SKU: PR.41641576L

UPC: 680160636549. 11 x 17 inches.

The 1712 Overture stands out in P.D.Q. Bach's oeuvre for two reasons, among others: it is by far the most programmatic instrumental piece among those by the minimeister of Wein-am-Rhein so far unearthed, and 2) its discovery has led to a revelation about the composer's father, Johann Sebastian Bach, that has exploded like a bombshell on the usually serene musicological landscape. The overture is based on an anecdote told to P.D.Q. Bach by a cousin, Peter Ulrich. Since P.U. Bach lived in Dudeldorf, only a few miles down the road from Wein-am-Rhein, he was P.D.Q.'s closest relative, and he was, in fact, one of the few members of the family who was on speaking terms with P.D.Q. The story, related to P.D.Q. (fortunately for us posterity types) in a letter, may be summarized thus: The town of Dudeldorf was founded by two brothers, Rudi and Dieter Dudel, early in the 18th century. Rudi remained mayor of the newborn burg for the rest of his long life, but Dieter had a dream of starting a musicians' colony, an entire city devoted to music, which dream, he finally decided, could be realized only in the New World. In 1712, he and several other bagpipers sailed to Boston, never to return to Germany. (Henceforth, Rudi became known as der deutscher Dudel and Dieter as the Yankee Dudel). Unfortunately, the head of the Boston Musicians' Guild had gotten wind of Dudel's plans, and Wilhelm Wiesel (pron. VEE-zle), known none too affectionately around town as Wiesel the Weasel, was not about to share what few gigs there were in colonial America with more foreigners and outside agitators. He and his cronies were on hand to meet Dudel's boat when it pulled into Boston Harbor; they intended to prevent the newcomers' disembarkation, but Dudel and his companions managed to escape to the other side of the bay in a dinghy, landing with just enough time to rent a carriage and horses before hearing the sound of The Weasel and his men, who had had to come around the long way. The Germans headed West, with the Bostonians in furious pursuit. soon the city had been left far behind, and by midnight so had the pursuers; Dieter Dudel decided that it was safe for him and his men to stop and sleep until daybreak. When they awoke, they found that they were in a beautiful landscape of low, forested mountains and pleasant fields, warmed by the brilliant morning sun and serenaded by an entrancing variety of birds. Here, Dudel thought, her is where I will build my colony. The immigrants continued down the road at a leisurely pace until they came upon a little church, all by itself in the countryside, from which there suddenly emanated the sounds of a pipe organ. At this point, the temptation to quote from P.U. Bach's letter to P.D.Q. cannot be resisted: They went inside and, after listening to the glorious music for a while, introduced themselves to the organist. And who do you think it was? Are you ready for this -- it was your old man! Hey, no kidding -- you know, I'm sure, that your father was the guy to get when it came to testing new organs, and whoever had that one in Massachusetts built offered old Sebastian a tidy sum to go over there and check it out. The unexpected meeting with J.S. Bach and his sponsors was interrupted by the sound of horse hooves, as the dreaded Wiesel and his men thundered on to the scene. They had been riding all night, however, and they were no spring chickens to start with, and as soon as they reached the church they all dropped, exhausted, to the ground. The elated Germans rang the church bells and offered to buy everyone a beer at the nearest tavern. There they were taught, and joined in singing, what might be called the national anthem of the New World. The melody of this pre-revolutionary patriotic song is still remembered (P.D.Q. Bach quotes it, in the bass instruments, near the end of the overture), but is words are now all but forgotten: Freedom, of thee we sing, Freedom e'er is our goal; Death to the English King, Long live Rock and Ross. The striking paucity of biographical references to Johann Sebastian Bah during the year 1712 can now be explained: he was abroad for a significant part of that year, testing organs in the British Colonies. That this revelation has not been accepted as fact by the musicological establishment is no surprise, since it means that a lot of books would have to be rewritten. The members of that establishment haven't even accepted the existence of P.D.Q. Bach, one of whose major works the 1712 Overture certainly is. It is also a work that shows Tchaikowsky up as the shameless plagiarizer that some of us have always known he was. The discovery of this awesome opus was made possible by a Boston Pops Centennial Research Commission; the first modern performance took place at the opening concert of the 100th anniversary season of that orchestra, under the exciting but authentic direction of John Williams.

