(For more information on Grainger’s Irish Tune from County Derry, see Frederick Fennell’s classic 1978 article in this issue.)

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Beginning Band – Grade 0.37
Wal-Mart March (Aisle 1) by Samuel Walton. Watch beginners’ eyes light up at the trio as they antiphonally chant “Always Saves” and “Roll-Back Prices.”

4’33” by John Cage, arranged by Jeff Greene. A difficult but rewarding work that requires students to remain still for four minutes and 33 seconds. An easier arrangement titled 1’01” for less mature bands is also available.

Amazonian Folk Song Melody by Ralph Nissan is based on a melody found inscribed on a poison dart that was found in an ancient pottery jar on an excavation site in the ruins of Tuppawaro, Brazil.

Beginning Band – Grade 0.81
Crimmon’s Landfill by Fred Sanford perfectly describes the towering, majestic landfill in Crimmon’s County, Kentucky. This earthy work portrays all the excitement of debris being crushed, pushed, and reformed into a mountainous masterpiece.

Aleatoric Deception by Van McMinty. The perfect piece for that once-in-a-lifetime group of students who could not play a correct rhythm or hit a correct harmonic if its life depended on it. The music is so random that all the notes and rhythms a student could play are correct. It’s impossible to mess up on this piece.

ADHD March by Shorty A. Tenshunspan. Keep the attention of even your least-focused students with this rousing march that lasts only 15 seconds.

Young Band – Grade 1.47
    Parade on a Whole Note by Dave Oldwell. This piece has approximately 18 different time signatures containing nothing but whole notes. Students learn unfamiliar time signatures like 5/4 ,  6/4 , 7/4 , 8/4 , 9/4 , 10/4 , all the way up to 18/4 .

Palindrome March by Eve Level. This dazzling composition sounds the same whether played forward or backward.

Stars and Snipes Forever by J.J. Jingleheimer Smith. A hilarious collection of everyone’s favorite camp songs: “99 Bottles of (non-alcoholic) Beer on the Wall,” “Bingo,” “Father Abraham,” “Old Lady Leary,” and “Great Green Gobs of Greasy Grimy Gopher Guts.”

Snoring by Rick Wagner. Your little comedians will love wheezing and snorting on this creative variation of Foster’s “Beautiful Dreamer.”

Young Band – Grade 2
Generic Salute by Bill Smith. Do you have a special anniversary you want to celebrate? Just make up your own title and dedication and you’re ready to go. This music works for any special occasion.

On the Wings of a Lightly-Yellow-Spotted-One-Winged-Marsupial Mayfly by musician and entomologist Gil Grissom beautifully describes the majestic flight of this rare insect from the Outback.

My Chaconna by Gus Saquilidge is a stupendous mingling of Holst’s Chaconne and The Knack’s 1979 hit “My Sharona” It’s a treatment like you’ve never heard before.

Concert Band – Grade 3
Morgue and Mindy, arranged by Gus Mauler. This ingenious combination of Bach’s Come, Sweet Death and the “Mork and Mindy” theme will make everyone happy, from the serious musician to the sedentary couch potato.

Kindertotenlieder by Gustave Mauler, arranged by Grimm Weeper. This song is perfect for any elementary or recruiting concert.

A Salute to All Human Beings Everywhere, Dead or Alive by Hugh Mann is a tribute honoring everyone who has ever existed. Audiences everywhere will feel a tingle up their spines as they hear this piece written just for them and their ancestors.

Symphonic Band – Grades 4-5
Echoes of an Echo’s Echo by Rhea Peat. This haunting tune is based on the lonely call of the Appalachian mountain goat.

More So Than Monique by Franklin Houndstooth is a jazzy take on Morceau’s Symphonique and provides a refreshing and jazzy new arrangement for your outstanding trombone or euphonium soloist.

Seven-Eight Turnabout by Smythe Claudeson. The whole piece is in 7/8  except for three measures that are in 4/4.

Fantasy on a Song My Grandma Used to Hum While She Rocked Me but I Can’t Remember What It’s Called and I Can’t Ask Her Because She Died by Fred Handle. There won’t be a dry eye in the house after the performance of this touching work.

Dream Band – Grade 6
Through the Eye of the Boll Weevil by G.W. Carver is a salute to the Boll Weevil Monument in Enterprise, Alabama. Experience the majesty of this 13-foot-tall monument.

