SENTINELLE

Sentinelle, composed during the Spring months of 2018, was premiered by the Red River Wind Orchestra in Shreveport, Louisiana on June 24, 2018. The work is dedicated to the memory of Michelle Williams Hanzlik (1943 – 2017), daughter of the renowned composer Clifton Williams. The composer writes:

Michelle became a dear friend in 2009 when we began collaboration on a project to publish her Father’s unpublished catalog of compositions for band and orchestra.

We spent hours on the phone and met more than a handful of times at conventions

and concert events. She was as devoted to her family as anyone I’ve ever met and

watched fastidiously over her Father’s music and his legacy. She had great musical

instincts, was herself a harpist, and had encyclopedic knowledge of the Clifton

Williams oeuvre. The title Sentinelle is derived from a combination of the word

“sentinel” and the name Michelle. Her presence in any gathering was larger-than-life. Her spirit, heart, humor, and passion were known to everyone she encountered. I hope the music reflects these traits. The knowing listener will also find in

Sentinelle whiffs of the Clifton Williams style and musical vocabulary; intentional

gestures to honor a deeply devoted daughter and her revered Father. The theme at Measure 10 is derived from the letters of Michelle’s name, i. e., M = mi = E, I = C, H = B, L = la.

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