Performed by Bill Gaither, Gloria Gaither. For voice and keyboard. Format: easy piano/vocal/chords songbook. With vocal melody, lyrics, chord names and big note notation. Gospel. Series: Hal Leonard E-Z Play Today. 160 pages. 9x12 inches. Published by Hal Leonard.

Chamber Music Piccolo

SKU: PR.114422450

Composed by Johann Sebastian Bach. Arranged by Nicola Mazzanti. Sws. Full score. 20 pages. Duration 17 minutes. Theodore Presser Company #114-42245. Published by Theodore Presser Company (PR.114422450).

ISBN 9781491134986. UPC: 680160685974. 9 x 12 inches.

Bach’s colossal Partita No. 2 for Solo Violin has been crowned by many masters as one of music’s greatest achievements, and even its famous Chaconne movement alone is a mountain many performers dare not scale. While the literature of several other instruments has been enriched by transcriptions of the Chaconne, Mazzanti’s heroic adaptation of the complete Partita is the culmination of many years’ work, and the only transcription specifically for the piccolo’s unique range.
THE INSPIRATIONEver since my childhood, Johann Sebastian Bach’s solo violin music (like his works for solo cello) has always held a charm and mystery for me. There’s something about this repertoire that sparks an inextinguishable questioning in my musical and human soul.It is music without spatial limits or temporal cages, a music as essential as it is masterfully complex, in which the solitary voice of man meets the all-encompassing voice of God. It is a music whose vertical and horizontal dimensions, already admirably fused, are faceted into new and mysterious realities. For every violinist, the study of these compositions is at the apex of tenacious technical study and interpretative effort.Violinist Joshua Bell has said the Ciaccona (Bach did write the Partita’s movement titles in Italian) is “not just one of the greatest pieces of music ever written, but one of the greatest achievements of any man in history. It’s a spiritually powerful piece, emotionally powerful, structurally perfect.”Transcribing and performing Bach’s PARTITA NO. 2, BWV 1004 on piccolo was a feat that took years of work. The famous Ciaccona movement is, of course, the piece that alone occupied most of this time. How does one honor and elevate such high music with such a “small” instrument, devoid of the enormous expressive potential of the violin, devoid of its chords and its polyphony? How might I transform the piccolo into an instrument with, like the violin, full-bodied low notes and subtle high notes? Above all, why undertake such a demanding and extraordinary journey?The first reason is obvious: by transcribing, studying, and performing such an admirable piece, we assimilate it, it becomes part of us, it enormously enriches our musical interior.In addition, it forces us technically to expand the colors, agility, and flexibility of the instrument; it makes us think in a polyphonic way.Finally, the daily study, especially of the Ciaccona, is an extraordinary gymnasium in which to consolidate and strengthen our general technique.THE TRANSCRIPTIONThe whole Partita was transcribed in the key of A minor, a fifth above the original in D minor. This was necessary for the lowest note of the violin (G) to correspond to the lowest note of the piccolo (D). This version exploits the full range of the piccolo, from the D of the first octave to the B of the third octave. However some octave adjustments were needed.The chords, particularly in the Sarabanda and the Ciaccona, have been left with the same notational system used by Bach in his version for violin. I chose to respect Bach’s presentation and did not transcribe these into grace notes breaking the chords. I advocate that we must at least try to think of this music in its vertical dimension, trying to make the notes resonate as if they were being played together, deciding the speed of the arpeggio based on musical needs.While some woodwind editions of Bach’s string solos do indicate broken chords as grace notes, this implies that the most important note is necessarily the highest one, while sometimes it is precisely in the lower pitches that the theme is voiced.In this piccolo adaptation, many of Bach’s original articulations have been respected. Some have been changed, when needing to adapt them to the specific needs of flute playing.The two passages in the Ciaccona where Bach indicates “arpeggio” were rendered trying to respect the most consolidated and virtuous violin traditions, and at the same time the possibilities that the piccolo offers us. For this purpose, in some cases, different revoicings of the chords have been used.I thank all those who patiently listened to me and were close to me during this period, for their observations and advice. In particular, I thank my daughter Sara for her assistance and skill in entering this edition into music writing software.

(Viola). For Viola. Book; CD; Play-Along; String Series. Ultimate Pop Instrumental Solos Series. Pop. Grade 2; Grade 3. 88 pages. Published by Alfred Music Publishing

Guitar - Intermediate

SKU: MB.WBM75M

Saddle-stitched. Folk. Book and online audio. Mel Bay Publications, Inc #WBM75M. Published by Mel Bay Publications, Inc (MB.WBM75M).

