The Vikings was commissioned by Dan Chaston and the Viewmont (Bountiful, UT) High School Bands. When Dan asked me to write a piece for his concert band, he suggested that I consider writing a march, since he played one each year at the state festival and was always looking for ones that were new or different. He told me that his wind ensemble had played Hindemith’s March from Symphonic Metamorphosis the year before and that a march like that might be fun. In other words, a march that doesn’t exactly sound like a traditional march. I immediately focused on the idea of writing a dark, angry march. The piece follows all of the traditional march concepts, including the standard form, repeats, key changes, and even a piccolo solo over the trio. When I finished the work and needed to give it a name, I discovered something fortuitous….the school nickname is the Vikings….a perfect title!