Arranged by Carolyn Hamlin. For Organ (Organ Solo). Fred Bock Publications. Soft...(+)
Arranged by Carolyn
Hamlin. For Organ (Organ
Solo). Fred Bock
Publications. Softcover.
Fred Bock Music Company
#BGK1082. Published by
Fred Bock Music Company
Composed by Thomas Keesecker. 9/11 Service, Father's Day, Funeral, Nati...(+)
Composed by Thomas
Keesecker.
9/11 Service,
Father's Day,
Funeral, National
Songs/Patriotic.
MorningStar
Music Publishers #15-408.
Published by MorningStar
Music Publishers
Easy Piano - Easy SKU: SP.TS180 Composed by Jonathon Robbins. Arranged by...(+)
Easy Piano - Easy
SKU:
SP.TS180
Composed by
Jonathon Robbins.
Arranged by Jonathon
Robbins. Collection;
Popular. Book and CD.
Santorella Publications
#TS180. Published by
Santorella Publications
(SP.TS180).
ISBN
9781585604623. UPC:
649571101800.
Varie
ty lies at the core of 83
Classified Piano Solos
published by Santorella
Publications. It combines
eighty-three songs from
seven different genres to
form an incredibly unique
product. From Hymns to
Marches, Waltzes to Folk
songs and Classics to
Boogie, 83 Classified
Piano Solos has
everything that a
beginning piano student
needs. Boredom is a major
obstacle to learning
which students and
teachers have
encountered. They have
found it extremely
difficult to maintain
interest when using a
single resource. Often,
supplemental materials
are needed to keep study
interesting and exciting
since it is nearly
impossible to find
adequately diverse books.
This adds a significant
and unnecessary financial
burden on both parties.
83 Classified Piano Solos
from Santorella
Publications is
different. This
best-selling easy piano
title eliminates the need
for costly supplemental
materials while exploring
many composers in varied
genres and keeping study
fun and interesting. To
take full advantage of
the variety, we strongly
urge that you jump around
from section to section
and explore all that 83
Classified Piano Solos
has to offer. This
Jonathon Robbins best
seller from Santorella
Publications includes a
performance CD which
serves as a great tool
for the beginning
student. He or she can
listen to a performance
of each piece performed
at the appropriate
tempos, dynamics and
stylings, then emulate
this during their own
performance, practice or
study sessions. Just take
a look at the incredibly
diverse range of titles
found in this great
Santorella title: WALTZES
- WALTZ (From, The
Sleeping Beauty) -
Tchaikovsky - EMPEROR
WALTZ - Strauss - WALTZ
IN A MINOR - Chopin,
WALTZ IN Bb - Schubert -
WALTZ IN C - Schubert -
WALTZ IN C - Brahms -
WAVES OF THE DANUBE -
Ivanovici - WALTZ OF THE
FLOWERS (From, The
Nutcracker) - Tchaikovsky
COWBOY MUSIC RED RIVER
VALLEY - HOME ON THE
RANGE - POOR, LONESOME
COWBOY - GOOD BYE OLD
PAINT - BIG ROCK CANDY
MOUNTAIN - I'D LIKE TO BE
IN TEXAS - THE COLORADO
TRAIL - TO BURY ME NOT ON
THE LONE PRAIRIE -
WHOOPIE TI-YI-YO! (Git
Along Little Dogies!)
