(Sleigh Ride)-Here is a little musical sleigh ride you won't forget! Sleigh bells a whip crack and the momentum of a joyous ride across the snow make this a sure winner for your holiday concert. Christmas Troika serves as adelightful concert opener or will slide gracefully into any spot on your program. There are great opportunities to study staccato and legato articulations side by side and you'll find a load of other great teaching opportunitiesincluded as you prepare this captivating musical experience for your listeners.

Score-Morton Gould's Formations. Conductor's score. Comissioned by the Gator Band University of Florida.Born in Richmond Hill New York on 10 December 1913 Morton Gould was recognised early on as a child prodigy with the ability to improvise and compose. At the age of six he had his first composition published. He studied at the Institute of Musical Art (now the Juilliard School) but his most important teachers were Abby Whiteside (Piano) and Vincent Jones (composition).Gould enjoyed an illustrious career. In addition to gaining a Pulitzer Prize for 'Stringmusic' he was Musical America's 1994Composer-of-the-Year and recieved a Kennedy Center Honor in recognition of lifetime contributions to American culture.A long-time member of the American Society of Composers Authors and Publishers Gould was elected president of ASCAP in 1986 a post he held until 1994. In 1986 he was elected to the American Academy and Institute of Arts and Letters. He also served on the board of the American Symphony Orchestra League and on the National Endowment for the Arts music panel.

Par COURT DOUGLAS. Conductors of beginning bands are always looking for fresh material that will be fun for the band while the students continue sharpening their playing skills. You and your students will certainly have a great time with this new Grade 1 piece by Douglas Court. Cast in a relaxed “island” style, it’s a great way to help young musicians understand the need for smooth tonguing and playing phrases that connect numerous notes with a continuous air stream. With Seaside Calypso in the folders you can continue teaching while you prepare for the concert. Easy-goin’! / Niveau : 1 / Musique légère originale / Répertoire / Concert Band

The year 2007 marked the 50th anniversary of West Side Story, considered by many to be Broadway's greatest contribution to the arts, as well as the most memorable work from legendary composer Leonard Bernstein. Bernstein's own symphonic setting continues to be performed by every major orchestra and is now available in authentic form for concert band. As with the original orchestral version, individual dances may be performed in combinations to accomodate shorter program needs.

Conductors of beginning bands are always looking for fresh material that will be fun for the band while the students continue sharpening their playing skills. You and your students will certainly have a great time with this new Grade 1 piece by Douglas Court. Cast in a relaxed ?island? style it?s a great way to help young musicians understand the need for smooth tonguing and playing phrases that connect numerous notes with a continuous air stream. With Seaside Calypso in the folders you can continue teaching while you prepare for the concert.Easy-goin?!

Sung by the Jets gang in Leonard Bernstein's West Side Story this familiar song is filled with energy and rambunctious humor. With the melodic phrases being bounced from section to section this clever adaptation by Paul Murtha is a great way to liven up the concert stage.

Standard US Set (without european suppl. parts)-Morton Gould's Ballad For Band for Symphonic Band. Score and parts.Born in Richmond Hill New York on 10 December 1913 Morton Gould was recognised early on as a child prodigy with theability to improvise and compose. At the age of six he had his first composition published. He studied at the Institute of Musical Art (now the Juilliard School) but his most important teachers were Abby Whiteside (Piano) andVincent Jones (composition).Gould enjoyed an illustrious career. In addition to gaining a Pulitzer Prize for 'Stringmusic' he was Musical America's 1994 Composer-of-the-Year and recieved a Kennedy Center Honor inrecognition of lifetime contributions to American culture.A long-time member of the American Society of Composers Authors and Publishers Gould was elected president of ASCAP in 1986 a post he held until 1994.In 1986 he was elected to the American Academy and Institute of Arts and Letters. He also served on the board of the American Symphony Orchestra League and on the National Endowment for the Arts music panel.

By far the jazziest tune from Bernstein's West Side Story is the iconic Cool. Combining a medium swing style with angular riffs and a cocky attitude here is a great sounding version for flexible instrumentation.

A spectacular dive via an extended chromatic scale immediately submerges us in a charged and somewhat archaic-feeling atmosphere. Trumpets horns and trombones resound in rhythmic patterns buttressed by restless motifs in the percussion. A second theme in the woodwinds begins much calmer but is quickly pushed aside by that same brass offensive. This introduction is the musical expression of the sometimes tumultuous early history of the town of Peer in Belgium. It closes with a D scale played over two octaves and repeated three times symbolizing the church steeples that dominate the townscape. Peer has the credentials of a town and people should know about it.There followsa rhythmic turbulent passage: in the course of history Peer has not been spared the ravages of war arson occupation epidemic and other evils. In contrast a slow pastoral lyrical part expresses the periods of peace and prosperity the town has known as well as the serene geographic setting that still characterizes the place. Various instruments in groups are developed in solo style while the accompaniment displays vast painterly images of sound. Now and then an exotic intonation is heard: a variety of peoples and cultures have left their mark on the town.This episode of tranquility and peacefulness comes to a sudden end when via a surprising almost chaotic transitional passage we are in effect transported back to our own time. A hopeful festive march expresses the confidence in the future that the Royal Concert Band of Peer exudes. This confidence is wholly justified: under the direction of conductor Willy Fransen the 95 members of the concert band have experienced an extended period of good fortune and the 75 musicians of the youth band - and the 45 little musicians of the mini-band - are involved in thriving operations.

