Description: If you are looking for a little more cowbell, this hit from 1976 is just the thing. Even before the famous Saturday Night Live skit, this tune recorded by Blue Öyster Cult was a pretty big deal!
Description: This beautiful and sensitive composition was written to celebrate the beginning of UNITED SOUND, an organization whose purpose is to put instruments into the hands of special needs students. The beginning section features optional solo opportunities for flute, alto sax and trumpet. From there the piece adds layers of sonorities as the full ensemble builds to the emotional and powerful final strains. Dur: 2:10
Description: Taylor Swift is rockin' the pop charts again with this monster hit from her CD Reputation. Here is an effective version for band featuring the gritty opening and catchy melodies. Dur: 2:15
Description: Here's a beautifully scored lyric piece featuring a flowing melody passed from section to section. There is also a nice variety of lighter, delicate textures contrasted with dramatic full ensemble passages. Composed in memory of a mother and daughter who lost their lives in an automobile accident, this is a sensitive and poignant setting appropriate for times when a memorial is called for. Dur: 3:45
Description: Written as a commission for the Palmetto Consortium of South Carolina, this expansive work explores the delight, wonderment and excitement of a young boy's hopes and dreams. Several stylistic elements combine to depict various emotions and imaginings. In the words of the composer, a boy's dreams are fantastical and mysterious, show great curiosity and yet most importantly, they are innocent and credulous. A terrific and fresh work for winds! Dur: 6:45
Description: From the popular 2009 movie A Christmas Carol (starring Jim Carrey as Scrooge), Alan Silvestri's sparkling main theme is really more of an overture, mixing in familiar carols with memorable original themes. Beautifully paced and effectively scored for band, this is a real holiday treat for the concert stage!
Description: With Disneyland's 50th anniversary celebration in full swing, what could be better than a flashy medley featuring some of the great musical moments associated with this American icon of family entertainment? This fast-paced and terrific-sounding arrangement includes: Fantasmic Main Theme, Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah, It's a Small World, Be Our Guest, Part of Your World, and of course the Mickey Mouse March.
Description: Four Christmas favorites combine to create a sparkling showcase for holiday programs. Perform with band alone or with chorus and strings for a fabulous concert finale! Includes: Deck the Hall, Ding Dong! Merrily on High, I Saw Three Ships and We Wish You a Merry Christmas.
Description: Showcasing holiday highlights from the hit TV series Glee, here is an attractive medley of favorites in the distinctive settings featured on the show. Includes: Deck the Rooftop, Merry Christmas Darling, Jingle Bells, Baby It's Cold Outside, and Angels We Have Heard on High. Dur: 5:30
Description: This intense and emotional work was commissioned by the Indiana Music Educators Association and was premiered at the 2011 IMEA Convention with the composer conducting. Written as a gift to longtime friend of music education, Dr. Tim Lautzenheiser, the piece is basically lyrical in nature with beautiful lines and colors. A brief faster section, in the words of the composer, describes that uncomfortable time when we are desperately trying to find ourselves. The piece ends on a solemn yet reaffirming note, reminding us of the importance of guides and mentors along life's pathway. Dur: 5:00
Description: Involve your whole school with this easy holiday medley for band and choir. An excellent concert finale! The band arrangement is designed to be performed with or without the choir. Includes: Deck The Hall, Jingle Bells, O Christmas Tree and We Wish You A Merry Christmas.
Description: Traditional carols are not usually thought of in a swing style. Yet Johnnie Vinson has found a creative way to arrange these favorites in a light and appealing jazzy style. Includes: We Wish You a Merry Christmas, The Holly and the Ivy, and Good King Wenceslas. Dur: 3:25
Description: From the hit movie musical The Greatest Showman, this showstopper is an inspirational song about making your dreams come true. Michael Brown's outstanding version for young players features a variety of textures and scoring from soft and delicate passages to the powerful full band chorus. Dramatic and nicely paced! Dur: 3:05
Description: Songs from the movie The Greatest Showman have a way of appealing to all ages. This easy arrangement of A Million Dreams is sure to be enjoyed by students and parents alike.
Description: Helping to pioneer the Afro-Cuban style of the '40s, Dizzy Gillepsie's signature composition has been recorded by countless jazz artists over the years and has become a true jazz standard. Skillfully arranged here as a saxophone section feature with concert band, this sizzling arrangement alternates between Latin and swing styles like the original. A wonderful change of pace. Dur: 2:20
Description: Beginning groups will love this unique programmatic suite of four short movements, each of which portrays a well known prehistoric creature (or two!). Clever and very easy, it includes: Stegosaurus, Brontosaurus, Pteradactyls and The Battle (Tyrannosaurus and Triceratops). A really different work at this level! Originally published in 1987. (5:40)
Description: A sailor went to sea, sea, sea To see what he could see, see, see But all that he could see, see, see Was the deep, dark bottom of the sea, sea, sea. This much loved nursery rhyme/clapping song is arranged for junior band in a delightful way. The melody skips about and every player has a big part to play. Pay careful attention to dynamics and accents.
Description: From Leonard Bernstein's masterwork Mass, this tuneful ballad has become its best-known and most often recorded song. Here is a beautifully poignant setting for band, authentically transcribed by Michael Sweeney, that features a trumpet soloist (or flugelhorn) as well as short solo spots for baritone or trombone. (Grade 3) Dur: 3:25
Description: The musical world celebrates the multi-faceted life achievements of Marvin Hamlisch as composer for stage and film, conductor, arranger, and entertainer. This well-paced tribute features some of his best-known works. Includes: They're Playing My Song, What I Did For Love, The Entertainer, The Way We Were, and One. Dur: 6:20
Description: Scored with very modest ranges and easy rhythms, this classic song from Disney's Aladdin is skillfully arranged here for second year players. Sure to sound great with minimal rehearsal time.
Description: Even though the familiar carol Silent Night has been arranged for band many times before, this unique setting by Rick Kirby deserves special attention. An oboe solo accompanied by piano sets the stage for an impressive rhapsodic approach that includes lush full ensemble passages with harmonic twists, solos for recorder and euphonium, and also band vocals at the end. Sure to become a holiday highlight. Dur: 4:15
Description: BandQuest, an exciting series of new music and accompanying curricula for band, is a program published by the American Composers Forum. The series was started as a response to feedback from music educators that there is a pressing need for new, fresh band music. The heart of this program is new works written by a diverse group of leading American composers who have created challenging pieces that are a true departure from standard middle school repertoire. Every BandQuest project includes a residency component in which the composer works collaboratively with a middle school as they create their new piece. Many BandQuest pieces are accompanied by an interdisciplinary curriculum designed to assist students as they learn the music and to integrate each piece with non-music studies. Visit www.bandquest.org to learn more about this innovative series, and email [email protected] to request a free downloadable audio catalog.
