anyone else of that one Disney short, Paperman? Or is it just me?

[@TheRandomAsian711]

If I ever get the chance to play that flute solo in the beginning I can die without regrets or actually just the piece in general 🙌🎶❤️

[@zoehood8778]

I saw this at a college live orchestra and was blown away this is beautiful

[@savannahsantiago5818]

I want to play this at a band concert. It's so beautiful, and sound really fun to play.

[@KaitlinWonders]

This piece is so clever. I played this last year in my Wind Ensemble and the amount of these going on is just astonishingly clever and well placed. I love this piece. One of my all time favourites.

[@dylanle8239]

Oh my goodness ... This is easily my favorite contemporary piece. John Mackey is such a great composer and this piece is the sooo beautiful

[@dejgreen4843]

The final chord is absolutely marvelous. I'm in love.

[@christophermclaughlin164]

Thus the brilliance of Holst.

[@alexxBHS15]

I have to say, one of the best writers EVER! My directors love him and we always play his music! So good

[@natalataliee12]

playing this for marching show this year - it actually transfers to a marching piece fairly well

[@alexhernandez5265]

one of the most beautiful pieces i have ever listened to. Triggers the happiest memories in the mind.

[@varnk]

Lovely piece! This is the type of band music that I love to play. It provides a lot of opportunity to express musicality.

[@joshuasumler8499]

We're playing it for festival this year and its beautiful. Go Percussion!!!!

[@johnp51d]

Since I discovered this about 2 years ago exactly, I have listened to it almost once a day (or more) since then. As so many of y'all say in this section, it reminds me why I love music so much, and why I like band so much. I will never like any piece of music, classical, pop, anything, more than this one.

[@angelaorellana7881]

This song high key challenged me in Bass Clarinet, I'd never felt like I had to bring it before. But on this beautiful piece we brought it from beginning to end! ❤️❤️❤️❤️

[@johnp51d]

It gets you. In terms of technique it's really not that bad for bass clarinet (at least I though so), but the chord progressions and tuning were deceptively difficult to get right. Keep loving this piece 👍🏼.

[@DreamingInColor_x]

This is Part 2 for my last year in my marching band. It's such a beautiful piece and (not to brag) I think we make it sound gorgeous. :) Good luck to any other bands that are performing this piece as well! :D

[@MrFluffyVG]

I just got to listen to the UNT Concert band perform this and I have fallen in love with this song. I was entranced by this song and I love it!!!