Jared McCunnie: Recent Episodes
Jared McCunnie
A young Australian composer, Jared specialises in music for larger ensembles, including Brass Band and Concert Band. Jared has won numerous awards, including the Winner of the 2017 Nock Deighton Challenge at the Ironbridge Gorge Brass Band Festival, and the 2017 Robyn Young Under 21 Award at the South Brisbane Federal Brass Band Composition Competition.
Live Performance by Kensington & Norwood Brass (15 November 2020 at Capri Theatre)
You can purchase the sheet music for Kensington at 'www.jaredmccunnie.weebly.com/kensington'
Commissioned for Kensington & Norwood Brass Band's 120th Anniversary, 'Kensington' is a street or stage march, appropriate for B+ Grade/1st Section bands. 'Kensington' is an approved National Band Council of Australia march and can be found on the prescribed march list.
Live performance of 'Lucid Dreaming' (mvt 4 of 'rest' composed by Jared McCunnie) by PLEXUS, performed at the Sir Zelman Cowan School of Music on 22nd August 2019.
PLEXUS Clarinet in Bb - Philip Arkinstall Violin - Monica Curro Piano - Stefan Cassomenos
PROGRAMME NOTES iv - Lucid Dreaming
The dream state begins again, but now the individual is aware that they are dreaming. Whilst initially engrossed by the flow state of peaceful dreams, the thrumming self-awareness consumes one's mind and captures the individual's awareness entirely. In a cacophonous wrath, the dream collapses away, and sleep state fades to nothing.
Live Premiere Performance on 21st July 2019 of the 2019 Robyn Young Award Winning Work 'Elegy' at the South Brisbane Federal Brass Band Composition Competition.
Performed by South Brisbane Federal Brass Band MD - Russell Gray
Premiere performance of 'A Journey with Sunshine', commissioned for Sunshine Community Brass' 90th Anniversary. Musical Director - Wayne Bowden. Band - Sunshine Community Brass (Australia)
Available for purchase at www.jaredmccunnie.weebly.com/ajourneywithsunshine
Live Performance by Glenferrie Brass 6th October 2018 (Kew and Hawthorn Bands Combined in Concert) Musical Director - Broden Ford
You can purchase the sheet music for Manchester at 'www.jaredmccunnie.weebly.com/manchester'
A dramatic, electronic dance style track for brass band, Manchester is inspired by my experiences in the famous UK city. In 2018, I travelled half way around the world from Australia to study in Manchester, a city unlike any I had been to before. Powerful, complex but with a never ceasing swagger, Manchester leads a journey through my interpretation of the city's quirky side into its groovy glory.
'Nicaea' arranged for brass band by Jared McCunnie Score available for purchase at www.jaredmccunnie.weebly.com/nicaea
Premiered by Musical Director Jeff Steele and Geelong West Brass Band at the 2018 Victorian State Band Championships B Grade.
Featuring Harrison Steele-Holmes (trombone), Gemma Lynch (cornet) and Craig Farrington (flugelhorn).
"Just Cause" for Flugelhorn, Tenor Horn, Baritone and Euphonium
Runner Up in the 2018 A4 Brass Quartet Composition Competition.
Recorded by the A4 Brass Quartet in 2018.
The world premiere of Jared McCunnie's arrangement of "Deep Harmony" for brass band, performed by City of Greater Dandenong Brass Band conducted by Michael Mathers. Performed as B Grade Hymn Choice at the 2018 Australian National Band Championships.
'Bread of the World' by John S. Hodges arranged for brass band by Jared McCunnie.
Recording from Adelphi Brass Band (Salford University), conducted by Robert Yates with cornet soloist James Atkins.
Purchase the score at www.jaredmccunnie.weebly.com/breadoftheworld.html
Live recording of 'Quest' for Cello Trio from the 2017 Future Creatives Festival.
Performers Bec Scully - cello Clare Fogarty - cello Nikki Edgar - cello
Recorded and mixed by Kevan Atkins
Live recording of 'Lust' performed at the 2017 Future Creative's Festival.
Performers: Jessie Chow - oboe Annie Pirotta - tenor trombone
Recorded and mixed by Kevan Atkins
Grainger Wind Symphony's live performance of Jared McCunnie's 2014 Composition for Concert Band "Moments Like These", dedicated to the late Colin Harris. Grainger Wind Symphony selected the work as part of its Made in Australia Concert in 2017.
This performance was kindly recorded and mixed by Paul van Haaster
Listen to some excerpts from Hobart Wind Symphony (conductor: Simon Reade) in their workshopping of my major concert band work "Buckley" in October 2017. Thank you to Simon for selecting my piece to be workshopped, and for providing a fantastic recording of the work.
