If you can afford only one ?Up On The Housetop? for your brass quintet, this is the one to get. It is a hoot! It starts with an introduction that is definitely in a hurry; Santa?s sleigh may even have a klaxon on board to blast loitering birds out of the way! The arrangement moves on at the same fast clip, having fun with the melody and never letting up. As it reaches the halfway point, the tempo seems to slow down, but this is just an illusion; tuba and horn keep it moving. Racing toward the end, the conclusion recalls the introduction and finishes with a great, upbeat wind-up. Click on the ?Listen? button, and get set for an exciting Christmas ride with Santa.Tempo is halfnote = 138 throughout. There are some high notes and jumps. Trumpet 1?s highest note is B-flat5 (high C); Trumpet 2, A-flat5 (B-flat above the staff); Horn, F5 (high C). Trombone?s highest jump is from B-flat2 to E-sharp4. Horn has several 6-note jumps. This arrangement was completed in 2012, and performance time runs about 1 minute, 41 seconds. The arranger, Les Smith, can be reached at lessmith@ufl.edu. For more arrangements by Les, enter "Sweetwater Brass Press" (without the quotation marks) in the SheetMusicPlus search box.

This soothing, mellow classic arranged for brass quintet. Is sure to invoke some subtle reaction from your audience, or maybe some weeping and wailing depending on how sensitive they're feeling that day. Take it to the streets or perform it in a concert, it'll fit in don't you worry!

Mendelssohn?s oratorio ?Athalia? grew out of a commission he had received to write incidental music for a private performance of the French tragedy ?Athalie.? He then went on to expand his original score to include three soloists, full chorus and orchestra, two orators, an overture and the piece presented here. ?War March of the Priests? is one of Mendelssohn?s most performed compositions, one reason being that it goes over so well as both a stand-alone concert piece and as a graduation/commencement processional or recessional. As this arrangement shows, "War March" adapts perfectly to the brass quintet, from the energetic and assertive triplet figures to the complementary legato section: a real gem for two trumpets, horn, trombone and tuba. This arrangement was completed in 2012, and performance time runs about 6 minutes, 42 seconds; however, its repeated sections allow it to be expanded or contracted on the spot to meet the time needs for ceremonial processions. You may contact the arranger, Les Smith, at lessmith@ufl.edu. Be sure to check out the following Sweetwater Brass Press arrangements: "Chorale St. Antoni," "Entry of the Graduates: Processional," "Departure of the Graduates: Recessional," "Marche from Sylvia Ballet Suite," "Marche militaire in D major (No. 1)" and "Academic Festival Overture." For these and other arrangements by Les, enter "Sweetwater Brass Press" (without the quotation marks) in the SheetMusicPlus search box.?

The Liberty Bell March for Brass Quintet by John Philip Sousa Arranged by Jari Villanueva Score 2 Trumpets in Bb Horn in F (Eb Alto Horn) Trombone (Baritone TC) Tuba Drums (optional) Substitute parts provided It may be associated with Monty Python's Flying Circus but "The Liberty Bell" was written for Sousa's unfinished operetta The Devil's Deputy in 1893. Financing for the show fell through and shortly afterwards, Sousa and his band manager George Hinton attended the Columbian Exposition in Chicago. As they watched the spectacle "America", in which a backdrop depicting the Liberty Bell was lowered, Hinton suggested "The Liberty Bell" as the title of Sousa's recently completed march. Coincidentally, Sousa received a letter from his wife, saying their son had marched in a parade in honor of the Liberty Bell which had been on a nation-wide tour. Sousa agreed. He sold "The Liberty Bell" to the John Church Company for publication, and it was an immediate success. The origin of the tune comes from the time Sousa heard Marcella Lindh, one of his soprano soloists, whistling a tune of her own creation. Sousa couldn?t get the melody out of his head and asked his soprano if he might use it in a march. She agreed, but didn?t know that her tune had been used until several years later when she happened to hear a European band perform the march.

In 1887, George Kitchin wrote ?Lift High the Cross.? Michael R. Newbolt revised it in 1916, and it was printed in that year in Sydney Nicholson?s supplement to Hymns Ancient and Modern. At the same time, it was set to Nicholson?s hymn tune, ?Crucifer,? and has since come to be used as the opening or closing hymn in many churches. There are several very good arrangements of ?Lift High the Cross? featuring brass instruments with varying combinations of other musicians?organ, choir, tympani, snare drum, hand bells, high voice descant. This arrangement features brass quintet alone, and the triumphant nature of the hymn?s melody sits exceptionally well with this particular instrumental grouping. It begins, however, with a completely different interpretation?the first time through the refrain and the verse are played relatively slowly, quietly and contemplatively (the tempo marking instructs ?Reverently?). The pace then picks up, and the feeling of the piece changes to one of exultation. This joyous mood is sustained throughout the variations that follow, and each player gets a chance to shine. Finally, after one last statement of the refrain, the dynamics quiet down for a beautifully soft finish. This is a perfect concert piece for Easter, Lent, or church processional or recessional. This arrangement was completed in 2017, and performance time runs about 5 minutes, 10 seconds. The arranger, Les Smith, would be very interested in your comments on this piece; contact him at lessmith@ufl.edu or leave a review on the SheetMusicPlus website. For more arrangements by Les, enter "Sweetwater Brass Press" (without the quotation marks) in the SheetMusicPlus search box.