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Program Notes The Hounds of Spring was commissioned in 1980 by the John L. Forester Secondary School Symphonic Band of Windsor, Ontario. It is a concert overture in one movement. Its inspiration comes from a poem of the same title written in 1865 by 19th century English poet Algernon Charles Swinburne. According to the composer, it is a musical portrait of young love in springtime, both playful and romantic in character. Aaron Copland’s Outdoor Overture was composed in support of a campaign in New York City known as “American Music for American Youth.” Its goal was to commission the writing of new, significant works for school music programs. Copland, a strong supporter of music education, wrote both a band and orchestral version of this piece, which premiered at the High School of Music and Art in 1938. Australian Up-Country Tune was written for a cappella choir in 1928 by Percy Grainger for a performance at his own wedding to Ella Viola Strom at the Hollywood Bowl. It is an original ballad, which he composed to sound like an Australian folk song. This arrangement by Glenn Cliffe Bainum remains a standard in the concert band repertoire. Its beautiful folk-like melody and intricate linear scoring are classic Percy Grainger. Antonin Dvorak wrote his Symphony No. 9 in E Minor Opus 95 “From the New World” in 1892-93 during his tenure as the Director of the National Conservatory of Music in New York. At the time, his reputation as a symphonist was surpassed only by that of Brahms. Encouraged to write a symphony that embodied “his experiences and feelings in America,” Dvorak immersed himself in American music and culture. He was particularly interested in African-American spirituals. While he did not use any true American melodies in the work, we hear a profound influence of the spiritual in the Finale. Symphony No. 9 was an immediate hit with audiences both in Europe and America. It remains one of the most popular in the symphonic repertoire today.