program notes by composition > T > Toboggan Ride

Toboggan Ride

Stan Applebaum

Toboggan Ride A piercing dissonance - created by trumpets; wildly trilling clarinets; and splashing, rolling cymbals - launches our toboggan on its fun-filled ride downhill. The theme is first stated by low clarinets, then all woodwinds. An oboe solo, supported by French horns and saxes, accompanies the toboggan as it glides through a clearing between trees. Orchestrating the opening dissonance a fourth higher, our toboggan races down a second slope and into the second theme. Constant shifting of orchestral timbres helps conjure up images of a happy, care-free winter setting. An abrupt eighth-note figure played by the full ensemble brings our toboggan face-to-face with a snowbank, and the end of the ride.

Composer Stan Applebaum (b.1922) has had a rich and diverse career that spans almost half a century. His compositions and arrangements include 35 Top Ten Hits and several No. 1 singles for popular artists, such as Ben E. King, Bobby Vinton, Neil Sedaka, the Drifters, the Coasters, Connie Francis, and Brook Benton. He has written and produced music for over 1500 commercials and has also written for symphony orchestras.

Last updated on December 27, 2015 by Palatine Concert Band