Flashpoint
Bb Trumpet and Piano
Price: $25.00 (PDF)
Length of the Piece: ~6.5 minutes
Flashpoint is a work of tension and velocity, designed to evoke the moment just before everything changes: the instant a spark ignites, a storm breaks, or a hero takes action.
The piece opens with a slow, ominous introduction: fanfare-like trumpet statements built on open fifths resonate over a piano texture that pulses with quiet anticipation. Set in C minor, the atmosphere is cinematic and shadowed, reflecting pressure building beneath the surface.
After a brief moment of slow, smoldering tension, the music bursts forward. Driving rhythms, bold harmonic shifts, and sweeping lines propel the listener through a whirlwind of motion and energy. Yet even in its velocity, Flashpoint maintains a lyrical core - a reminder that this ignition is not only forceful, but purposeful.
Commissioned by and written for Dr. Julia Bell, Assistant Professor of Trumpet at Texas Tech University.