Commissioned by a consortium of 20 high school and university bands coordinated by Scott Hanna of the University of Texas at Austin, Downshifting is inspired by Welcher's joy of bicycle riding. Welcher explains in the program note: When I decided to write a piece for band that was basically entertaining and uplifting, it made perfect sense to call it Downshifting... With three gears on the front sprocket and seven on the rear, it's possible to keep one's legs going at a constant speed (for me, q = 126) while the bike itself may be moving very slowly or very quickly. I determined to capitalize on this in writing Downshifting, which keeps the same mathematical inner pulse,'shifting' (with a ratchet) as the terrain changes.