ISBN 9781737795353. 8.75X11.75 inches.

This is a collection of 86 guitar solos in notation only from William Bayâ??s books, Solo Guitar in Worship, Communion, Psalms, Timeless Gospel Melodies and Spirituals. The solos work well as preludes, offertories, communion hymns, recessionals or they can be played for enjoyment.  All 86 solos have been recorded and are available as online downloads with this book.

Choral SATB Choir and Piano

SKU: CF.CM9787

Composed by Coty Raven Morris. Arranged by Saleel Menon. Duration 3:45. Carl Fischer Music #CM9787. Published by Carl Fischer Music (CF.CM9787).

ISBN 9781491164587. UPC: 680160923496. Key: D major. English. Original.

The text for the first voicing (SSA) of this piece came to me in the fall of 2020 while teaching at Crosby High School in Crosby, Texas. My students, though enthusiastic to be back in Choir, were struggling to cope with the civil unrest around them, in addition to the pandemic. When considering how I could help them navigate this time, I realized that they were in need of some sort of consistency, of feeling grounded in themselves. As we  focused on building of community and citizenship, this text and tune came to mind, each phrase highlighting an element of personal and community wellness.I lead with my spirit keeping love in the circle around me. (Social)Expressing my spirit (Occupational)Loving what I can see and cannot see, I'll take care of the vessel I am in (Physical)I love with me that's under the skin (Emotional)Taking care of my mind (Intellectual)Envisioning the me I want to be (Spiritual)I had the honor of collaborating with composer/educator Saleel Menon to create the beautiful piano accompaniment and SATB setting.Who I Want To Be opens with a solo functioning as a mantra throughout the tune. As the piece continues, voices join in unison and harmony to emphasize the intent.When the repeats in mm. 48–51 occur, invite students to share some of their own mantras and affirmations, or feel free to borrow from the words my students in the Crosby HS choir inspired me to write:Allow yourself graceI am persistentI am fragile, not brokenYou are worthyI am worthyI know that your success is not my demise!The only validation I need is my ownI believe in myselfI see youIt’s okay to not be okayBreatheI love and I am lovedPrepare yourself for not only a powerful performance, but a rewarding experience and conversations with your students.THIS is the piece you want stuck in your students’ heads!~CRM.

by Ralf Mrutzek. For Guitar (Fingerpick). solos. AMA Verlag. Folk. Level: Beginning-Intermediate. Book/CD Set. Size 8.25x11.75. 76 pages. Published by AMA Verlag.

Mixed choir

SKU: FG.55011-455-5

Composed by Matthew Whittall. Score. Fennica Gehrman #55011-455-5. Published by Fennica Gehrman (FG.55011-455-5).

ISBN 9790550114555.

This cycle of carols, to the poetry of Christina Rossetti, was assembled piecemeal over a number of years, gradually acquiring a larger dramatic and harmonic arch shape as new settings were added. I was particularly attracted to Rossetti's conflation of the dark, fallow winter landscape with that of the soul waiting for salvation. The cycle traces the long nights of watchfulness before Christmas, with the great event constantly deferred, only glimpsed periodically in different visions before the music turns inward again to contemplation. The opening carol embodies this spirit, with passages of diffuse, roving harmony interspersed with meditative, lyrical pedals, calling out the night watch and dreaming of a far-off summer of the spirit. Earth Grown Old is a kind of double carol, setting two complete poems, their lines at first presented separately as a still, expectant chorale and a jubilant dance, then progressively interwoven toward a fervent climax before once again receding into quiet. In the bleak mid-winter, which sets a highly compressed version of Rossetti's original poem, presents an enfeebled landscape frozen in time, in dire need of deliverance. A gentle melody weaves its way through static drones, broken by an angels' chorus announcing the joy to come. Love Came Down at Christmas ends the waiting, with its gently falling, overlapping lines building to a final revelation, the mystery of Christmas at last made real.

Arranged by Stan Pethel. Score. Chorister's Guild #CGIN12. Published by Chorister's Guild (CG.CGIN12). 0.49

(Trombone). For Trombone. Book; CD; Instrumental Series; Play-Along. Ultimate Pop Instrumental Solos Series. Pop. Grade 2; Grade 3. 88 pages. Published by Alfred Music Publishing

(Alto Sax). For Alto Sax. Book; CD; Instrumental Series; Play-Along. Ultimate Pop Instrumental Solos Series. Pop. Grade 2; Grade 3. 88 pages. Published by Alfred Music Publishing