HYMNS ABIDE WITH ME - I
NEED THEE EVERY HOUR -
WHAT A FRIEND WE HAVE IN
JESUS - ETERNAL FATHER -
STRONG TO SAVE - HEAR OUR
PRAYER - O LORD - I LOVE
TO TELL THE STORY - ROCK
OF AGES - COME, THOU
ALMIGHTY KING - MY FAITH
LOOKS UP TO THEE -
NEARER, MY GOD TO THEE -
HE LEADETH ME - ALL HAIL
THE POWER OF JESUS' NAME
- HOLY, HOLY, HOLY -
SWEET HOUR OF PRAYER - IN
THE SWEET BYE AND BYE -
FAITH OF OUR FATHERS FOLK
MUSIC BILLYBOY - ALOUETTE
- ON TOP OF OLD SMOKY -
CRAWDAD SONG - TURKEY IN
THE STRAW - THE FARMER IN
THE DELL - SKIP TO MY LOU
- SHE'LL BE COMIN''ROUND
THE MOUNTAIN - PUT YOUR
LITTLE FOOT - JOHN PEEL -
OH, WHERE HAS MY LITTLE
DOG GONE - MARY HAD A
LITTLE LAMB - FOR HE'S A
JOLLY GOOD FELLOW - POLLY
WOLLY DOODLE MARCHES THE
STARS AND STRIPES FOREVER
- AMERICAN PATROL - MARCH
OF THE PRIESTS (From,
Athalia) - GRAND MARCH
(From the Opera, Aida) -
DIXIE - THE MARINES' HYMN
- SOLDIER'S CHORUS (From
the Opera, Faust) - HAIL
TO THE CHIEF - ANCHORS
AWEIGH - THE THUNDERER
CLASSICS CRADLE SONG -
Brahms - TURKISH MARCH
(From, The Ruins of
Athens) - Beethoven,
NOCTURNE IN F - Chopin -
MINUET IN G - Bach -
MUSETTE - Bach - FANTASIE
IMPROMTU - Chopin - GAITE
PARISIENNE (Can Can) -
Offenbach - THEME FROM
SURPRISE SYMPHONY - Haydn
- MARCHE MILITAIRE -
Schubert - UNFINISHED
SYMPHONY THEME - Schubert
- LARGO (From the Opera,
Xerxes) - Handel -
TOREADOR SONG (From the
Opera, Carmen) - Bizet -
JUNE - Tchaikovsky -
BRIDAL CHORUS (From the
Opera, Lohengrin) -
Wagner - BARCAROLLE
(From, The Tales of
Hoffman) - Offenbach,
HALLELUJAH CHORUS (From,
The Messiah) - Handel -
LA DONNA E MOBILE (From
the Opera, Rigoletto) -
Verdi. BOOGIE WOOGIES
(Jonathon Robbins) BOOGIE
WOOGIE BLUES - DOODLIN'-
RIDE THE BOOGIE WOOGIE
TRAIN - THE LAZY BOOGIE
WOOGIE - ONE NOTE BOOGIE
- MR. BOOGIE WOOGIE - THE
NON-STOP BOOGIE - THE
HORSE BACK BOOGIE.
Piano, Vocal and Guitar SKU: HL.14017965 Composed by Judith Queripel. Mus...(+)
Piano, Vocal and Guitar
SKU: HL.14017965
Composed by Judith
Queripel. Music Sales
America. Musical
Education. Book
[Softcover]. Composed
2017. 30 pages. Music
Sales #GA10931. Published
by Music Sales
(HL.14017965).
ISBN
9780711941632.
English.
The castle
is beautiful but
draughty. The king is
visited by double glazing
salesmen who are offering
two free cloaks along
with their special window
units. The king gladly
gives them the work, not
realising the effect the
magic cloaks would have
upon him and subsequently
upon his family and the
rest of his subjects.
This all-year-round play
with seven songs,
optional improvised
music, percussion and
dance, has a strong moral
- that attractive things
are not always what they
seem, and it is the
simple things which bring
joy and peace of mind.
Script available in
student book. If you need
to license a school/youth
theatre performance of
this product, please use
the online application
form.
For Concert Band.
Composed by Dan Welcher.
Spiral. Contemporary.
Large Full Score. With
Standard notation.
Composed 1994. 76 pages.
Duration 10 minutes.
Theodore Presser Company
#165-00092L. Published by
Theodore Presser Company
(PR.16500092L).
