Folk Dances

Folk Dances was arranged by Frank Erickson (see below) in 1979 from a piece for orchestra written in 1942 by Dmitri Shostakovich (see also below).

Dmitri Shostakovich wrote the suite Native Leningrad, Op.63, in 1942 as a tribute to the courage of the citizens of Leningrad during World War Two. It was scored for tenor and bass soloists, choir and orchestra, and was premiered on November 7, 1942, at the Dzerzhinsky Central Club. The suite has four movements: Overture – October 1917, Song of the Victorious October (Song of the River Neva), Youth Dance (Song of the Sailors),and Song of Leningrad. The Youth Dance is the movement which has been transcribed as Folk Dances. It first received this name when transcribed for piano by Lev Solin. The name stuck when retranscribed for military band by M. Vakhutinsky. While the melodies used in Youth Dance are reminiscent of folk tunes, Shostakovich's work is original. Considering the programmatic nature of the work, it is justifiable to assume Shostakovich wished to evoke an overt Russian sentiment in the same way that Gustav Holst’s First Suite in E-flat and Gordon Jacob’s An Original Suite sound and feel distinctly British.

Dmitri Dmitriyevich Shostakovich (1906 – 1975) was a Soviet-era Russian composer and pianist who became internationally known after the premiere of his First Symphony in 1926 and thereafter was regarded as a major composer. Shostakovich achieved early fame in the Soviet Union, but had a complex relationship with its government. His 1934 opera Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk was initially a success but later condemned by the Soviet government, putting his career at risk. In 1948, his work was denounced under the Zhdanov Doctrine, with professional consequences lasting several years. Even after his censure was rescinded in 1956, performances of his music were occasionally subject to state interventions, as with his Thirteenth Symphony (1962). Nevertheless, Shostakovich was a member of the Supreme Soviet of the RSFSR (1947) and the Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Union (from 1962 until his death), as well as chairman of the RSFSR Union of Composers (1960–1968). Over the course of his career, he earned several important awards, including the Order of Lenin, from the Soviet government.

Shostakovich combined various musical techniques in his works. His music is characterized by sharp contrasts, elements of the grotesque, and ambivalent tonality; he was also heavily influenced by neoclassicism and by the music of Gustav Mahler. His orchestral works include 15 symphonies and six concerti (two each for piano, violin, and cello). His chamber works include 15 string quartets, a piano quintet, and two piano trios. His solo piano works include two sonatas, an early set of 24 preludes, and a later set of 24 preludes and fugues. Stage works include three completed operas and three ballets. Shostakovich also wrote several song cycles and a substantial quantity of music for theatre and film. Shostakovich's reputation has continued to grow after his death. Scholarly interest in the music of Shostakovich has increased significantly since the late 20th century, including considerable debate about the relationship between his music and his attitudes toward the Soviet government.

Arranger Frank Erickson (1923 – 1996) was born and raised in Spokane, Washington. He began his instrumental career at the age of eight, playing piano, and at age ten, beginning trumpet (his preferred instrument). In high school, Erickson wrote his first composition for band, The Fall of Evening. After briefly attending the University of Washington, he served with the United States Army Air Forces from 1942 to 1946. In the service, he worked as a weather forecaster and also arranged music for several army bands. After the war, Erickson worked as a jazz arranger, mainly for Earle Spencer and His Orchestra (1946); he also played trumpet in the band. As he wrote music and studied composition, Frank Erickson developed an interest in getting a degree and eventually enrolled at University of Southern California to further his studies in composition. While there, he began arranging half-time shows for the USC marching band. By the time he graduated, he had many published band compositions. He graduated from USC with a Bachelor of Music degree in 1950. The next year he went back to USC, and graduated again with a Master of Music degree in 1951. His master thesis was about his own music.

Erickson lectured at University of California, Los Angeles, in 1958. He then became a professor of music at San Jose State University. The 1950s were prolific years for Erickson. His publications of works such as Balladair, Air for Band, Fantasy for Band, and Toccata for Band were immediately successful and are still popular in the concert band world. He is also widely known for his book Arranging for the Concert Band, widely used in college music composition courses.

In 1953, Erickson married Mary Theresa McGrorty. They had three sons. Mary died in 1975 at the age of 53 years. On August 15, 1981 he married Mary Ann Smith. For most of his life, he enjoyed distance swimming. Erickson passed away in Oceanside, CA, on Oct. 21, 1996, at the age of 75.

The music for Folk Dances was provided for the band by Barbara and David Cotton.