ROYAL CORONATION OVERTURE by Dr. Patrick Brill is a contemporary take on the program overture model of the 19th Century, a genre most commonly heard in concert hall performances, as well as church services and royal coronation ceremonies. This studio recording of the piece is also available in a Dolby Atmos immersive audio format, placing listeners directly into the lavish fanfare by which this music is historically accompanied.
Today, Patrick is our featured artist in the “Inside Story,” a blog series exploring the inner workings and personalities of our composers and performers. Read on to learn about his various intellectual pursuits outside of music, from the study of multiple foreign languages to history, aviation, martial arts, and more…
What have been your biggest inspirations on your musical journey?
Undoubtedly, some of the most important compositional inspirations of my musical life have been the musical works of Robert Schumann, Mozart, Beethoven, J.S. Bach, Handel, the a cappella vocal works of Palestrina and Victoria, as well as the works of many other great composers from the several periods or epochs of Western classical music.
Where and when are you at your most creative?
In terms of where I compose, I am most creative in my home, particularly in my music office where I have a piano, and most of my music library, which consists of books and scores. Although I can find inspiration in other settings, such as in the countryside, and in other places, my home is where I am typically most creative.
In terms of when I am most creative, normally, my compositional work is done in the afternoons and evenings, often staying up very late at night. Thus, it seems that evenings tend to be the time that I am most creative.
What are your passions beyond music?
Some of the many things that are passions of mine beyond the study and composition of music include theology, philosophy, history, aviation, martial arts, and foreign languages. Among foreign languages that I have studied are German, Latin, French, and some Chinese.
What is the greatest performance you’ve ever seen, and what made it special?
Probably the greatest live performance of music that I ever experienced occurred in the early 1980s when I heard Brahms’ Symphony No. 2 by the Minnesota Orchestra, conducted by guest conductor Erich Leinsdorf, the legendary German maestro. I was astounded by the magnificent expression and interpretation that the conductor brought to the performance of this great work. I also realized that the orchestra was profoundly inspired by Leinsdorf’s conception of the piece, and that they had more talent than I hitherto realized. These circumstances ultimately inspired the audience to the point that most of the listeners were so moved that they were on their feet spontaneously clapping and shouting bravos before the final chords of the last movement had dissipated in the hall.
What were your first musical experiences?
My first musical experiences were when I was a small boy hearing the organ and the choir at our church on Sundays. This included Low Mass, which usually featured the organ playing hymns, as well as an occasional High Mass, which included the organ and the choir together. As a young boy I also experienced my mother playing the piano at home. She had had six years of classical piano training when she was a young girl, and she enjoyed playing classical pieces for the rest of the family.
Additionally, from the age of about 6 years old, I sang in grade school, which every year included mandatory participation in singing, and other musical activities. Also, at the age of 9 years old, I took private classical guitar lessons for approximately 9 months.
If you weren’t a composer, what would you be doing?
If I were not a composer, I would continue my work as a musicologist and music educator. This is because I have a love for studying and teaching people about the great composers and their magnificent music. There is also today, still a great need to expose the great classics, especially to young people, because they have a right to their Western classical musical heritage, and they are not getting enough in the primary and secondary educational system. Now if there is not enough exposure, there will be little if any intuitive familiarity with these great classics; and if there is no intuitive familiarity with these classics, there can be no real appreciation of their beauty and profundity.
Dr. Patrick J. Brill is an American composer born and raised in Minneapolis/St. Paul MN. He has composed numerous classical compositions including a cappella sacred vocal works, instrumental chamber compositions, symphonic orchestral pieces, and compositions for both choir and orchestra. Dr. Brill composes with style predicated on a return to Western classical aesthetic principles.
