My Love Affair with Harriet - Thomas McCauley

My Love Affair with Harriet

Thomas McCauley John J. Cali School of Music Montclair State University

Commissioning a new work from a composer is an exciting adventure for both teacher and students. Having taken part in several such projects, I was thrilled when given the opportunity in the Spring of 2009, through a generous donor, to help bring another new piece into the world. The result of which was Harriet, and this is the story of how we got together.

The commission was made possible through a wonderfully generous man. Mark Hudig (the donor), Robert Aldridge (then the Director of the Cali School of Music), and I met to discuss possible grantees. Although other names were discussed, I lobbied heartily for the Louisiana-native, O’Neal Douglas.

I first became aware of O’Neal Douglas’s work when he appeared at the Midwest Clinic in Chicago in the early 1990’s as Assistant Conductor of a great high school band from Memphis, Tennessee. He wrote a piece especially for that performance: Vigil: For Those Who Do Not Know. Incredibly moved by the piece, and although the work remained unpublished, I contacted Douglas to ask if I might perform his Vigil with an honor band I had been contracted to conduct. Since then, I consider myself fortunate to have performed this work several times, in addition to his piece “Raging Water.”

Dr. O’Neal Douglas has been mentored by and studied with well-known and respected composers and teachers, including David Gillingham, Jere Hutcheson, and Augusta Read Thomas. He earned a D.M.A. in composition from Michigan State University, holds a M. M. degree in composition from Central Michigan University, and credits his teachers and mentors for inspiring him to compose. Having had very little formal training in composition prior to his graduate degree work, his lessons with David Gillingham were revolutionary for the emerging composer. Gillingham “…has a way of seeing where you are headed, and then helping you to get there…”; his ability to help students “build a bridge” from where they are to where they want to be, according to Douglas, are his greatest strengths as a teacher. Likewise, Jere Hutcheson helped push Douglas “out of his comfort zone” to explore more about himself as a composer and a human being, and to help him view the compositional process as a “…complex reflection of who I am…”.

The depth and breadth of Douglas’ work is a testament to his tenacity, dedication, ingenuity, and humanity. Although he was not well known at the time, Douglas’ compositional voice was—and is—most definitely needed, particularly in view of the sometimes banal, cookiecutter, mass-produced, “educational” music of the modern wind band published on a yearly basis. So, Douglas and I met at the Midwest Clinic the following December to talk about the commission.

Remarkably, we were thinking along similar lines in terms of the “content” for the work. Originally, I thought it pertinent to base the composition on Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King’s “I Have a Dream” speech. However, Douglas mentioned that he had wanted to create a work inspired by the life and work of Harriet Tubman “for some time,” and was “waiting for the right time to begin working out the details…”. Since it had not been done before, and since the subject matter was so close to the composer’s heart, we agreed that Harriet Tubman would be the inspiration for this commission.

Working together with Douglas proved to be inspiring and life-altering. Throughout the entire composition process in the months that followed, he contacted me early and often with details about the piece. Open and willing to consider any suggestions, he valued my input. His high level of professionalism, commitment, and engaged creativity allowed his then work—and all

subsequent work—to sing and to sing loudly. In addition to his rigorous training as a composer, Douglas is a fine trombonist and has been a fulltime public school band director. Because of these experiences, his unique insights about each instrument in the wind ensemble, their pallet of colors, and the unique sound combinations that only the modern-day wind band can produce were utilized in the fullest ways possible. Indeed, Harriet was the beneficiary of all of his experience, musicianship, training, and care.

The sources of a work of art, whether by inspiration or materials used, are only a small part of the many processes involved in creating something meaningful and lasting, primarily because such a large percentage of the creative process is subliminal. Still, an examination of the materials used in the creation of a musical composition is at least a small portal into mind and creative spirit of its composer. It is with those limitations in mind that I share the musical materials that make up Harriet.

The score to Harriet is dedicated to “The Cali School of Music Commissioning Project for the Montclair State University Wind Symphony, Thomas McCauley, Conductor. World Premiere Performance, Friday, April 23, 2010, in the Alexander Kasser Theater.”

The instrumentation is as follows:

Piccolo 4 Flutes 2 Oboes 2 Bassoons Contrabassoon Clarinet in Eb 4 Clarinets in Bb 2 Bass Clarinets in Bb 2 Alto Saxes Tenor Sax Baritone Sax 4 Trumpets in Bb 4 Horns in F 4 Trombones (3 Tenor, 1 Bass) Euphonium (2 or more preferred) Tuba Double Bass Piano Timpani Percussion 1: Brake Drum, Glockenspiel,

Vibraphone Percussion 2: Triangle, Maracas, Chimes, Xylophone Percussion 3: Suspended Cymbal, Tam-Tam,

Hi-Hat, Cymbals, Claves, Crotales Percussion 4: Tambourine, Wind Chimes, Marimba Percussion 5: 4 Tom-Toms, 2 Conga Drums,

Crash Cymbals Percussion 6: Bass Drum

Douglas provides the following program note in the score. I provide it here in its entirety:

From childhood throughout my adult life there have been many people from history that I have looked upon as heroes, people who have exhibited courage and a selflessness that goes well beyond the normal boundaries. One of these people is Harriet Ross Tubman, born Araminta Ross (18221913). It was always amazing to me that she escaped to freedom but then took on the responsibility of returning to where she had escaped from to free others to a better life. With slave catchers and bounty hunters on the lookout she put herself in danger many times to help others.