Of Sailors and Nails by Frank McBetters. This brilliantly amazing work is sure to be a standard in the repertoire. Audiences will be enthralled as 60 hammers and 300 nails are used by students to construct a boat during the performance.  

The post Instant Classics appeared first on The Instrumentalist.

Timothy Hudson graduated from Indiana University, the New England Conservatory of Music, and the Uni­versity of North Ca­rolina at Greensboro. He teaches trum­pet at Gardner-Webb Uni­versity and is a Yamaha Performing Artist.

Dennis de Jong, Trumpet
    A director could begin by giving a brief presentation on the rag as a musical tradition and play a rag as it was originally conceived, such as a rag for piano by Scott Joplin. Next he should elicit some adjectives from the quintet describing what a musician might want to convey in terms of the music. Is the rag light or jaunty? Does it bounce or dance? Finally, relate those ideas back to playing the instrument.
    It is important for brass players to understand that the rag was not originally conceived for brass quintet. In general the topic of literature is always good to discuss with young brass quintets because much of the repertoire was not originally conceived as brass repertoire. Students may be playing a Bach contrapunctus that was conceived for organ, while the rag from its earliest days was conceived for piano.
    Directors might want to address two areas in terms of the rag: agility, because rags do have a wide range in terms of individual parts, and the ability to be light with the articulation. Guidance for brass ensembles is always a two-sided approach. It is important to keep the musicianship in the forefront, so directors are always discussing  what the musician wants in terms of the sound and the delivery of the music, which go hand in hand. Then there is always a discussion of the technical facility. Based on these areas, you create an image for the players in terms of what they want to emulate.

Dennis de Jong teaches at Johnson Community College. He earned a master of music degree from Du­quesne Uni­versity and a bachelor of music degree from the Shepherd School of Music at Rice University.

David Wulfeck, Trombone
    The music shifts between major and minor intervals in several places, especially in measure 30 to 38. Here the trombonist has to be sure he hears the intervals correctly because he is playing with the horn. At measure 61, where the notes spell out the words Carolina Brass Rag, the trombone plays alone the first time through whereas the second time the horn joins the trombone at the octave. The trombone has the melody at that point.
    At measure 58 it sounds as though the piece ends, but the trombone has a lead-in that should be played soft but solid. The trombone melody at measure 61 should be played with character; have fun with it.

David Wulfeck received music degrees from the University of Northern Colo­rado, the University of North Caro­lina at Greensboro, and had doctoral studies at In­diana University. He teaches at St. Au­gu­-stine’s College and Shaw University.

Bob Campbell, Horn
    The horn has a lot of off beats in the “Carolina Brass Rag” that young players tend to play too short. It sounds better to give each note a little life – play it just a little longer – before you cut it off. I don’t mean a marcato articulation, just a little longer. For off beats inexperienced hornists tend to think of themselves playing a snare drum with short articulations: dit, dit, dit. It’s a long 16th: dum, dum, dum.
    In several places Art Frackenpohl used a 16th-note, eighth-note figure that is not sometimes on the beat as well as moved over. It goes on forever. The figure begins in the upper instruments at measure 22 and then moves to the horn and trombone at measure 30; it recurs toward the end of the piece. The way it’s written the notation looks very full. We add staccato articulations to give the music a little more lift, and for that 16th-note, eighth-note figure we play the second note short.
    At bar 61 Frackenpohl includes directions in the horn part: “Upper notes 2nd time.” Actually the trombone and horn have a two-measure introduction to measure 61 with the parts written in unison. The way the Carolina Brass plays it, the trombone takes the two bars leading into 61, and then at 61 he schmaltzes up the melody; it really sounds good. I don’t bother playing there because we would be in unison, and it just sounds nice to let the trombone have fun with the tune. The second time through I join in, playing the part an octave higher while the trombone plays straighter. 

Bob Campbell graduated from the North Carolina School of the Arts. He is on the faculty at Wake Forest Uni­versity and is a member of the faculty woodwind quintet. He is a founding member of the Winston-Salem Bolton Project Wind Quintet.

