312 East Agincourt Avenue.
First page of the score of We Few.
On 25 October 2015, Agincourt, Iowa ("the town that time forgot and geography misplaced") celebrates its 158th birthday with a major museum exhibition at the Rourke Art Museum, a series of public presentations, and other far less formal events. It is also the 600th anniversary of the Battle of Agincourt, Henry V's decisive victory over the French in the Hundred Years' War, a subject I have treated beforein the large-scale work, commissioned to commemorate the 150th anniversary of Agincourt, Iowa, Agincourt Fanfare, for brass and timpani. It is always an honor and pleasure as a citizen-composer to supply music for important public events. I was particularly intrigued by this project because Agincourt, Iowa -- the town for whom I serve as composer-in-residence -- does not exist.
For this year's festivities, curate Ronald Ramsay has commissioned We Few, a 7-minute scena for voice and piano based on William Shakespeare's great St. Crispian's Day oration (Henry V, IV, 3) in memory of his father, Clifford Ramsay (1917-1980). It will receive its world premiere at the Rourke Art Museum at 2 PM as part of the closing reception of the exhibition.
Click here to read an article about the event.
Click here to read about the Rourke Art Museum.