UPC:
680160039531. 11 x 17
inches.
Zion is the
third and final
installment of a series
of works for Wind
Ensemble inspired by
national parks in the
western United States,
collectively called Three
Places in the West. As in
the other two works (The
Yellowstone Fires and
Arches), it is my
intention to convey more
an impression of the
feelings I've had in Zion
National Park in Utah
than an attempt at
pictorial description.
Zion is a place with
unrivalled natural
grandeur, being a sort of
huge box canyon in which
the traveler is
constantly overwhelmed by
towering rock walls on
every side of him -- but
it is also a place with a
human history, having
been inhabited by several
tribes of native
Americans before the
arrival of the Mormon
settlers in the mid-19th
century. By the time the
Mormons reached Utah,
they had been driven all
the way from New York
State through Ohio and,
with tragic losses,
through Missouri. They
saw Utah in general as a
place nobody wanted, but
they were nonetheless
determined to keep it to
themselves. Although Zion
Canyon was never a Mormon
Stronghold, the people
who reached it and
claimed it (and gave it
its present name) had
been through extreme
trials. It is the
religious fervor of these
persecuted people that I
was able to draw upon in
creating Zion as a piece
of music. There are two
quoted hymns in the work:
Zion's Walls (which Aaron
Copland adapted to his
own purposes in both is
Old American Songs and
the opera The Tender
Land) and Zion's
Security, which I found
in the same volume in
which Copland found
Zion's Walls -- that
inexhaustible storehouse
of 19th-century hymnody
called The Sacred Harp.
My work opens with a
three-verse setting of
Zion's Security, a stern
tune in F-sharp minor
which is full of resolve.
(The words of this hymn
are resolute and strong,
rallying the faithful to
be firm, and describing
the city of our God they
hope to establish). This
melody alternates with a
fanfare tune, whose
origins will be revealed
in later music, until the
second half of the piece
begins: a driving
rhythmic ostinato based
on a 3/4-4/4 alternating
meter scheme. This pauses
at its height to restate
Zion's Security one more
time, in a rather obscure
setting surrounded by
freely shifting patterns
in the flutes, clarinets,
and percussion -- until
the sun warms the ground
sufficiently for the
second hymn to appear.
Zion's Walls is set in
7/8, unlike Copland's
9/8-6/8 meters (the
original is quite
strange, and doesn't
really fit any constant
meter), and is introduced
by a warm horn solo. The
two hymns vie for
attention from here to
the end of the piece,
with the glowingly
optimistic Zion's Walls
finally achieving
prominence. The work ends
with a sense of triumph
and unbreakable spirit.
Zion was commissioned in
1994 by the wind
ensembles of the
University of Texas at
Arlington, the University
of Texas at Austin, and
the University of
Oklahoma. It is dedicated
to the memory of Aaron
Copland.
Out of the Winter Orchestre à Cordes [Conducteur et Parties séparées] - Débutant Carl Fischer
Orchestra String Orchestra - Grade 1.5-2 SKU: CF.FAS11 Composed by Larry ...(+)
Orchestra String
Orchestra - Grade 1.5-2
SKU: CF.FAS11
Composed by Larry Clark.
FS SWS. Carl Fischer
First Plus String
Orchestra Series.
Classical. Score and
Parts. With Standard
notation. 8+8+5+5+5+2+8
pages. Carl Fischer Music
#FAS11. Published by Carl
Fischer Music (CF.FAS11).
ISBN 9780825845048.
UPC: 798408045043. 8.5 X
11 inches. Key: G
major.
This
outstanding original from
Larry Clark can be played
any time of year! A
vigorous theme moves
through all the sections
and violas combine with
second violins for
prominent solo passages.
