#31 Suggested Repertoire from Around the World for Developing Bands

This 31st installment of suggested repertoire is proposed by DMus. Sami Ruusuvuori – Artistic Director and Chief Conductor of the Helsinki Police Symphonic Band. Formerly Conductor of the Guards Band (The Finnish Defence Forces’ Representative Band) and Chief Conductor of the Conscript Band of the Finnish Defence Forces. Guest conductor with numerous professional ensembles in Finland and abroad. Pedagogue and lecturer at the Sibelius Academy as well as several European and U.S. universities. Author of the doctoral dissertation The Symphonic Wind Band and the European Repertoire Composed for It (Sibelius Academy, 2022). President of the Finnish Wind Band Association (SPOL), board member of WASBE and NOMU, and coordinator of WASBE’s Suggested Repertoire project.

Grade 3.5

Sons of the Midnight Sun (2012) – 6'30" – Purchase at Blosari

Timo Forsström (Finland, 1961)

Premiered by Conscript Band of the Finnish Defence Forces conducted by Sami Ruusuvuori

on Jul 09, 2012 in Lucerne, Switzerland

I commissioned Sons of the Midnight Sun from my friend, composer and horn player Timo Forsström, for the opening concert of the Basel Tattoo in 2012. Forsström is a member and composer of the Helsinki Police Symphonic Band, and I have had the pleasure of premiering many of his works.

The piece was first performed at the Basel Tattoo in Switzerland, the world’s second largest military music festival. Its inspiration comes from the legendary Viking society: an ancient Nordic summer where young men prepare to go into battle under the midnight sun. The main theme imitates an old Viking song that the warriors sing together to strengthen their courage, fellowship, and faith in their cause before the battle.

Forsström makes use of striking effects such as singing and clapping by the band. The work was originally written for wind band alone, but it also works very effectively with choir.

Sons of the Midnight Sun has proved to be an audience and player favorite wherever I have conducted it. I warmly recommend this work for concert programs, as it offers a powerful combination of spectacle, Nordic storytelling, and a strong sense of community.

Grade 6

Dirty Dancing (2014) – 4'45" – Purchase at Norsk Noteservice

Torstein Aagaard-Nilsen (Norway, 1964)

Premiere conducted by Trond Husebo on Mar 07, 2015 in Oslo, Norway

Norwegian composer Torstein Aagaard-Nilsen (b. 1964) studied mathematics at the University of Bergen, and trumpet, music theory, composition, and pedagogy at the Bergen Music Conservatory. Since the late 1980s he has established himself in the Bergen area as a composer, arranger, conductor, and teacher. Aagaard-Nilsen is widely known for his works for brass and wind band, and his music is often described as direct and impulsive – at times narrative, at times inspired by visual aspects such as experiences of nature.

In November 2014 conductor Peter Szilvay, on behalf of the Christiania Wind Ensemble in Oslo, commissioned a new piece from Aagaard-Nilsen. Szilvay asked for a short, effective, intense, and dance-like work, and mentioned A Short Ride in a Fast Machine by John Adams as a reference. Aagaard-Nilsen responded with Dirty Dancing, a piece that plays with riffs and rhythms.

Dirty Dancing is an accessible yet energetic and striking work, lasting about five minutes. It quickly gained recognition after its first performances: only weeks later it was performed in the Elite Section of the Norwegian Championships, and in 2015 it received the Norwegian Music Publishers’ Prize for Classical/Contemporary Work of the Year. In 2024 Dirty Dancing was chosen as the test piece for the European Championship for Wind Orchestras (ECWO) in Oslo.

More on Torstein Aagaard-Nilsen

Grade 3.5

Zembaloo (2014) – 2'50" – Purchase at J.W. Pepper

Ilari Hylkilä (Finland, 1978)

Premiered by Ruskatrööttä Wind Band conducted by Tero Haikala

in Lieksa, Finland

Ilari Hylkilä is a Finnish composer whose extensive output for wind band has gained particular popularity among young players. His music is characterized by catchy, memorable melodies – the kind that players quickly grow fond of.

