program notes by composition > C > Centennial Fanfare - March

Centennial Fanfare - March

Roger Nixon

Centennial Fanfare-March was commissioned by the Modesto Junior College Symphonic Band on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the founding of its namesake city in California. The music was first performed in 1970, during the festivities of Modesto's Centennial Ball.

Roger Nixon (b.1921) was born and raised in California's Central Valley. He studied clarinet at Modesto Junior College and received a degree in 1941 at the University of California at Berkeley. He served four years of active duty in the Navy during World War II then returned to earn an M.A. and later a Ph.D. He was on the music faculty at Modesto Junior College and then at San Francisco State College where he is now Professor Emeritus of Music.

Most of Nixon's works are for band. He has also composed for orchestra, chamber ensembles, piano, choral ensembles, as well as song cycles and an opera. Among his many awards are five grants from the National Endowment for the Arts.

Last updated on April 2, 2012 by Palatine Concert Band