During a recent concert, I explained to the audience that one of my favorite things about being a wind band conductor is how we are surrounded by new music. Our craft is constantly changing as we see new composers find their voice, or experiment with new sounds and techniques.

While I love exploring new music, as an educator I am constantly reminded that in order to understand how we view music for winds today it is important to study and learn where our craft came from, and how it developed over time. This text book is meant to help with just that, by being an affordable resource that could be used in conjunction with a collegiate course on wind literature. The twelve chapters here explore music written for winds from as early as 1551 through 2022, when the bulk of this document was written.

My initial list of pieces for this book was shaped from my studies in wind literature courses at both Louisiana State University and Texas Tech University. The pieces that are listed in chapters 1-11 are thought of us great works of art that have stood the test of time. Please note, that this list is not definitive. There are many other pieces that could be included throughout these chapters (and may very well be in future editions of this text). When considering that a wind literature course is typically taught in one or two semesters, there is only so much music that can be learned in a brief time and so this list was made tighter.

The 21st century has already seen so many amazing works, but how do we know which pieces will stand the test of time? While there are many composers creating incredible compositions for winds today, in order to design the outline for chapter 12, a survey was sent to Director of Bands at Division I universities in order to gather ideas on what pieces written since 2000 should be included.

In closing, I want to express gratitude to my teacher, Sarah McKoin. Dr. McKoin encouraged me to embark on this document for my final project of my D.M.A. at Texas Tech University. Her guidance helped this project become what it is today, and I am grateful for her. I would also like to say thank you to the colleagues that took the time to contribute to the survey for the final chapter, as well as my friends and family that have supported me throughout my education and career.

-Lisa Tatum