Entry #1 Mosaics and Sagrada

    Hello everyone. My name is Ryan Banks, I am a trumpet player taking a Brass Ensemble Literature Class in my Masters Program at the University of Iowa, and for my Blog Project, I will post on here once a week about a Brass Ensemble and a piece that they have performed, then I will relate it to a game that I like to play, these games could be board games or card games. I hope that I am able to create a bridge between people who like music and people who like to play games, and show that they are more related than we think!

Mosaics: (Anthony Plog)

https://open.spotify.com/album/7HbPOGrEKelRt99qrwWZFF?si=FOQjFztASESCVzOTIHvudw  

    The piece that I picked for today's post is Mosaics by Anthony Plog. Anthony Plog is an outstanding musician and composer, starting on the trumpet when he was very young, he has not only played in many professional orchestras and ensembles, but he has also written a prolific amount of music for all instruments, especially brass. This piece is written for Brass Quintet, two trumpets/flugelhorns, a french horn, trombone and tuba. Plog wrote this piece in 1997 under the National Endowment for the Arts and he wrote it for the American Brass Quintet. The American Brass Quintet then released an Album called Quintessence in 2000 where they premiered the piece. It is about 13 minutes long and has 4 movements. The American Brass Quintet was founded in 1960 and is one of the most premier Brass Quintets in the world. They have a residency at Julliard and aim to promote brass chamber music through education. 

    I really enjoy this piece, it has a very unique style and sound to it. Apart from the name, the colors and sounds associated with this piece, are what drew me to talk about the game Sagrada. A Mosaic is a picture or pattern that is formed from colored or stained glass or other material. Sagrada is a game about creating your very own stained glass window. Players take turns rolling colored dice and selecting one each turn to put into their "window". Dice that are the same color or number cannot touch, and with a very limited and random options each turn, this game makes for a strategic yet relaxing game. At the end, not only do you calculate points, but you can compare your "window" to see who created a work of art while still racking up points. 

    Whether it be a piece of music called Mosaic or a Board game called Sagrada, lots of colors and textures and sounds can often be combined to create something beautiful, and although at the beginning of the piece, or first round of the game, you may not see it, just wait and be patient, and it will appear.