SKU: AP.49930

ISBN 9781470662424. UPC: 038081579627. English.

Give your students a well-needed break from the chaos and noise of today's world with this gentle, introspective, hymn-like composition. Richard Meyer's A Quiet Peace uses suspensions, dissonances, and ninth and seventh chords, which lend a mature sound to the piece. The notes and ranges keep it well within reach of the young orchestra. An excellent way for your students to express sensitivity and grace while developing their emotive playing skills. (4:15) Correlates to Sound Innovations, Book 2, Level 2.

SKU: KJ.SO371C

UPC: 8402704683.

Daybreak musically depicts the early morning, just prior to first light, evolving through the quiet first morning twilight into the majesty of dawn. The slow and peaceful opening builds to a grand and full moment, giving way to an Allegro section that features rhythmic motives and striking harmonies. A winner from the desk of Bud Woodruff!

Duration: 2:48.

SKU: KN.9876

UPC: 822795098761.

This powerful example of Russian national influences on 19th-century string writing opens with a short, quiet Andante before the brisk Allegro (quarter note = 138) takes over, where a light feeling of momentum should prevail. An intensely exciting, fast-paced conclusion is guaranteed to bring audiences to their feet. Duration 3:30.

SKU: HL.283507

Exit Music for Orchestra was composed by Bent Sorensen in 2006-07. Exit Music was commissioned by the Bergen International Festival for the Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra, and is dedicated to Per Norgard on the occasion of his 75th birthday. Programme note It began with a dream, as it always does when I compose. I dreamt that I was standing in an open doorway on a hill in an otherwise open landscape. I do not know what was behind the door, but in front of it - towards the landscape - I saw my music disappearing. I stood looking for the music, and started to hear it, to remember it in time with its disappearance. The dream continued to recur as strange pictures in my daydreams, and I continued to try to write down the music that had vanished. It was also the dream that gave the piece its title- Exit Music. Exit Music is based on three simple songs (the songs that vanish through the doorway): a little lullaby, which continues to reappearin fragments; a strange polyphonic pop song that refers to a section of my opera Under the Sky; and a passionate little love song, which concludes the piece on the strings, very quietly and in unison. These simple songs are then constantly overpainted by enervating repeated motes in fairly simple rhythms, which push the songs out of the room. (Bent Sorensen).

SKU: AP.49897S

ISBN 9781470657307. UPC: 038081575452. English.

A Utopian Fantasia, by Anthony Granata, depicts a beautifully majestic and serene landscape shrouded in mystery and wonder. Set in the key of E minor, the opening features a rich legato ballad with an eerily somber melody passing through each section of the orchestra. The mood abruptly shifts to a jarring and heavily accented six-note motif. Reminiscent of Classical literature, a small contrapuntal passage develops this motif, interspersed with the original opening melody. Inversions of the theme finally give way to a call-and-response dialogue within the different sections of the orchestra before finally ending quietly and slowly with a subtle hint to the opening. (3:00).

SKU: PR.11641867L

UPC: 680160683215.

