Katahj Copley (b. 1998)
Carrollton, Georgia native, Katahj Copley (he/him/his) premiered his first work, Spectra, in 2017 and hasn’t stopped composing since. As of 2017, Katahj has written over 100 works, including pieces for chamber ensembles, large ensembles, wind ensembles, and orchestra. His compositions have been performed and commissioned by universities, organizations, and professional ensembles, including the Cavaliers Brass, Carroll Symphony Orchestra, California Band Director Association, Admiral Launch Duo, and the Atlanta Wind Symphony. Katahj has also received critical acclaim internationally with pieces being performed in Canada, the United Kingdom, Japan, China, and Australia.
Katahj received two Bachelor of Music degrees from the University of West Georgia in Music Education and Composition in 2021. He is currently studying composition with Omar Thomas at the University of Texas at Austin.
Aside from composing, Katahj is an excited educator who teaches young musicians the joy of discovering music and why music is a phenomenal language.
“Music for me has always been this impactful thing in my life. It can soothe, it can enrage, it can quiet, and it can evoke emotions that are beyond me and this world we live in. I believe that music is the ultimate source of freedom and imagination. The most freedom I have had as a musician was through composing. Composition is like me opening my heart and showing the world my drive, my passion, and my soul.”
Heaven at Night (2019)
One day, I fell upon Sarah William’s poem, The Old Astronomer to His Pupil. Published posthumously in 1868, the poem is regarded as the best the author has written. In the poem, Williams writes:
Though my soul may set in darkness, it will rise in perfect light;
I have loved the stars too truly to be fearful of the night.
These two lines are the inspiration behind my tone poem, Heaven at Night. The piece is centered around the idea of acceptance toward the unknown, the ability to not be in fear of what comes next. I want to share with the world that past the darkness of death, there will be a Heaven waiting for your peaceful arrival.
I would like to dedicate Heaven at Night to Ann Wilson- a soul that has carried me out of many of my own fears.
-Program note by Composer
Instrumentation
for Wind Ensemble
Performer
Lamont Wind Ensemble
Conducted by Sarah Wagner
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5 июн 2023
