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Duration: 5:50

Instrumentation

Solo Clarinet Virtuoso with Young Band Accompaniment (Grade 3)

Flute 1-2
Oboe
Bassoon
Clarinet 1-2
Bass Clarinet 
Alto Sax 1-2
Tenor Sax
Bari Sax
Tpt. 1-2
Hn. 1-2
Tbn. 1-2
Euphonium/Baritone
Tuba
Timpani (4 drums, F, D, C, E)

Pitched Percussion:
Glockenspiel
Xylophone
Marimba

Non-pitched Percussion: 
Gong, Sus. Cym., Tri.,
S.D., B.D., Cr. Cym.,
China Cym. (or different sounding cym.)

Program Notes:

One day while in prayer, I had an inspiration of a blue rose. On that same day, I coincidentally found an artificial blue rose in a drawer that I had forgotten about, which inspired me to write the piece.  After some research, I learned that because the blue rose does not naturally occur, it symbolizes the mysterious, impossible, and the supernatural. In folktales of various cultures, the blue rose typically represents a mythical magical flower which symbolizes the pursuit of the unattainable.  One popular tale features a princess who declares a common white rose to be the "Blue Rose," establishing a true understanding between her and the minstrel she chooses to marry—the idea that pure love surpasses the impossible.

Like the blue rose, the clarinet’s opening gesture and virtuosic passages depict the supernatural and the extraordinary.  The band’s accompaniment represents the spirit of challenging the impossible and following your dreams.

Commissioned by: a consortium led by Gabrielle Baffoni, Professor of Music, Clarinet at Southeast Missouri State University.

Consortium members include:
Liz Aleksander, University of Tennessee-Martin
Peter Bianca, South Shore Conservatory
Katherine Breeden, PhD at Technological University, Dublin, Ireland
Alexandra Doyle, Northeastern State University
Elizabeth Gunlogson, University of New Hampshire
Lilly Haley
Jesse Krebs, Truman State University
Sarah Manasreh-Decker, The University of Alabama at Birmingham
Amy McCann, Murray State University
Kathy Mulcahy, George Mason University
Jeff & Jaclyn Quamo, Mesa & Chandler-Gilbert Community Colleges
Katie Rice, Washington State University
Michael Rowlett, University of Mississippi
Robert Spring, Professor Emeritus, Arizona State University
Jana Starling, Western University, Ontario, Canada
Suzanne Tirk, The University of Oklahoma

Premiere: Jan. 21, 2026, conducted by Ron Sikes at Jefferson R-VII School District (Festus, Missouri), with Gabrielle Baffoni, soloist