The guest conductor-composer engagements I have had over the years in the Dakotas with high school, college, university, community, and professional ensembles rank among the most satisfying ones I have experienced anywhere. While they may rank near the bottom of the 50 states in terms of population, my ten engagements in the Dakotas (four North, six South) certainly demonstrate no shortage whatsoever of musically talented and dedicated individuals there. And that talent and dedication when combined with seemingly unlimited quantities of Dakotan wholesomeness, honesty, strong work ethic, and even stronger family values and traditions epitomize some of the finest and most important qualities of our heritage as Americans. A Dakota Rhapsody honors those qualities.
While I absolutely love both Dakotas, this work, commissioned by the South Dakota Intercollegiate Band, celebrates the “Mount Rushmore State.” Incidentally, if I ever get around to composing an opera, the life of Mount Rushmore sculptor Gutzon Borglum stands alone at the very top of artistically suitable and dramatically appropriate potential subjects. An analysis or bar-by-bar explanation of A Dakota Rhapsody seems rather unimportant here. Of far greater importance is my sincere hope that conductors, players, and audiences alike will both hear and feel a quintessentially American pioneering spirit with the open expanses of the prairie landscape of the "East River" region, and the inspirational beauty and breathtaking contrasts of the "West River" region.
Dakota Rhapsody was premiered by the South Dakota Intercollegiate Band with the composer conducting on March 3, 2007 in Pierre, South Dakota.
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