GLASS CEILING for Symphonic Band by LEANNA PRIMIANI (USA, 1978)
- WASBE Marcom
- 12 hours ago
- 3 min read
[#332] Dec 01, 2025 USA | 2014 | Symphonic Band | Grade 5 | 14’ | Tone poem
Premiered by St. Olaf College Band in Northfield, Minesota, USA
Purchase at Black Tea Music
Glass Ceiling, by American composer and conductor Leanna Primiani is our Composition of the Week.
The work was written in 2014, it has a duration of about 14 minutes, and it is scored for a standard symphonic band setting, including string bass, piano and harp.
Glass Ceiling was premiered (virtually) in May 2021 by the St. Olaf College Band under Timothy Mahr.
“The last time the notion of gender equality was on the minds of the American public was in the early 1990’s. Since then, most people believe the problem has been solved. This simply is not the case. Although women make up more than half of the students in leading MBA programs and law schools, the ratio of men to women at the very top level of corporate America is 20 to 1. On average, women make only 73 cents for every dollar earned by a man, a figure that has declined from 86 cents in 1995. The glass ceiling, as it has been aptly named, is not simply a barrier for an individual based on the person's inability to handle a higher-level job. Rather, the glass ceiling applies to women as a group who are kept from advancing simply because they are women. In this piece, I attempt to portray a day in the life of a working woman. Glass Ceiling is a through-composed composition that contains and introduction and numerous distinct sections integrated by various thematic and orchestration devices. The main theme is first stated by the brass and is developed throughout the work. Five triangles, antique cymbals and glockenspiel represent the glass ceiling. Finally, sustained chords that begin piano then crescendo to fortissimo represent the woman’s ambition, struggle, and subsequent success.” Program notes by Leanna Primiani
Dr. Leanna Primiani earned a doctorate in composition from the University of Southern California and has studied with such noted composers and conductors as Leonard Slatkin, Peter Eötvös, Christopher Rouse, Steven Stucky, Morten Lauridsen, and Howard Shore.
Primiani is an award-winning composer who aims to bring together the collective experiences of the many for greater understanding. Her music asks listeners to consider deep issues and ideas related to the female experience, as she believes that connection and thoughtful participation can catalyze powerful change. Leanna writes music that changes how listeners see themselves and the world around them. Using electronics as well as orchestral instrumentation, she explores the limits of musical form, sound, and time.
Starting out as a conductor, with credits including the National Symphony and LA Opera, she never imagined that composition would take over her life. Leanna channeled her kinesthetic experience of music-making as a conductor into her writing, with her music being championed by Bang On A Can, the Nashville Symphony, the Cabrillo Music Festival, and the Imani Chamber Music Festival in NYC.
She composes for film and television. Credits include the WIF/Fox Searchlight production of Signal, the feature documentary Altitude Not Attitude, as well as the remake of the cult classic The Bad Seed.
Dr. Primiani recently won the 2020 Toulmin Commission from the League of American Orchestra and The American Composers Orchestra to compose a work for ROCO in Houston to be premiered in February 2021. She was composer-in-residence at The Millay Colony for the Arts in Upstate New York during summer of 2021. Recent premieres include Gaudete by the Wheeling Symphony in December 2020, Glass Ceiling by the St. Olaf Band, and OMNI for Reed Trio by Trio 212 New York City. Past performances of her catalog include the Nashville Symphony, Cabrillo Festival, Seattle Collaborative Orchestra, American Composers Orchestra, Aspen Music Festival, United Nations 50 for Freedom campaign, International Clarinet Association (Belgium and the USA), National Flute Association, Imani Wind Festival (NYC), June in Buffalo, Left Coast Chamber Ensemble, Harvard Women’s Choral Festival, Atlanta Chamber Players, Vox Musica, Ensemble Mo (FR), and the Commandaria Orchestra Chamber Music Series (CY) and the Hear/How Festival in Los Angeles.
A native Californian, Leanna currently splits her time between Santa Monica and New York. She is a member of BMI, Recording Arts Academy, Television Academy, New York Women Composers, The Alliance of Women Film Composers, and The Society of Composers and Lyricists.
Other works for winds include:
• Sirens, for Wind Ensemble (2009)
• Omni, for reed trio and electronics (2021)
More on Leanna Primiani