SKU: PR.11641737S

ISBN 9781491136133. UPC: 680160688432.

Son et lumière (“sound and light,” a kind of show staged for tourists at historic sites or famous buildings) is an orchestral entertainment whose subject is the play of colors, bright surfaces, and shimmery textures. I have tried in this music to recapture the élan and immediacy that regular meters and repetitive rhythms make possible—something forbidden during the modernist regime but recently restored in the post-modern work of composers like John Adams, Steve Reich, and others. Throughout its brief nine-minute span, then, the piece is built almost exclusively of short, busy ostinato figures—my attempt, I suppose, to achieve the rhythmic vitality of minimalism, but without giving in to the over-simple harmonic language that usually comes with it.Surprisingly, the musical materials seemed determined to shape themselves into an approximation of nineteenth-century sonata form. We hear an introduction, a first theme (based on triadic broken chords), a second theme (beginning with the flute solo), and a closing theme (led by two piccolos). In a sort of development section, these materials are recombined in new ways; in a recapitulation, both the first and second themes are recalled more or less intact (part of the second is actually repeated quite literally).Then, in the coda, a second surprise: as if another, different music has been lurking all the while behind the shiny surface, the strings now unexpectedly split off from the rest of the orchestra to assert a new, more passionate, more “serious” voice, transcending the external show of sound and light.Son et lumière, commissioned by the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, was composed between June and December 1988 in Ithaca (N.Y.), in Los Angeles, and at the artists’ colony Yaddo, in Saratoga Springs (N.Y.). David Zinman conducted the first performance in Baltimore on 18 May 1989; André Previn gave the West Coast premiere with the Los Angeles Philharmonic on 18 January, 1990.
Son et lumière (“sound and light,” a kind of show staged for tourists at historic sites or famous buildings) is an orchestral entertainment whose subject is the play of colors, bright surfaces, and shimmery textures. I have tried in this music to recapture the élan and immediacy that regular meters and repetitive rhythms make possible—something forbidden during the modernist regime but recently restored in the post-modern work of composers like John Adams, Steve Reich, and others. Throughout its brief nine-minute span, then, the piece is built almost exclusively of short, busy ostinato figures—my attempt, I suppose, to achieve the rhythmic vitality of minimalism, but without giving in to the over-simple harmonic language that usually comes with it.Surprisingly, the musical materials seemed determined to shape themselves into an approximation of nineteenth-century sonata form. We hear an introduction, a first theme (based on triadic broken chords), a second theme (beginning with the flute solo), and a closing theme (led by two piccolos). In a sort of development section, these materials are recombined in new ways; in a recapitulation, both the first and second themes are recalled more or less intact (part of the second is actually repeated quite literally).Then, in the coda, a second surprise: as if another, different music has been lurking all the while behind the shiny surface, the strings now unexpectedly split off from the rest of the orchestra to assert a new, more passionate, more “serious” voice, transcending the external show of sound and light.Son et lumière, commissioned by the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, was composed between June and December 1988 in Ithaca (N.Y.), in Los Angeles, and at the artists’ colony Yaddo, in Saratoga Springs (N.Y.). David Zinman conducted the first performance in Baltimore on 18 May 1989; André Previn gave the West Coast premiere with the Los Angeles Philharmonic on 18 January, 1990.

SKU: CF.FPS151F

ISBN 9781491152799. UPC: 680160910298.

Everyone remembers the first time that they saw a snake. Though fascinating to some and terrifying to others, few animals are as universally mesmerizing. Composer Tyler Arcari has crafted a very fun piece making use of auxiliary percussion instruments to emulate a snake's hiss or ominous rattle. With very strong and interesting melodic material, and scored to make a developing band sound great, this piece is sure to be a favorite among students.
Everyone remembers the first time that they saw a snake. The majority of people have a base fear of them, while others have a “heebie-jeebies” experience. We all know how the great explorer Dr. Indiana Jones felt about snakes, especially when he famously fell into a snake pit during Raiders of the Lost Ark. However you feel about snakes, a pit of them certainly sounds like an adventure.About the work:Snake Pit uses a lot of auxiliary percussion instruments. Some of these sounds are intended to subtly mimic the sounds that snakes make. The maraca in m. 4, of course, is a rattler’s call! The Chinese cymbal is intended to sound like the “hiss” of a not-so-friendly serpent. The eighth-note pattern at m. 9 is used throughout as a “creepy” effect using dynamic contrast so take care to emphasize this when present.I enjoy the gong as a “color” instrument in the band. I try to balance it with the low brass. Take care that at m. 42 the gong is not “front-and center” but more of a support for the nice accented chords in the low brass. Also, the trumpets can become spaced too much here. The accents are more for emphasis and less space.

SKU: CF.SPS51F

ISBN 9780825888526. UPC: 798408088521. 9x12 inches.

Quirks—a word defined as a sudden sharp turn or an unpredictable peculiarity of behavior or action—demonstrates the capricious nature of the title in its musical character. The music vacillates between fast and slow, happy and sad, extroverted and introverted, and just never goes where you expect. There is plenty of interplay between winds and percussion as the four and three notes of the main motive are tossed about the many instrumental colors. This is a tour-de-force, destined to become a band standard for more advanced bands. You must give this a careful listen.

SKU: CF.O5073

ISBN 9780825800634. UPC: 798408000639. 9 X 12 inches. Boe.

SKU: PR.11540205F

ISBN 9781598062977. UPC: 680160594276. 9x12 inches. Key: Bb mixolydian.

Carter Pann’s Richard and Renée was written as a gift for two musician friends of his, Renée Kershaw and Dick Floyd. The first movement, “Renée’s Reply,” is a musical portrait of the time the composer spent with his friend in Italy. According to Pann, “the music strives for a poignancy inspired by this new event in their relationship accompanied by a backdrop so beautiful it defies words. A writer/composer (anyone, for that matter) cannot live on the Amalfi Coast and remain unchanged, unmarked.” The second movement, “Floyd’s Fantastic Five-Alarm Foxy Frolic,” is in a playful ragtime style, with an ending that the composer describes as “over the top.” Duration: 13’.

SKU: CF.CPS56

ISBN 9780825861536. UPC: 798408061531. 9 X 12 inches. Key: Bb major.

Capriccio Ritmico is, as the title suggests, a lighthearted, rhythmic escapade with a Latin flavor. It is full of energy, tuneful melodies and pure fun!