Most of Harriet Tubman's work helping slaves to the north was done by means of the “Underground Railroad,” a large network of people who gave help to fugitive slaves to get to the Northern states of the U.S. or Canada. The system was not actually underground or a railroad but got its name because of its methods. The system did however use railroad terms to describe certain aspects. Rest stops were called stations or depots, people in charge of stations were called stationmasters, and people in charge of moving people from one station to another were called conductors, for which Harriet Tubman was the later. Tubman also became referred to as "Moses", named after the biblical man who led the Jewish population from Egypt. Tubman would later serve as an anti-slavery advocate, participate in the women's rights movement, and serve as a nurse, scout, and spy for the Union Army.

When Harriet Tubman arrived at plantations she used coded songs/spirituals to gather, group and give instructions to slaves for travel northward. These coded songs originated in the churches of African-American slaves. Songs like “Wade in the Water” provided escape instructions in the lyrics. The title of the song is actually an instruction to keep bloodhounds from scenting their tracks. “Follow the Drinking Gourd” not only contained hidden instructions, but also conveyed a de-

tailed map of how to reach Canada. The "Drinking Gourd" referred to the constellation the Big Dipper. Slaves knew that if they followed it they were headed north.

Another favorite song of Harriet Tubman, “Go Down Moses” was used as a signal to let slaves know that she was in the area and that a trip northward was being planned. I chose to use this song as thematic material for this composition because of its compelling nature and its familiarity. Other melodic and harmonic elements of "Harriet" are based on the melodic and harmonic structure of “Go Down Moses.”

I have been waiting for the right opportunity to write a composition inspired by Harriet Tubman for years so when Dr. Thomas McCauley approached me with the possibility I immediately accepted the commission. I've known Dr. McCauley for about fifteen years now and every project we have collaborated on has been a fantastic, spiritual experience. Tom always brings a vibrant dynamic to the music that goes well beyond just the notes on the page, and he is a class act.

One of the main sources of Harriet comes from the spiritual, Go Down, Moses; sewn into the fabric of the work, this melody comes alive across the pages of the three-movement piece.

This spiritual’s process of selection was thorough and significant. While researching materials for use, the coincidental connection between Tubman’s nickname, “Moses,” and the spiritual above haunted the composer. After assessing the components of the spiritual’s adaptability, particularly with regard to the ever-present interval of the minor 6th, Douglas decided that Go Down Moses needed to serve as a major building block in the construction of Harriet.

It is worth noting that much of Douglas’s wind band music centers around small, specific, musical “cells,” which are manipulated in varied and interesting ways throughout the compositional process. In Harriet, however, Douglas’s approach was different. Douglas elaborates:

I usually start with a figure that isn’t yet a fully composed melody. With Harriet, I had a pre-written, full melody, with an associated harmony. So, instead of building the primary theme piece by piece as my writing progresses, revealing the full melodic idea, I already knew what the full melody was going to be. So, there was a lot of working backwards from the full reveal and deconstructing the melody the further back I went.

Harriet is approximately 12 minutes in length, and the program supplied by the composer follows:

Movement I. Araminta's Escape

Harriet Tubman was born Araminta Ross. After her escape she took on the first name Harriet and used her married name of Tubman. My aim in this 1st movement was to represent what must have been a dangerous, terrifying, and anxiety ridden first escape. There are short quotes from the song “Go Down Moses” throughout. For the last section of this movement I used the song “Go Down Moses” to represent her liberation into a new life and her resolve to help others to freedom.

Movement II. Stranger in a Strange Land

This movement represents the solitude of being away from home and family. It was during this time that she finds work to fund her return trips and makes intricate plans to return to Maryland to help free her family and others.

Movement III. Moses

The beginning of this movement returns to the tension and anxiety of participating in the escapes of other slaves including family members, through the "Underground Railroad." The title is a reference to the fact that many referred to Harriet Tubman as “Moses.” In the middle and ending sections of this movement there is a return to the song “Go Down Moses,” sung by the ensemble members along with the percussion section and then later played by the full ensemble.

“Araminta’s Escape” is rhythmically challenging, explosive, and gutty. Harriet Tubman’s birthname, Ariminta Ross, titles this movement. Elaborating on the note above, Douglas notes:

To begin the first movement, I wanted to convey the drama, anxiety, and outright fear that must have been associated with escaping and being chased, not knowing if she would make it or be caught and/or killed.

