2017 Chamber Music Contest Entry - this arrangement was written with intermediate and advanced players in mind due to the range and endurance requirements. It can be performed at schools as well as public venues.

It's Been a Long, Long Time has resurfaced into the mainstream media thanks to the latest Avenger's movie! This song plays on the vinyl turntable as Steve Rogers and Peggy Carter share an intimate dance in the closing scene of the movie. The version here is based off of renowned trumpet soloist Harry James' rendition of the song originally by Sammy Cahn and Jule Styne. I included the original sax solo, but also included the chords for those who would like to improvise their own melody. Please enjoy this nostalgic and emotional music!

Samuel Augustus Ward (1848-1903), composer and organist at Grace Episcopal Church, Newark, New Jersey, composed his tune ?MTERNA? to accompany the hymn text ?O Mother Dear, Jerusalem? in 1882, and it was first published in 1892. Katherine Lee Bates (1859-1929), poet and teacher, wrote the poem ?Pikes Peak? during a visit to Colorado Springs, Colorado, in 1893, and it was published under the title ?America? in the church periodical, The Congregationalist, in 1893. Bates's poem, which she revised in 1904 and 1913, was first published with Ward's music in 1910 under the title ?America the Beautiful.? Samuel Ward never met Katherine Bates, having died in 1903; yet ?America the Beautiful? has become one of the best-loved American patriotic songs. This very accessible yet effective arrangement features an introductory fanfare followed by a straightforward presentation of the tune, a return of the fanfare and modulation to new key with extended harmonies, and a concluding return of the fanfare. ©Copyright 2014 Todd Marchand / ConSpiritoMusic.com