SKU: CF.YPS228F

ISBN 9781491157978. UPC: 680160916573. 9 x 12 inches.

Ninja is a Grade 2 piece playable by any young band, due to extensive doublings throughout. The mood of the piece is mysterious, reflecting the image of ninjas being seen one moment and gone the next. Flute 3 is not essential as it doubles the oboes, but is useful in case you have a lot of flutes or due to a limited number of oboes. If you donat have a bass clarinet, baritone saxophone or bassoons, those parts are covered in the low brass. The timpani part is optional, and the piece wonat suffer if you donat have access to that percussion. The optional F-chime and gong only play in the final measure of the piece. While adding a notable effect at the end, those instruments wonat be missed if you donat have them available. The tom-tom part can be played on a snare drum with the snares off or may be played on a tenor drum. Care should be taken that accented notes are emphasized, but never become ponderous. The half notes at the beginning of the piece should not be accented. The theme is introduced in the first twelve measures, and at m. 13 many of the instruments trade the melody for half notes and vice-versa. Be careful that the percussion section never becomes overpowering. At m. 25, care should be taken that there is quite a volume difference between ff and mp. Think of this representing the ninjas being seen one moment and being hidden the next. The double staccato figures at m. 33 should not be accented. Trumpets and trombones at m. 37 should not be overly legato, but certainly shouldnat be treated as staccatos. Being aware of not accenting notes that donat have accents will make the accents at m. 49 more dramatic. Please note that the legato notes at mm. 58 and 60 are not to be accented.
Ninja is a Grade 2 piece playable by any young band, due to extensive doublings throughout. The mood of the piece is mysterious, reflecting the image of ninjas being seen one moment and gone the next. Flute 3 is not essential as it doubles the oboes, but is useful in case you have a lot of flutes or due to a limited number of oboes. If you don't have a bass clarinet, baritone saxophone or bassoons, those parts are covered in the low brass. The timpani part is optional, and the piece won't suffer if you don't have access to that percussion. The optional F-chime and gong only play in the final measure of the piece. While adding a notable effect at the end, those instruments won't be missed if you don't have them available. The tom-tom part can be played on a snare drum with the snares off or may be played on a tenor drum. Care should be taken that accented notes are emphasized, but never become ponderous. The half notes at the beginning of the piece should not be accented. The theme is introduced in the first twelve measures, and at m. 13 many of the instruments trade the melody for half notes and vice-versa. Be careful that the percussion section never becomes overpowering. At m. 25, care should be taken that there is quite a volume difference between ff and mp. Think of this representing the ninjas being seen one moment and being hidden the next. The double staccato figures at m. 33 should not be accented. Trumpets and trombones at m. 37 should not be overly legato, but certainly shouldn't be treated as staccatos. Being aware of not accenting notes that don't have accents will make the accents at m. 49 more dramatic. Please note that the legato notes at mm. 58 and 60 are not to be accented.
Ninja is a Grade 2 piece playable by any young band, due to extensive doublings throughout. The mood of the piece is mysterious, reflecting the image of ninjas being seen one moment and gone the next.Flute 3 is not essential as it doubles the oboes, but is useful in case you have a lot of flutes or due to a limited number of oboes. If you don’t have a bass clarinet, baritone saxophone or bassoons, those parts are covered in the low brass. The timpani part is optional, and the piece won’t suffer if you don’t have access to that percussion. The optional F-chime and gong only play in the final measure of the piece. While adding a notable effect at the end, those instruments won’t be missed if you don’t have them available. The tom-tom part can be played on a snare drum with the snares off or may be played on a tenor drum.Care should be taken that accented notes are emphasized, but never become ponderous. The half notes at the beginning of the piece should not be accented. The theme is introduced in the first twelve measures, and at m. 13 many of the instruments trade the melody for half notes and vice-versa. Be careful that the percussion section never becomes overpowering.At m. 25, care should be taken that there is quite a volume difference between ff and mp. Think of this representing the ninjas being seen one moment and being hidden the next. The double staccato figures at m. 33 should not be accented. Trumpets and trombones at m. 37 should not be overly legato, but certainly shouldn’t be treated as staccatos. Being aware of not accenting notes that don’t have accents will make the accents at m. 49 more dramatic. Please note that the legato notes at mm. 58 and 60 are not to be accented.