James Barnes

All Pleasant Things Op. 100

Subtitle 'A Song for Barbara', this piece is dedicated to Barbara Beuhlman (1936-1997), an incredibly talented teacher, a fine musician, and a first-rate organizer, who in her later years ran the Midwest International Band and Orchestra Clinic. The composer has written of her, 'In a way, Barbara always seemed to me to be the 'Emily Dickinson of the band world': she was quiet, shy and possessed her own soft dignity. And, like Dickinson, she probably never realized how much good she had done in the world, and how many people's lives were affected by her. People like Barbara seldom do. And even if she did, she would never have told anyone: that wasn't her style. So this is a song for Barbara; just for her.'