Contextures: Riots -Decade '60 was commissioned by Zubin Mehta and the Southern California Symphony Association after the successful premiere of the Concerto for Four Percussion Soloists and Orchestra. It was written during the spring and summer months of 1967. Riots stemming from resentment against the racial situation in the United States and the war in Vietnam were occurring throughout the country and inevitably invaded the composer's creative subconscious. Contextures, as the title implies, was intended to exploit various and varying textures. As the work progressed the correspondence between the fabric of music and the fabric of society became apparent and the allegory grew in significance. So I found myself translating social aspects into musical techniques. Social stratification became a polymetric situation where disparate groups function together. The conflict between the forces of expansion and the forces of containment is expressed through and opposition of tonal fluidity vs. rigidity. This is epitomized in the fourth movement, where the brass is divided into two groups - a muted group, encircled by the unmuted one, which does its utmost to keep the first group within a restricted pitch area. The playful jazzy bits (one between the first and second movements and one at the end of the piece) are simply saying that somehow in this age of turmoil and anxiety ways of having fun are found even though that fun may seem inappropriate. The piece is in five movements, with an interlude between the first and second movements. It is scored for a large orchestra, supplemented by six groups of percussion, including newly created roto-toms (small tunable drums) and some original devices, such as muted gongs and muted vibraphone. There is also an offstage jazz quartet: bass, drums, soprano saxophone and trumpet. The first movement begins with a solo by the first clarinetist which is interrupted by intermittent heckling from his colleagues leading to a configuration of large disparate elements. The interlude of solo violin and snare-drum follows without pause. The second movement, Prestissimo, is a display piece of virtuosity for the entire orchestra. The third movement marks a period of repose and reflection and calls for some expressive solos, particularly by the horn and alto saxophone. The fourth movement opens with a rather lengthy oboe solo, which is threatened by large blocks of sound from the orchestra, against an underlying current of agitated energy in the piano and percussion. This leads to a section in which large orchestral forces oppose one another, ultimately bringing the work to a climax, if not to a denouement. Various thematic elements are strewn all over the orchestra, resulting in the formation of a general haze of sound. A transition leads to the fifth movement without pause. The musical haze is pierced gently by the offstage jazz group as if they were attempting to ignore and even dispel the gloom, but a legato bell sound enters and hovers over both the jazz group and the orchestra, the latter making statements of disquieting finality. Two films were conceived to accompany portions of Contextures. The first done by Herbert Kosowar, was a chemography film (painting directly into the film using dyes and various implements) with fast clips of riot photographs. The second was a film collage made by photographically abstracting details from paintings of Reginald Pollack. The purpose was to invoke a non-specific response - as in music - but at the same time to define the subject matter of the piece. The films were constructed to correspond with certain developments in the piece and in no way affect the independence and musical flow of the piece, having been made after the piece was completed. Contextures: Riots - Decade '60 is dedicated to Mehta, the Southern California Symphony Association and the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra. The news of the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King came the afternoon of the premiere, April 4, 1968. That evening's performances, and also the succeeding ones, were dedicated to him and a special dedication to Dr. King has been inserted into he score. All the music that follows the jazz group - beginning with the legato bell sound playing the first 2 notes to We shall overcome constitutes a new ending to commemorate Dr. King's death.

SKU: AP.35975S

UPC: 038081411842. English.

The clever title combines the word quiet with etude, the French word for a musical study. Inspired by the notion of world peace, the composer communicates this idea through a series of engaging melodic and harmonic sections in G minor and D minor, ultimately ending on a major chord to express hopefulness. The haunting melodies and mature sound of this grade 3 work make this a memorable and thought-provoking addition to any concert or contest. This title is available in MakeMusic Cloud.

SKU: LO.30-4037L

UPC: 000308159967.

Ballads have been used throughout history to tell a story through music. Pepper Choplin has long used his signature musical voice to tell the meaningful stories of our faith, so it’s especially fitting that he’s brought the timeless story of Christmas alive once more with The Ballad of Bethlehem. Available for SATB or SAB choirs with rehearsal aids and accompaniment options ranging from piano only to a thrilling full orchestra written by Michael Lawrence to recorded tracks, this stunning cantata dramatically moves from a recollection of ancient prophecies through the quiet manger scene to its joyous conclusion featuring a rousing call to “Shout with the Shepherds!” This season, let the folk-like energy of Pepper Choplin’s unique voice bring The Ballad of Bethlehem to you and your listeners. “O sing a ballad of Bethlehem. I want to hear it once more. I love that story so often told to generations before.”.

SKU: AP.41187

UPC: 038081471662. English.

Crepuscule is the period of partial darkness at the beginning or end of the day---in other words, twilight. The energy of the sun touches the quiet of the night. This highly energetic work in E minor opens with a perfect fifth motive that gives students plenty of opportunities to develop their intonation while hopping their finger to adjacent strings. The piece requires the use of short articulated bow strokes in the first theme. The second theme is lyrical and requires the use of slow sustained bow strokes. All sections of the orchestra are featured with challenging and interesting parts. (3:50) This title is available in MakeMusic Cloud.