SKU: MH.1-59913-064-5

ISBN 9781599130644.

I wrote Galloping Ghosts (A Ragtime March) to conclude a concert of my chamber music in New York City on October 28, 1986. It is the final part of a work called Rags for Divers Players. This work was written to show the variety possible within the standard rag form. I used all the players available for the finale -- two violins, viola, cello, bass, flute, oboe, clarinet, horn, bassoon, and piano. Since this is a rather unusual instrumental combination and not easy to reassemble, I decided to rescore the work for concert band. Galloping Ghosts is written in a standard march form but incorporates many of the syncopations found in ragtime. The uniquely American music called ragtime traces its history to African rhythms brought over by slaves. Over the years this music became welded to European musical forms such as the quadrille and the march. Drums and banjos and the minstrel tradition lent a special flavor, and from all these elements ragtime slowly evolved within the largely unknown black subculture of the late 19th century. In the late 1890's it emerged as a fully developed form in the classic piano solos of Scott Joplin (1869-1917). Joplin's 1899 hit, Maple Leaf Rag, was an overnight sensation and brought ragtime worldwide fame. Ensemble instrumentation: 1 Piccolo, 8 Flute 1 and 2, 2 Oboe, 1 Eb Clarinet, 4 Bb Clarinet 1, 4 Bb Clarinet 2, 4 Bb Clarinet 3, 2 Eb Alto Clarinet, 3 Bb Bass and Bb Contrabass Clarinet, 2 Bassoon 1 and 2, 2 Eb Alto Saxophone 1, 2 Eb Alto Saxophone 2, 2 Bb Tenor Saxophone, 1 Eb Baritone Saxophone, 3 Bb Cornet 1, 3 Bb Cornet 2, 3 Bb Cornet 3, 2 Horn 1 and 2 in F, 2 Horn 3 and 4 in F, 4 Trombone 1 and 2, 4 Bass Trombone, 2 Baritone (B.C.), 2 Baritone (T.C.), 4 Tuba, 1 String Bass, 1 Timpani, 1 Xylophone, 3 Percussion 1, 3 Percussion 2.

SKU: MH.1-59913-198-6

ISBN 9781599131986. 9 x 12 inches.

SKU: MH.196324

SKU: MH.0-931329-76-0

ISBN 9780931329760.

THE STARS ASLEEP, THE BREAK OF DAY is my most instrumentally colorful Grade 1 work and I believe in this area it breaks new ground. Furthermore, the musical content greatly exceeds Grade 1 expectations. Beginning band students have something to study here that presents opportunity for real musical development. Band directors will notice immediately that the scoring does not look like Grade 1 music. The music actually sounds like a Grade 3 work but it is not. The ranges and technical demands are truly only Grade 1, but the variety in the instrumentation is ample. Numerous cues and cross-cues allow less secure bands to rehearse or perform the work. The flexibility of tempo in the first movement presents unique challenges in performance and teaching. The sparkling and dancelike second movement is cinematic in its instrumental colors and pacing, and will be fun to perform. Instrumental sections that are used to being buried in the mix will discover that their roles in band music can be significant. Ensemble instrumentation: 6 Flute 1, 6 Flute 2, 2 Oboe, 2 Bassoon, 6 Bb Clarinet 1, 6 Bb Clarinet 2, 3 Bb Bass Clarinet, 4 Eb Alto Saxophone 1, 4 Eb Alto Saxophone 2, 2 Bb Tenor Saxophone, 2 Eb Baritone Saxophone, 6 Bb Trumpet 1, 6 Bb Trumpet 2, 4 F Horn, 4 Trombone 1, 4 Trombone 2, 4 Euphonium, 2 Euphonium (T.C.), 6 Tuba, 2 Timpani, 2 Percussion 1, 4 Percussion 2, 3 Percussion 3.

SKU: MH.1-59913-046-7

ISBN 9781599130460.

Ensemble instrumentation: 4 Flute I, 6 Flute II / Oboe, 6 Bb Clarinet I, 6 Bb Clarinet II, 3 Bb Bass Clarinet, 2 Bassoon, 3 Eb Alto Saxophone I, 3 Eb Alto Saxophone II, 2 Bb Tenor Saxophone, 1 Eb Baritone Saxophone, 3 Bb Cornet I, 3 Bb Cornet II, 3 Bb Cornet III, 2 F Horn I, 2 F Horn II, 3 Trombone I, 3 Trombone II, 3 Baritone B.C., 2 Baritone T.C., 4 Tuba, 2 Timpani, 7 Percussion, 3 Mallet Percussion.

SKU: MH.1-59913-053-X

ISBN 9781599130538.

The term Rolling Earth comes from a poem by Walt Whitman and the music is a celebration of the planet we live on. It has three thematic elements: the sequence of chords of the opening, a brief staccato passage passed around different instruments in the fashion of a canon, and an expressive melody first played by the woodwinds and later repeated by the trumpet, saxophone and euphonium. A gentler section comes to a point of contemplation, when a strong rhythmic motive brings it back to the celebratory mood of the opening. Ensemble instrumentation: 2 Piccolo, 4 Flute 1, 4 Flute 2, 3 Oboe 1-2, 2 Eb Clarinet, 4 Bb Clarinet 1, 4 Bb Clarinet 2, 4 Bb Clarinet 3, 2 Eb Alto Clarinet, 3 Bb Bass Clarinet, 3 Bassoon 1-2, 3 Eb Alto Saxophone 1, 3 Eb Alto Saxophone 2, 2 Bb Tenor Saxophone, 2 Eb Baritone Saxophone, 3 Bb Trumpet 1, 3 Bb Trumpet 2, 3 Bb Trumpet 3, 3 Horn in F 1-2, 3 Horn in F 3-4, 3 Trombone 1, 3 Trombone 2, 3 Trombone 3, 3 Euphonium B.C., 2 Euphonium T.C., 6 Tuba, 2 Timpani, 2 Mallet Percussion: Xylophone. Glockenspiel, 6 Percussion Score: Snare Drum. Tenor Drum, Bass Drum, Gong. Suspended Cymbals, Bongo Drum.