Composed: 2016
Premiered: 2017, Vancouver
Duration: 2 minutes

Hullabaloo, a fanfare for Canada’s Sesquicentennial, was written just before November 8, 2016, which tells you quite a lot about it. This is a time when I feel particularly glad to be Canadian, yet very wary of what is to come. I can’t help but wonder how much longer we’ll get to be the lucky ones. Incidentally, the word “hullabaloo” is formed in part from the Scots’ term “baloo”, which means lullaby. Somehow, the word for a song that gently lulls a child to sleep has morphed into a word for commotion and uproar, although it may also (hopefully) indicate a noisy celebration.

Program note by the late composer.