Description

It begins in quiet, with innocence, then tells the story of longing for home as never before... GOD BLESS AMERICA may well be played alone, but as you will see on the Chapter 5:8 CD and see "literally" on the THAT WE MIGHT LIVE DVD, is a most historic and history-making conclusion to Kakehasi: That We Might Live.

Friends... This much beloved version of GOD BLESS AMERICA, as indeed you will see in the testimonials of VETERANS and Conductors below, is neverthless NOT available in The United States of America. Despite the fact that there are over 100 arrangements which have been granted permission, this one has not. The reasons are left to your imagination.

For those of you who appreciate irony, it is available via Thomas Rundel in Germany.

Forty-five minutes before getting on a plane to France, where GOD BLESS AMERICA would be played on OMAHA BEACH, Thomas was able to secure an international permission and license. As I left for OMAHA BEACH, Thomas sent the following email.

"Viel Erfolg in OMAHA BEACH". (Good luck on Omaha Beach.)

Now, see IN EINEM ANDEREN LICHT and view that in a new light as well.

I DO have hard copies of the German-published traditional music sets. This work is NOT available in PDF, but it is possible to order the German edition from STORMWORKS® USA.

This piece is from the STORMWORKS... Chapter V∞ CD.

Testimonials

"Steve, words cannot express the soaring emotions which one experiences when hearing this monumental work. You deserve the Medal of Freedom for this piece of patriotism, especially for your success in having the spirited cooperation of a once-despised and brutal enemy. I salute you, Sir!" -Joseph R. Priestley, LCDR, USN (Ret.) Served in WWII, Korea & Vietnam

"Yesterday, while awaiting our area honor band audition startup, I was getting some paperwork done and listening to my StormPod. (What a wonderful tool that is!)

At one point in my teaching career, I considered the Carmen Dragon setting of "America the Beautiful" and Luigi Zaninelli's "Star-Spangled Banner" to be the benchmarks of patriotic music for band.

The bar has been raised with your treatments of some of our nation's cherished music. Only someone with a passion for this country could express what you have in "America the Brave", "Star", "God Bless America" and others, most especially, That We Might Live.

I don't think I've ever told you before how much I appreciate hearing, no,
make that experiencing, those pieces. Thank you so very much!" Tom Tapscott, OSD

"Hi Steve - I had to let you know what a tremendous success your "God Bless America" has been for our program. Beyond the standing ovation and the tears of joy coming from our audience at our spring concert, you must know about one particular life you touched through your music.

We recently performed your work as the finale to our concert at Downtown Disney in Orlando, Florida, a venue that's always bustling with tourists. After the performance, a very frail, old gentleman made it a point to track me down as I exited the stage. He wore a cap identifying himself as a Korean War Veteran. With all the strength he could muster, he raised his quivering hand and extended it to me. He looked me straight in the eye, where I could see tears forming in his own, and as emphatically as he could, he said this about your piece: "Thank you for THAT!" No more words were needed.

This was truly one of the most moving experiences in my career. Just as I thanked him for his service, I am also grateful to have had the privilege of sharing your music in such a powerful way with someone who needed it the most. Lifting the spirits of even just one of our veterans makes your efforts worth all the while.

Thank you for allowing me and my students to be part of it. I look forward to future collaboration. Best wishes for much continued success." Jim McCrann

"Stephen's new CD, Chapter 5:8 "Writings on the Wall" is indeed a historic groundbreaking album and a total artistic triumph. The Japanese military band and American voices superbly deliver a phenomenal performance of music that is at once gripping and spellbinding! From the moving mega work Kakehashi to the great uplifting rendition of God Bless America this double CD set is packed with masterworks. Cuba skillfully weaves music which creates two distinct atmospheres - one of the fun party nature of Tropicana - like casinos and the other of the oppression of the island's present dictatorial regime. Melillo migrates back and forth between these two moods with absolute musical mastery and with the full command of all his instrumental resources. The Violin Concerto, on the other hand, symbolizes the utmost in modern Romanticism. It is an outstanding expressive work which puts the violin through a myriad of expressive and technical paths. Bravo to Melillo on this fantastic achievement!" -Aldo Rafael Forte, Composer

"Take a deep breath. Now: Listen to the creation of the world as seen by Stephen Melillo, a composer who confesses his personal God-link in such works as GODSPEED and SPEECH OF ANGELS, each of which opened the two sections of the program. It was like this: a shattering of the former silence, and then an opening, an awakening of the spirit (in GODSPEED) after which a choir of sounds never heard before (SPEECH OF ANGELS) brings a message of comfort and hope.

Melillo is to wind music what Beethoven was to the symphony orchestra, and he follows a Beethovenesque design of increasing the musical tension almost to the breaking point, receding, and then reaching again. It is superlative musical craftsmanship and inspiring to hear." -Marvin Sosna, Special to The Tribune