Watauga by Josh Spaulding

Watauga is a word that is very familiar to those who live in the Appalachian region of Tennessee and North Carolina. There are several towns, two bodies of water, a residential college, several businesses, and even a newspaper named Watauga that exist in the region. As valued as the word is however, nobody seems to know exactly what it means. Various sources cite the word’s definition as being a Native American term whose precise meaning has been lost. More than likely, the term is of Cherokee origin since that tribe used to inhabit the region before colonization. One suggested definition that I found particularly intriguing was “the land beyond”. I found it quite interesting that they would connect a word typically associated with a body of water to something more profound and spiritual. If you ever visit the area associated with the word though, it makes more sense. There is a beautifully majestic sense of ancient power and mystical splendor that can be felt in the mountains, in the forest, and even in the air when you explore the wilderness of Appalachia. I was fortunate to spend my childhood surrounded by this natural beauty, and even now that I live in the Midwest, I always feel called to come visit and explore the mountains again and again. This percussive fanfare is my way of paying homage to the epic natural beauty of my homeland and an effort to encapsulate into musical form the spellbinding power that the mountainous wilderness holds. This work was commissioned and dedicated to the outstanding students of the Science Hill High School percussion ensemble as well as my first percussion teacher, Dan McGuire, to whom I am deeply grateful for all of his guidance on setting my musical journey off on the right foot.