Zembaloo is a march, joyfully set a little askew. Its melodic and rhythmic playfulness makes it both accessible and engaging for performers.

Hylkilä also explores visual storytelling, and Zembaloo has even been turned into a music video. His presence and personality have a remarkable impact on young musicians – for example, at the Swedish Wind Music Days I witnessed how players treated him almost like a movie star.

Zembaloo has been warmly received by both audiences and performers. It is humorous yet energetic, bringing fresh joy and infectious energy to concert programs – a piece I warmly recommend especially for youth and community wind bands.

Hylkilä’s music has been performed and recorded by a wide range of ensembles, including Bratislava Symphony Orchestra, Tapiola Sinfonietta, Vantaa Orchestra, Joensuu City Orchestra, University of Helsinki Symphony Orchestra, Symphony Orchestra of the University of Jyväskylä, Finnish Symphonic Wind Professionals (FSWP), Helsinki Police Symphonic Band, Finnish Army Bands, Ostrobothnia Jazz Orchestra, Suffolk Symphony Orchestra, UBC Symphonic Wind Ensemble, Rowan Wind Ensemble, among many others.

More on Ilari Hylkilä

Grade 5

Festival Overture for Large Military Band (1909) – 7'30" – Purchase at Levande Musikarv

Hugo Alfvén (Sweden, 1872 - 1960)

Premiered by Royal Dalecarlian Regiment Music Corps conducted by Hugo Alfvén

on Jun 04, 1909 in Stockholm, Sweden

Hugo Alfvén (1872–1960) is among the most frequently performed Swedish composers and a central figure of late Romanticism. Born in Stockholm, he studied violin and harmony at the Royal Conservatory and later continued his studies in violin and composition in Belgium and Germany, supported by scholarships. While travelling in Italy, Alfvén discovered the symphonic wind band and was fascinated by the virtuosity of the players. In his writings he enthusiastically described the different characters of the instrumental groups.

Alfvén wrote only two works for wind band: Fest-Overture and Funeral March for Hjalmar Branting. Fest-Overture was composed for a “large military band” – the contemporary term for wind band – to mark the opening of the Swedish Industrial and Handicraft Exhibition in Stockholm in 1909. The premiere took place on 4 June 1909, performed by the Royal Dalecarlian Regiment Band with the composer conducting.

The autograph score shows that Alfvén completed the work on 2 June at 22:52, only two days before the concert. This left virtually no time for copying the parts and rehearsing the orchestra. Despite these circumstances, Fest-Overture is an ambitious and technically demanding work, providing challenges for many sections and offering the ensemble a brilliant and festive showcase.

The piece was later orchestrated for modern symphonic wind band by Gunnar Johansson.

Grade 4

Near & Distant (2017) – 10' – Purchase at SPOL

Lauri Porra (Finland, 1977)

Premiered by The Guards Band on Mar 28, 2017 in Finland

Lauri Porra is one of Finland’s most prominent contemporary composers. A truly versatile musician, he is also widely recognized as the bassist of Stratovarius, Finland’s internationally renowned metal band. Porra is the great-grandson of Jean Sibelius, and musical heritage runs deep in his family: his mother was an oboist with the Finnish National Opera, and his father an amateur baritone horn player. Summers at the family cottage were filled with brass music, as his father and friends gathered to play together – a legacy reflected in the prominent roles given to the oboe and baritone horn in this work.

Near and Distant (2017) was Porra’s first composition for wind band. Commissioned by the Finnish Wind Band Association, the piece is dedicated to his father Pekka Porra on the occasion of his 80th birthday. It was selected as the test piece for the Finnish National Wind Band Competition in 2017, Series A.

Musically, Near and Distant fuses elements of pop and rock with film music, aleatoric writing, and improvisation. The piece may open with a taped jungle soundscape, intensified by the orchestra’s improvisation. An optional electric guitar solo further enhances its character, offering bands the chance to collaborate with a rock guitarist. The result is a vivid and unpredictable concert experience that brings fresh colour, energy, and imagination to the wind band repertoire.