A section in minor adds
to the drama as strong
rhythmic chords give way
to a subdued tremolo in
the first violins,
reminiscent of Vivaldi's
Winter This music reaches
a level of intensity your
players and audience will
love. Out of the
Winter is a musical
depiction of the many
moods of winter from its
harsh storms to its
simple beauty. The
composition is based on a
central main theme that
is musically developed
throughout the
composition presented in
and out of major and
minor keys.The main theme
begins right away without
introduction and is set
to depict the simple
delicate beauty of a
light falling snow. The
theme is then developed
in the minor key using
simple contrapuntal
techniques that give the
composition a fresh sound
for pieces at this grade
level. The aggressive
development of the piece
is a musical description
of a powerful winter
storm. The tension of
this section is built to
a climax using
simple divisi in the
strongs and some
poly-chordal harmonic
techniques that give way
to a final return of the
main theme to complete
the piece.Special care
should be given to
exaggerating the contrast
between the two diverse
sections of the piece.
The main theme should be
light and uplifting. The
second section with the
theme in minor should
have an ominous presence,
but still be reminiscent
of the original light
main theme. As with all
of my compositions at
this grade level, adjust
the tempo to fit the
ability level of your
students. It is hope that
this piece helps to
reinforce the concepts of
good musicianship which
you are trying to instill
in your students. Bowings
should be used as a guide
and should be adjusted to
your needs.It has been my
pleasure to have had the
opportunity to write this
piece. I hope that you
and your students find it
useful for your
program.
Marching Band - Grade 2 SKU: AP.29517 Arranged by Michael Story and Mike ...(+)
Marching Band - Grade 2
SKU: AP.29517
Arranged by Michael Story
and Mike Story. Marching
Band; Performance Music
Ensemble; Single Titles.
Big and Easy. Rock. Score
and Part(s). 114 pages.
Duration 1:45. Alfred
Music #00-29517.
Published by Alfred Music
(AP.29517).
UPC:
038081328249.
English.
Here is
one of the biggest hits
of 2007 in a hip, yet
playable arrangement. The
strong scoring will make
any band sound great!
(1:45).
The Wabash Cannonball Orchestre à Cordes [Conducteur et Parties séparées] - Facile FJH
By Traditional. Arranged by Carrie Lane Gruselle. Intermediate String Orchestra....(+)
By Traditional. Arranged
by Carrie Lane Gruselle.
Intermediate String
Orchestra. FJH Developing
Strings. Score for this
title: ST6104S. Extra
part for this title:
ST6104P. String
Orchestra. Level: 2.
Score and Set of Parts.
Published by The FJH
Music Company Inc.
Adventures of the Beaumé Fanfare [Conducteur et Parties séparées] - Intermédiaire Gobelin Music Publications
Fanfare Band - Grade 4 SKU: BT.GOB-000841-020 Composed by Harrie Janssen....(+)
Fanfare Band - Grade 4
SKU:
BT.GOB-000841-020
Composed by Harrie
Janssen. Set (Score &
Parts). 50 pages. Gobelin
Music Publications #GOB
000841-020. Published by
Gobelin Music
Publications
(BT.GOB-000841-020).
The Dutch
composer Harrie Janssen
composed Adventures of
the Beaume to mark the
50th anniversary of his
parents wedding. The
composer of the march his
memories of the family
home, and in particular
the occupation of his
parents. The Janssen
family earned a living as
inland carriers.
Beaume was the name of
the ship of his parents.
The first part of
the march describes the
adventures they
experienced before the
lock, to reach the port
of Antwerp. To get here
was by the law of the
strongest and brutal. The
father of the composer
had in this much support
from the oldest daughter
of the family. The
themes in the trio
reflect the carefree
youth,the pleasant
atmosphere and the warmth
and dedication in
Janssen's home.
