THE STORY BEHIND
Flight of Valor is a musical piece written by
James Swearingen as a memorial for the victims of
United Airlines Flight 93, which crashed in
Somerset County, Pennsylvania, during the
September 11, 2001, attacks.
It was commissioned in 2002 by the Somerset County Community Band
[1].
The president of the Community Band wanted to commemorate the 15th anniversary of the Band by commissioning an original piece of music. He contacted James Swearingen, the favorite composer of the Community Band's director, to write the piece. When Swearingen realized Somerset's proximity to
Shanksville, both thought it fitting to have the piece honor the heroes of United Airlines Flight 93. Without a grant to cover part of the cost, the project was not possible, and so the Somerset Eagles Aerie 1801 and Ladies Auxiliary stepped forward to pay the entire amount. Swearingen agreed to write the piece with enough time for the Band to practice for the one-year anniversary Community Memorial Concert, on the evening of September 11, 2002.
The piece begins with a light melody played on the
clarinet. This militaristic tune suggests the call heard by the passengers of the plane to serve as soldiers that day. The rest of the band joins in to play a fanfare, which fades into the middle and lower woodwinds playing the
hymn "
It Is Well with My Soul" by
Philip Bliss and
Horatio Spafford.
The brass later joins in the hymn, which is interrupted by a quick rhythmic section marked by changing meter and driving percussion. This exemplifies the period of time when the terrorists seized control of the aircraft. The
trombones and other low brass bring a break in the action with a bold
fugue, representing the phone calls made to family and decision on a course of action. There is a return to the rhythmic section as the passengers try to overtake the plane, before a dissonant and frantic section marks the final fight for control, whose end is marked by a grand pause.
Breaking the silence of the crash itself, the low brass plays mournful chords, followed by the woodwind soloists leading the band back to the hymn "It is Well With My Soul," to reflect on the heroics of the passengers. The clarinets reprise their militaristic march from the beginning of the piece, and the piece builds to a furious and triumphant climactic finish.
Flight of Valor (
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