Douglas accomplishes his goal, as the opening explosion of sound frantically arrests listeners. There is nothing subtle about the opening salvo. The use of both 7/8 and 5/8 simultaneously presents rhythmic insecurity and stability. At times, the music often nearly halts, representing someone “…having to stop for a moment to catch a breath, or being still and suspended, waiting to hear if the hunters were near.” The language used to help performers depict the score are more personal and illustrative than is typically utilized to mark intent, for example, “Relentless”, “Suspended, hovering”, and “Groovacious!” This movement concludes with a full version of the spiritual; notably, this section Douglas composed first. He then, “worked backwards using some of the aforementioned materials derived from the original melody” to formulate the whole movement.

“Stranger in a Strange Land,” the second, more plaintive and contemplative movement (marked, “Sullen”), is a haunting counterpart to its nearly chaotic precursor:

…I wanted a slower pace. The melodic material is derived from the interval of a minor 6th, the interval between the first two notes of the melody from Go Down Moses. I was after a texture that evoked relief to have gotten away, but also a sense of melancholy, thinking about the fact that she had left behind family and friendships. In the ending of this section, I was still after the calming texture, slightly embedded with an undertone that the dangerous task of helping others escape was coming.

Note the importance of the minor 6th from the beautiful English Horn solo (mm 25-42):

The combination of the sparse accompaniment and the singing nature of the above-shown melodic line haunts the whole of the second movement. One of my favorite moments in this movement occurs at letter “C”, when the English Horn begins the final phrase of the theme, but this time joined by an equally haunting obligato in the solo bassoon. The soft, subtle, almost unsettling ending of this movement is equally potent and effective as the violent and chaotic nature of the ending of the prior movement.

“Moses,” the third and final movement, acknowledges the afore-mentioned nickname Tubman acquired during her many trips while leading an untold number of enslaved people north on the so-called Underground Railroad. This movement begins much like the first movement, symbolizing Harriet’s “resolve to return and help others escape the cruelty of captivity.” Douglas weaves together the thematic material from the second movement with the spiritual, and does so in remarkably innovative ways, which includes a wonderfully rhythmically challenging solo for Eb soprano clarinet (“cued” in the Bb clarinet part). About one third into this movement, the composer asks the entire ensemble to sing a verse of Go Down Moses in its entirety. The decision to do this was not arrived at easily:

Originally, I had written this section in an instrumental, choir-like fashion. After consulting with Dr. McCauley, I decided to have the ensemble actually sing the song in a quasi-call and response feeling. I was worried about a vocal section in a band piece, but it worked well, and the section is extremely haunting and effective, especially after all of the turmoil that occurs before it. At the premiere Dr. McCauley’s group sang the section wonderfully; the best singing I’ve ever heard from a group of instrumentalists. Once I got that far I knew I needed some type of loud exclamation of at least the original theme. From there the idea was to finish the piece with a fast coda in the same style as the beginnings of both the first and third movements.

Since its premiere at Montclair State University in 2010, I have performed Douglas’ Harriet numerous times: I programmed it with the 2013 New Jersey AllState Wind Ensemble, performed it an additional two times with my group at Montclair State University, and, most recently, the Montclair State University Wind Symphony performed Harriet on the concert program we presented for the 2019 College Band Directors National Association Conference, held at Arizona State University in Tempe, Arizona. A recording of that concert performance can be found at https://banddirector. com (our archived concert recording can be found under the “Concert Band” heading).

While reading this, one may be asking: Why write now about a commission that happened over a decade ago? My answer: Because many in the United States of America are finally waking up, for more than just a few days at a time, to the systemic inequality present in the judicial system, the economy, and in the ways in which people who are other than white are sometimes treated by society at large. Although Harriet was commissioned, composed, and performed long before the death of George Floyd and the #BlackLivesMatter movement, it is time—past time, really—to seriously consider programming and performing Harriet, and other compositions which reflect our society to help reveal its history. This sort of programming should be done as a matter of common practice, and not just as an occasional nod to what has come to be known as inclusivity, or only as a part of an itinerate, late-to-the-party, education-system based recognition of social injustice and inequality that has existed for centuries in our country. The fact that you are reading a special article dedicated to a wind band piece inspired by the life and work of Harriet Tubman is a testament to the fact that works by and/or inspired by people from often underrepresented groups are not yet standard programming practice. My hope is that, one day, they will be.

The more, and the sooner, we begin commissioning, programming, and performing pieces by, or inspired by, people from underrepresented groups, the sooner such groups will cease to be demarcated as underrepresented, and the sooner we, as large ensemble teacher/conductors can, in our own small ways, help our country create a more perfect union…one student, one rehearsal, and one performance at a time.