De Nederlands
componist Harrie Janssen
schreef 'Adventures of
the Beaumé' ter
gelegenheid van het 50
jarig huwelijksjubileum
van zijn ouders. De
componist heeft met de
mars zijn herinneringen
aan het ouderlijk huis,
en metname aan het beroep
van zijn ouders
weergegeven. De
familie Janssen verdiende
de kost als binnenvaart
schippers. 'Beaumé'
was de naam van het
vrachtschip van zijn
ouders. Het eerste
deel van de mars
beschrijft de
avonturendie ze
meemaakten voor de sluis,
om de haven van Antwerpen
te bereiken. Om hier door
te komen gold het recht
van de sterkste en
brutaalste. De vader van
de componist had hierin
veel steun van de oudste
dochter van het
gezin. De thema's in
het trio weerspiegelen de
onbekommerde jeugd, de
plezierige sfeer en de
warmte en toewijding in
huize Janssen.
Fanfare Band - Grade 4 SKU: BT.GOB-000841-120 Composed by Harrie Janssen....(+)
Fanfare Band - Grade 4
SKU:
BT.GOB-000841-120
Composed by Harrie
Janssen. Score Only. 12
pages. Gobelin Music
Publications #GOB
000841-120. Published by
Gobelin Music
Publications
(BT.GOB-000841-120).
The Dutch
composer Harrie Janssen
composed Adventures of
the Beaume to mark the
50th anniversary of his
parents wedding. The
composer of the march his
memories of the family
home, and in particular
the occupation of his
parents. The Janssen
family earned a living as
inland carriers.
Beaume 'was the name of
the ship of his parents.
The first part of
the march describes the
adventures they
experienced before the
lock, to reach the port
of Antwerp. To get here
was by the law of the
strongest and brutal. The
father of the composer
had in this much support
from the oldest daughter
of the family. The
themes in the trio
reflect the carefree
youth,the pleasant
atmosphere and the warmth
and dedication in
Janssen's home.
De Nederlands
componist Harrie Janssen
schreef 'Adventures of
the Beaumé' ter
gelegenheid van het 50
jarig huwelijksjubileum
van zijn ouders. De
componist heeft met de
mars zijn herinneringen
aan het ouderlijk huis,
en metname aan het beroep
van zijn ouders
weergegeven. De
familie Janssen verdiende
de kost als binnenvaart
schippers. 'Beaumé'
was de naam van het
vrachtschip van zijn
ouders. Het eerste
deel van de mars
beschrijft de
avonturendie ze
meemaakten voor de sluis,
om de haven van Antwerpen
te bereiken. Om hier door
te komen gold het recht
van de sterkste en
brutaalste. De vader van
de componist had hierin
veel steun van de oudste
dochter van het
gezin. De thema's in
het trio weerspiegelen de
onbekommerde jeugd, de
plezierige sfeer en de
warmte en toewijding in
huize Janssen.
Adventures of the Beaumé Orchestre d'harmonie [Conducteur et Parties séparées] - Intermédiaire Gobelin Music Publications
Concert Band/Harmonie - Grade 4 SKU: BT.GOB-000879-010 Composed by Harrie...(+)
Concert Band/Harmonie -
Grade 4
SKU:
BT.GOB-000879-010
Composed by Harrie
Janssen. Set (Score &
Parts). 12 pages. Gobelin
Music Publications #GOB
000879-010. Published by
Gobelin Music
Publications
(BT.GOB-000879-010).
The Dutch
composer Harrie Janssen
composed Adventures of
the Beaume to mark the
50th anniversary of his
parents wedding. The
composer of the march his
memories of the family
home, and in particular
the occupation of his
parents. The Janssen
family earned a living as
inland carriers.
Beaume 'was the name of
the ship of his parents.
The first part of
the march describes the
adventures they
experienced before the
lock, to reach the port
of Antwerp. To get here
was by the law of the
strongest and brutal. The
father of the composer
had in this much support
from the oldest daughter
of the family. The
themes in the trio
reflect the carefree
youth,the pleasant
atmosphere and the warmth
and dedication in
Janssen's home.
