Note: I have added a 4th clarinet part in the pdf for quartets who do not have a bass clarinet I know that there are some fairly ornate instrumental quartet versions of George Bennard's hymn The Old Rugged Cross. However, I thought it would be useful, for some groups, also to have simpler instrumental quartet versions available, which follow the original. So here they are: They are available on this site for flute, woodwind, clarinet, saxophone, string and recorder quartets

"The Old Rugged Cross" has been a country gospel favorite ever since it became the title song of Ernest Tubb's 1952 gospel album; it has been performed by some of the twentieth century's most important recording artists, including Andy Griffith, Anne Murray, Brad Paisley, Chet Atkins, John Berry, Floyd Cramer, George Jones, Eddy Arnold, Jim Reeves, Loretta Lynn, Ray Price, Ricky Van Shelton, Tennessee Ernie Ford, Rahsaan Roland Kirk, Roy Rogers and Dale Evans. The Oak Ridge Boys, The Statler Brothers, Vince Gill, Willie Nelson, Alan Jackson, George Beverly Shea and John Prine on the 2007 CD "Standard Songs for Average People" with Mac Wiseman. British television dramatist Dennis Potter used the gospel song prominently in several of his plays, most notably Pennies from Heaven (1978); and the song also played a major part in "Gridlock" (2007), an episode of the long-running sci-fi drama series Doctor Who. In early 2009, the song was covered by Johnny Cash and June Carter, Kevin Max, Mahalia Jackson, Merle Haggard, and Patsy Cline. Parts included for this arrangement are: Full Score, 1st, 2nd, 3rd Clarinet, Bass Clarinet, Acoustic Bass (Optional).

Performance Time: Approx. 2 minutes 15 seconds