Buckley for Concert Band was commissioned with the support of Richard Harvey.
Live performance by Monash Wind Symphony of my 2014 Composition "Supermoon" for Concert Band. Conducted by David Griffiths on the 18th October 2017.
Available for purchase at www.jaredmccunnie.weebly.com/supermoon
Jared McCunnie's composition "Wrath" for Soprano Saxophone and Percussion. Live performance by scapegoat of World Premiere at Sir Zelman Cowen School of Music 11/09/17.
A huge thank you to Ben Grayson and Clive Bourne for the audio and visual recording!
Northern Brass Band's premiere of Jared McCunnie's arrangement of the American spiritual "Swing Low, Sweet Chariot" by Wallace Willis. This brass band arrangement is available on Jared's website for $40AUD (www.jaredmccunnie.weebly.com)
Recorded by David Morris at the Darebin City Brass 2016 Cabaret.
Listen to Jared's arrangement of Percy Code's "At Dawn" for Tuba Solo and Brass Band, written for and premiered by Richard Harvey and Geelong West Brass Band 25 June 2017. An Australian composition, arranged by an Australian, for an Australian band!
Geelong West Brass Band's live performance and world premiere of Jared McCunnie's major work "Buckley" for Brass Band, placing 3rd in the Own Choice section of the B Grade Australian National Band Championships.
"Buckley" can be purchased here http://jaredmccunnie.weebly.com/buckley.html
Huge thank you to Tim, Veronica and the Brassbanned team for providing the fantastic HD footage!
About The Piece
"Buckley" tells the incredible tale of William Buckley, the first of few Englishmen to truly live live amongst the Austrlian Aboriginal people. Commissioned by Richard Harvey for Jeff Steele and the Geelong West Brass Band, the 16 minute epic encapsulates Buckley's unbelievable story.
"Buckley" begins in Holland, where William Buckley and his English comrades were combatting Napoleon's French forces. Seriously wounded, Buckley returned to Britain and was swept up into troublesome crowds. Found guilty of participating in the theft of a hankerchief, Buckley was sentenced to transportation for life, namely to the new Port Phillip penal colony in Victoria, Australia.
Buckley faced the lengthy and treacherous journey upon ship Calcutta to Port Phillip. Despite being treated well, Buckley and three other convicts made an escape from the colony, in the hope of reaching Sydney. Only managing to circumvent Port Phillip Bay, the group split up, and Buckley found himself alone in a foreign, dangerous land.
When a small group of Aboriginals came across the starving Buckley, the Englishman was accepted within the Watourong people. For over thirty years, Buckley firsthand participated in Corrobberrees, hunted for kangaroo and eels, and learned their native tongue. Surviving tribal warfare, years of living alone and even witnessing acts of cannibalism, Buckley truly lived as an Aboriginal.
In the meantime, more Europeans were venturing to Australia for a new beginning, and Buckley had to make a choice between his Eurpoean past or his Aboriginal present. Making a homecoming, Buckley's became an interpreter and consul for the natives. Despite his high value in society and a pardon for his crimes, Buckley went on to live a life of unrest, being paraded as a freak show and labelled "The Wild White Man".
After the closing of the Monash Gym Fried Chicken Store earlier in the year, Jared was inspired to write an interactive composition for the Monash New Music Ensemble. The performers each drew from their own personal tragedies to create an entirely unique and aleatoric performance.
Special thank you to Charles MacInnes for running the Monash New Music Ensemble. A special thank you must also go to Ben Grayson and the sound engineers who recorded the entire performance.
Live Performance of 'Tragedies of 2016' by Jared McCunnie, performed by the Monash New Music Ensemble on the 20th October 2016.
A live recording of Jared's Big Band chart 'The Pursuit' from the Melbourne Composer's Big Band Performance on the 7th of August 2016. Available for purchase through his website www.jaredmccunnie.weebly.com
Featured in the November 2017 Making Waves Playlist (Jazz-World Waves)
Jared's debut work for Brass Band, a great swing track!
As performed by the Victorian State Youth Brass Band in 2013.
Jared's composition for Brass Band. Written in 2014 for the Victorian State Youth Brass Band.
Recording of the Victorian State Youth Brass Band performing the work at the Organs of the Ballarat Goldfields Festival 2015
Geelong West Brass Band's live performance of Jared's composition "Bittersweet" on May 22nd 2016. The score can be purchased through Jared's website at www.jaredmccunnie.weebly.com !