De Nederlands
componist Harrie Janssen
schreef 'Adventures of
the Beaumé' ter
gelegenheid van het 50
jarig huwelijksjubileum
van zijn ouders. De
componist heeft met de
mars zijn herinneringen
aan het ouderlijk huis,
en metname aan het beroep
van zijn ouders
weergegeven. De
familie Janssen verdiende
de kost als binnenvaart
schippers. 'Beaumé'
was de naam van het
vrachtschip van zijn
ouders. Het eerste
deel van de mars
beschrijft de
avonturendie ze
meemaakten voor de sluis,
om de haven van Antwerpen
te bereiken. Om hier door
te komen gold het recht
van de sterkste en
brutaalste. De vader van
de componist had hierin
veel steun van de oudste
dochter van het
gezin. De thema's in
het trio weerspiegelen de
onbekommerde jeugd, de
plezierige sfeer en de
warmte en toewijding in
huize Janssen.
Adventures of the Beaumé Orchestre d'harmonie [Conducteur] - Intermédiaire Gobelin Music Publications
Concert Band/Harmonie - Grade 4 SKU: BT.GOB-000879-140 Composed by Harrie...(+)
Concert Band/Harmonie -
Grade 4
SKU:
BT.GOB-000879-140
Composed by Harrie
Janssen. Score Only. 12
pages. Gobelin Music
Publications #GOB
000879-140. Published by
Gobelin Music
Publications
(BT.GOB-000879-140).
The Dutch
composer Harrie Janssen
composed Adventures of
the Beaume to mark the
50th anniversary of his
parents wedding. The
composer of the march his
memories of the family
home, and in particular
the occupation of his
parents. The Janssen
family earned a living as
inland carriers.
Beaume 'was the name of
the ship of his parents.
The first part of
the march describes the
adventures they
experienced before the
lock, to reach the port
of Antwerp. To get here
was by the law of the
strongest and brutal. The
father of the composer
had in this much support
from the oldest daughter
of the family. The
themes in the trio
reflect the carefree
youth,the pleasant
atmosphere and the warmth
and dedication in
Janssen's home.
De Nederlands
componist Harrie Janssen
schreef 'Adventures of
the Beaumé' ter
gelegenheid van het 50
jarig huwelijksjubileum
van zijn ouders. De
componist heeft met de
mars zijn herinneringen
aan het ouderlijk huis,
en metname aan het beroep
van zijn ouders
weergegeven. De
familie Janssen verdiende
de kost als binnenvaart
schippers. 'Beaumé'
was de naam van het
vrachtschip van zijn
ouders. Het eerste
deel van de mars
beschrijft de
avonturendie ze
meemaakten voor de sluis,
om de haven van Antwerpen
te bereiken. Om hier door
te komen gold het recht
van de sterkste en
brutaalste. De vader van
de componist had hierin
veel steun van de oudste
dochter van het
gezin. De thema's in
het trio weerspiegelen de
onbekommerde jeugd, de
plezierige sfeer en de
warmte en toewijding in
huize Janssen.
For
Erhu, Pipa, Percussion
and Saxophone
Quartet. Composed by
Chen Yi. From Dunhuang
Fantasy. Premiere: NYC &
Philadelphia.
Contemporary. Full score
(study). With Standard
notation. Composed 2008.
36 pages. Duration 14
minutes. Theodore Presser
Company #114-41359S.
Published by Theodore
Presser Company
(PR.11441359S).
UPC:
680160582341. 8.5 x 11
inches.
