Commissioned by Furman University for the inauguration of its 12th president, Jay Bocook's "Gloriana" is based on "The Faerie Queene," an incomplete English epic poem written by Edmund Spenser and dedicated to Queen Elizabeth I. In the poem, Queen Elizabeth is represented as the faerie queene herself, Gloriana. This stately work for winds and percussion has a regal quality enhanced by soaring melodies and punctuated with fanfare-like brass figures. The optional organ part provides an added dimension to the overall uplifting effect.
