Helios (trumpet and fixed media)

Description

Click here to view the perusal score for Helios.

Listen to Alex Wilson’s recording of Helios:

Discography:

Alexander Wilson, VOLANTE, released September 2022 on Summit Records.

Pedagogical recognition:

Helios is identified in Jeffrey W. Doll’s lecture dissertation (2023, Ball State University) as part of the standard repertoire of solo trumpet music for undergraduate trumpet students in the United States.

Program notes:

I cannot tell you how many pieces I’ve started writing for Alex Wilson over the years.

Granted, our journey together thus far hasn’t spanned eons and generations—I met him in the fall of 2014, when I was a sophomore and he was a first-year doctoral student and my trumpet TA—but since the very beginning, Alex has been a staunch believer in my composing and a fierce advocate for continuing my journey with my instrument. He was among the first of my teachers to tell me I could choose not to sound like everyone else (as long as I could play just as well). The imprints he’s left on my life, and particularly my trumpet playing, have helped shape many of my artistic decisions and priorities. He’s the rare linchpin in my musical lineage that makes sure I remain whole; without his guidance at a critical time in my education, I’m not sure I’d still be playing or writing for the trumpet.

When people become that important in your life, and you’re a composer, you write them things. Or, at least, you try to. Alex has always been a bit of a special case. By the time I met him, he was already absolutely shredding the Paganini violin concerto, and as such, I spent bits and pieces of several years trying to write something that would be difficult enough to feel worth giving him. (He didn’t know this until reading these notes, but there are probably a half-dozen sketches and drafts floating around my apartment that have “for Alex” hastily scribbled at the top.) And although almost none of those scraps of music ever made it onto his stand, he’s constantly encouraged and enabled me to write pieces that reveled in challenge. He’s funded several of my works, including commissioning both Earthquake City and Storm Warning for his students’ trumpet ensembles, and he’s played on still more of my work dating back almost to the week we met. So when we decided it was time to write him a solo piece, I knew I’d have to push myself. Hard.

Helios isn’t the end-all, be-all piece I’m going to write Alex someday, but it’s a significant step in that direction. The work charts the course of the day: the first two minutes or so chronicle the sleepy beginnings of the dawn; midday arrives with a chorus of shrill sounds; dusk is ushered in by a subtle wave of synths. The piece circles back around, at the end, to material reminiscent once more of the dawn, and the cycle begins again. The trumpet lines emerge from and disappear back into the tape deck, crafting a symbiosis between soloist and accompaniment that I dearly love but so rarely get to see in performance. If you, dear reader, are taking this on and you’re anyone other than Alex, you’ve got big shoes to fill. There’s good news, though: I believe in you, and so does he. Take the reins and run with it.

Run time: approx. 8’30”. Range: G#3-Bb5 (opt. up to D6, octave down provided). Performance notes provided in the score.

Frequently asked: May I chop up your program notes?
Answer: Please don’t! My notes are in many cases my only opportunity to speak directly to your audience. If limited program space is a consideration, consider linking them to this page via a QR code and/or reading them aloud for your audience during your set.
Can I download materials forever? (or: I can’t download my materials anymore! Help!)
Answer: As long as my website is functional and the materials are stored there, yes. HOWEVER, I strongly encourage all performers to download all your performance materials immediately after purchase—technical difficulties can occur on both my end and yours, and I’d hate to leave you without your materials if a problem arises! NOTE: An updated 2026 edition of this piece, complete with a hyperlegible edition for folks who may benefit from it, has replaced the old file. If you purchased Helios previously and can no longer access your materials, please drop me an email using the information on my Contact page. Include a copy of the invoice or receipt you got with your original purchase and be sure “replacement score” is in the subject line for a faster resolution!
What is the Atkinson Hyperlegible edition?
Answer: The Atkinson Hyperlegible edition is a new, second version of the score that delivers along with my original. This edition exclusively uses a typeface (Atkinson Hyperlegible) that is designed to be friendlier for low-vision and dyslexic folks. It automatically delivers with all scores composed in 2025 or later, and I am in the process of retroactively adding these additions for new purchases of older works. If you have previously purchased or commissioned a piece of mine and would benefit from an Atkinson Hyperlegible edition, please drop me an email using the information on my Contact page and I will get you a PDF ASAP at no charge!

Known performances:

Got one I’m missing? Let me know! (And performers: if you see a name on here that you no longer use, I will fix it! Please send me an email with your old name, what you’d like it changed to, and where it appears.)

• 12/1/2023, Elliott Morrison, Memorial University of Newfoundland and Labrador, Newfoundland, Canada (Canadian premiere). Watch Elliott’s performance here.
• 4/29/2023, Sawyer Prichard, Florida State University, FL.
• 4/4/2023, CJ Waldrop, Furman University, Greenville, SC. Watch CJ’s performance here.
• 3/29/2023, Evelyn Szilagyi, Grand Valley State University, Allendale, MI.
• 3/2/2023, Brett Long, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY. Watch Brett perform Helios here.
• 3/1/2023, Brett Long, University of Louisville, KY.
• 2/28/2023, Brett Long, University of Virginia’s College at Wise, VA.
• 2/23/2023, Devin Michaelis, University of Idaho, Moscow, ID.
• 9/26/2021, Alex Wilson, Grand Valley State University, Allendale, MI (premiere).

About the current cover photo:

Taken by me at San Buenaventura State Beach on unceded Chumash and Mitsqanaqan land in 2018.
Previous editions (before fall 2026) included a stock photo. To ensure that no generative AI art is used in my covers, I am transitioning to entirely self-made art for my covers as I capture appropriate photos (or rediscover them in my camera roll).