Commissione
d by Music From China
ensemble and Prism
Saxophone Quartet, with a
grant provided by the New
York State Council on the
Arts in 2008. Premiered
in New York City,
February
2009. Commissioned by
Music From China ensemble
and PRISM Saxophone
Quartet, with a
commissioning grant
provided by the New York
State Council on the Arts
in 2008.The imagination
of this music came from
the figures in the murals
carved in the Mogao Caves
in the ancient city
Dunhuang more than a
thousand years ago.Â
The name Dunhuang
originally meant
“prospering,
flourishing.â€Â
Lying at the western end
of the Gansu Corridor in
China, Dunhuang was very
important in the Silk
Road that carried new
thoughts, ideas, arts and
sciences to the East and
West in the ancient
time. The Mogao
Grottoes were built and
developed over 11
dynasties over more than
1,000 years (from the 4th
to 14th centuries), with
murals, sculptures,
wooden cave buildings and
books. It was really
the heyday of the art of
Dunhuang in the brilliant
Tang Dynasty (618-907).
 The murals depict
rolling dance gestures,
the flapping streamer
lines, the flying
melodies around the
clouds, and the fiery
rhythms in the sky!Â
They show the high spirit
and the strong power of
the people and their
society. All these
impressions are
translated into the
textures of the two
Chinese traditional
instrumental parts with
support from a set of
percussion instruments,
and the sound of a
saxophone quartet.Â
It’s mysterious,
vivid, colorful and
energetic, it brings us
to dream of the ancient
glory and yearn for the
future...—Chen
Yi.
Composed
by Dan Welcher. Spiral.
Large Score. With
Standard notation.
Duration 10 minutes.
Theodore Presser Company
#466-00047. Published by
Theodore Presser Company
(PR.466000470).
UPC:
680160099405. 11 x 17
inches.
This is the
second incarnation of a
work I first composed in
1994 for symphonic wind
ensemble. The earlier
version was intended to
be the summation of
three-part suite, each
part being named for a
different national park
in the Western United
States. This orchestral
version, commissioned in
1999 by the Utah Symphony
and dedicated to the
memory of Aaron Copland,
is more than a re-scoring
of the earlier piece; it
is a re-thinking of all
its elements. Zion is a
place with unrivaled
natural grandeur, being a
sort of huge box canyon
in which the traveler is
constantly overwhelmed by
towering rock walls on
every side of him -- but
it is also a place with a
human history, having
been inhabited by several
tribes of native
Americans before the
arrival of the Mormon
settlers in the mid-19th
century. By the time the
Mormons reached Utah,
they had been driven all
the way from New York
State through Ohio and,
with tragic losses,
through Missouri. They
saw Utah in general as a
place nobody wanted, but
they were nonetheless
determined to keep it to
themselves. Although Zion
Canyon was never a Mormon
Stronghold, the people
who reached it and
claimed it (and gave it
its present name) had
been through extreme
trials. It is the
religious fervor of these
persecuted people that I
was able to draw upon in
creating Zion as a piece
of music. There are two
quoted hymns in the work:
Zion's Walls (which Aaron
Copland adapted to his
own purposes in both his
Old American Songs and
the opera The Tender
Land) and Zion's
Security, which I found
in the same volume in
which Copland found
Zion's Walls -- that
inexhaustible storehouse
of 19th-century hymnody
called The Sacred Harp.
My work opens with a
three-verse setting of
Zion's Security, a stern
tune in F-sharp minor
which is full of resolve.
(The words of this hymn
are resolute and strong,
rallying the faithful to
be firm, and describing
the city of our God they
hope to establish). This
melody alternates with a
fanfare tune, whose
origins will be revealed
in later music, until the
second half of the piece
begins: a driving
rhythmic ostinato based
on a 3/4-4/4 alternating
meter scheme. This pauses
at its height to restate
Zion's Security one more
time, in a rather obscure
setting surrounded by
freely shifting patterns
in the flutes, clarinets,
and percussion -- until
the sun warms the ground
sufficiently for the
second hymn to appear.
Zion's Walls is set in
7/8, unlike Copland's
9/8-6/8 meters (the
original is quite
strange, and doesn't
really fit any constant
meter), and is introduced
by a warm horn solo. The
two hymns vie for
attention from here to
the end of the piece,
with the glowingly
optimistic Zion's Walls
finally achieving
prominence. The work ends
with a sense of
triumph.