Participating ensembles will commission a new 6- to 8-minute Grade 4 band piece called Fearless Canyon. 

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A few years ago, I read a strategy for overcoming anxiety that I still think about often. In this scenario, you imagine your specific worries placed in the context of the Grand Canyon and see how small they suddenly become. 

I always picture a different real-life space, though. I imagine the Rio Grande Gorge near Taos, New Mexico, with its sweeping desert views, a path winding alongside the ravine, a bridge that spans the gorge, and the view straight down from that bridge. Planes soar overhead; birds swoop carelessly into the canyon. In that place, even before I knew of this anxiety trick, it was easy to put worries into perspective.

In Fearless Canyon, players and audience members will experience how it feels to mitigate anxiety with a series of ever-shifting perspectives. Even the largest concerns seem smaller from a bird's eye view, or within the overwhelming hugeness of a canyon itself. This colorful piece will end vibrant, rich, and full.