This famous duet from the 1940s has been recorded by countless artists over the years and was featured in the hit movie Elf starring Will Ferrell. Here is a terrific-sounding arrangement for young players.

Volcano is a work commissioned by the Municipal Wind Orchestra of Endingen in Germany. The three creative impulses which provided the basis for this symphonic poem are inspired by outside sources. They are closed linked with the history of the Orchestra and the region in which it performs. In this region is the Kaiserstuhl an enormous rock situated on the edge of the Black Forest. Volcano is a stimulating lyrical brilliant and festive work.

Par DE HAAN JACOB. The Book of Urizen is a work for concert band, solo soprano, and a male narrator in which sound collages of religious expressions are used. The piece is inspired by the compelling visionary poem of the same name (which the poet illustratedhimself) by the Englishman William Blake (1757-1827), who occupies a unique position in western literature and the visual arts. He was not just a poet and a writer, but he was also a graphic artist, a painter, an illustrator, a spiritualist, areligious visionary, and a mystic philosopher. For the performance of this work, a professional sound system, including two microphones and a CD player, is needed. The three sound collages are three separate tracks on the enclosed CD and can beplayed easily at the right moment. The Book of Urizen bears resemblance to Genesis and Exodus, of which the contents form the basis of the Christian, Jewish, and Islamic faith. Blake adhered to the principle that all religions are in fact one, and that deities reside in human beings. In The Book of Urizen this is represented in “The Net of Religion, ” which is spanned over the earth by Urizen. The sound collages, compiled by Jacob de Haan in the studio, find their origin inJerusalem, the Holy City, where the afore-mentioned faiths “come together. ” In the first movement of this composition, The Vision, Urizen prepares his vision of the world, and he presents this to the “Eternals. ” His vision is rejected, and Urizen locks himself up in his own abstract world. When he does emerge again, he is confronted with rage by the gathered Eternals. Urizen flees the wrath of the Eternals, “the flames of eternal fury, ” and enwombs himself in his own world. Whenthe Eternals see Urizen in his “stony sleep, ” they wonder if this is death. The blacksmith Los is torn by grief because of the isolation of Urizen. It brings him to rouse his fires, prepare his forge, and to give Urizen’s world concrete form. In the second movement, The Creation, Urizen’s world, but also man, woman, and child are created. Los is horrified with the appearance of Urizen’s body. He mourns and pities Urizen, and from his blood a female form comes into being, with thename Enitharmon. The Eternals, fearful of the female form, decide to erect a tent to obstruct their view to eternity. Enitharmon and Los beget a son, called Orc. Los baptizes him as a child of the “fallen world. ” Orc is fed at Enitharmon’s breast, which makes a girdle of jealousy restrict Los’ chest. He takes the child to the top of the mountain and chains him down. The cries of Orc awaken Urizen, who explores his world creating instruments of scientific measurement to do so. Los encircles theface of Enitharmon from the sight of Urizen and Orc. She then populates the earth by giving birth to an enormous race. The Web, third movement of The Book of Urizen is now available: DHP 1125252 / Niveau : 5 / Pièce de concert / Répertoire / Concert Band ou Harmonie

Compiled and Arranged by Franco Cesarini. During his experience as a band conductor and teacher of wind orchestra conducting at university, Franco Cesarini has dealt with the topic of warm-ups very frequently. Throughout these long years of conducting he has had the opportunity to try many existing methods, evaluating their advantages and disadvantages. After a long time, he has decided to compile a collection of chorales for warm-ups, which are organized according to the criteria that he considers most effective. While working on his60 Warm-up Chorales for Concert Band, Franco Cesarini has always borne in mind that amateur musicians play for pleasure. He feels that it is extremely important that they have satisfaction at every moment of the rehearsal and not to start the rehearsal with needless "punishing" exercises. Nobody is really motivated to start playing with scales, long notes, or tricky rhythmical exercises. There is often a distinguished absentee in band rehearsals, namely music itself! Although this publication does not foresee a specific tempo for the chorales, they should often be performed rather slowly but without dragging. Dynamics are not indicated, so that the conductor has the opportunity to draw the attention of the musicians to his gestures and to make them react according to his indications. Timpani and bell parts have been added with the aim of not leaving the percussionists completely inactive during the warm-up phase, but can also be omitted. The chorales are written in four parts (SATB) and are also playable in smaller groups. The four voices can be played in different combinations of woodwinds or brass quartets or in mixed combinations. The collection includes ten chorales for the following keys: D flat major, A flat major, E flat major, B flat major, F major and C major. With his 60 Warm-up Chorales Franco Cesarini would like to convey the message to play the chorales in a musical way, thus raising the musicians? awareness of phrasing, the right interpretation of cadences, rubato and agogic. Above all, never do anything without putting the musical aspect in the foreground. 60 Warm-up Chorales for Concert Band: A perfect collection to warm-up and improve tuning of a concert band!