A so-called "classical suite", such as J.S Bach's well-known French Suites, BWV 812-817 and Partitas, BWV 825-830 can be simply considered as a collection of dance pieces. Dances that were popular during a composer's time, or old ones no-longer danced were integrated altogether as one piece. It can also be considered as a form of a variation using the same tonality or sharing a similar theme. As for this "A la Suite Classique (Classic Suite)", I would say, is a modernized version of a similar concept which includes some newer dances, or a parody of an old form. It comes along as some sort of a brand-new piece that bears an antique taste to it.
The allemande is a German duple meter dance with its roots spanning from the 16th till the beginning of the 17th century. By combining a little tango rhythm, the 1st movement is light and melodic, with a smooth going melody, and a stimulating experience with the irregular meter.
The sarabande is a slow dance in triple meter, and originated from 17th ? 18th century Europe. The 2nd movement is a sarabande combined with the chordal system of a chaconne. It begins ponderously but steadily develops into something with a little "pop" flavor.
The gavotte is a French dance written in 2/2 or 4/4, with a moderate tempo, and is recognized for its half-measure upbeat feature. The 3rd movement is a gavotte, with a habanera rhythm to it. One can savor the tones unique to a wind ensemble with this light orchestration, and the intrigue of an unanticipated transposition in this movement.
The gigue is a lively British dance originating from 16th century. The 4th movement is a dance in 6/8 meter combining the gigue with the Spanish zapateado, with the occasional travesty in a lively rhythm.
"A la suite" in the title is defined as "in the form of a classic suite", but "a la suite" can also be defined with a nuance - "in classic form one after another".
This piece was originally composed in January 1995, under the request of the Euphonium Company , for 4 euphoniums and an accordion, and arranged for a piano duet soon after (both are yet to be published). It initially comprises seven movements, but has been compressed into four for this arrangement for the wind ensemble.
The Festival Wind Orchestra conducted by the composer himself, premiered this wind orchestra rendition at the California Institute of Technology Band Festival (21 April 1996). This composition is considerably light-hearted, unique to the characteristics of a small ensemble, as it was composed then for a small wind ensemble.