Matt Ransom, Tuba
    The tuba part in “Carolina Brass Rag” is somewhat touchy in that the player has to be highly articulate and the notes have to be as clean as possible. It’s easy to make the notes too resonant and too long on the tuba, destroying the tempo and the clarity of the entire group.
    I play my part crisp and short in this piece. It is a rag, so big beats and accents are important. A little bit of a lean-your-shoulder-into-it jazz twist is fine. It’s okay to let young groups in particular release their imaginations  and not treat the music like a Mozart or Bach work. Even though this rag is written in a classical style, it should be played with some chutzpah.
    The tuba part has a number of leaps that can be difficult. Although the range does not extend into the low register, it does reach to B flat above the staff. If a leap goes into an ex­tremely high register above the staff, I’ll play the octave below it to make sure I have the correct pitch in my mind. I usually go to the piano and play the intervals.
    If a particular interval is troublesome, such as a minor seventh above the staff, I’ll play it on the piano and buzz it on my mouthpiece with the piano and even sing it. I recommend a lot of singing with the piano, which acts as a pitch reference. My tuba students will tell you that they do a lot of singing and a lot of buzzing.

Matt Ransom teaches at Wake Forest and is the artist-faculty tuba instructor at the North Carolina School of the Arts. He earned a bachelor of music degree and an arts diploma from the North Carolina School of the Arts.

John R. Beck, Percussion
This particular arrangement has a part for drumset that should be played softly. In fact for a percussionist the ability to play soft and blend is more important than having good listening skills. The piano dynamic never gets discussed on the football field where percussionists are told to play loud. Even in jazz band, it’s about driving the ensemble or playing loud for a ragtime piece.
The difficulty of performing in a small group, like a brass quintet or a small chamber percussion ensemble, is that the players have to refine their skills and learn to listen and play softly to blend. These are things that directors never address to young percussion sections in a typical band rehearsal. A director may talk to the winds or the brass about blending but not the percussion. You are forced to deal with those issues in a small chamber ensemble.
In the “Carolina Brass Rag” everything has to be soft and played sensitively. As the drummer the trick is to make sure you can hear every member of the ensemble. The percussionist is one of six players who contributes to the music making; he is not the engine that drives the group.

John R. Beck is a faculty member at the North Carolina School of the Arts and Wake Forest University. He received music degrees from Oberlin College and the East­man School of Music. He is a former member of the United States Marine Band.  

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Troubleshooting Articulation
    If the articulation sounds like someone is driving rivets, chances are the student’s tongue is hitting the reed as he learns the tickle method. Also, using any derivation of a t syllable will result in harsh articulation. If you prefer using a syllable to teach articulation, try dee for clarinet and dah for saxophone. The tickle method should eliminate most thwacking.
    When the articulation sounds unfocused, it indicates anchor tonguing or tonguing with the middle portion of the tongue’s surface. Mushiness can result when the tongue touches the roof of the mouth, rather than the reed. Finally, a lack of clarity can occur when students do not apply adequate pressure to the reed to stop the sound. Learning just how much pressure to put on the reed comes with practice and correction from the teacher.
    If a student cannot control the articulation or maintain a consistent style or articulation speed, the best course is to review the tickle method and the idea of the joint. Clarify exactly which part of the tongue touches which place on the reed, thus creating the joint.
    Students who do not know how to articulate can come up with some creative ways to put space between the notes on the page. Their efforts, however, contribute to an overall muddy articulation sound through­out the ensemble. Teachers do their students no favors by ignoring these struggles. If you do not know how to fix a problem, for your student’s sake, don’t be afraid to ask for guidance.
    Some students cannot articulate more than four counts without fainting from the effort. I have fond memories of creative articulation methods as a high school clarinetist. I was one in a cast of thousands in an outstanding program, so my band director never knew my foibles. At one time in my high school clarinet career, I was separating notes by stopping my breath to stop the sound. Well, I easily flew under my director’s radar screen that year; I could only huff at moderate and slow tempos. No doubt, some of you know young flute players who have articulation huffing down to a fine art.
    Stopping the air is not an option for articulation. Further, I don’t condone pulsing the air and often look at my students for the telltale movement at the base of the throat (between the collar bones) showing that the air is pulsing and not steady.
    When you try to clear up a huffing or pulsing problem, it’s easiest to go back to the tickle method and insist on continuous air flow and a steady tone from the student. The key is that the contact between the tongue and the reed only puts a dent in the air flow.
    Ponderous, slow articulation results from relaxing the tongue. However, if the tongue stays relaxed and close to the reed, I can almost assure you good speed. After students have the tickle method down, they can articulate very rapidly. I often play call-and-response games with young students so that they can learn to articulate quickly in a relaxed, fun lesson.
    One of my favorite rhythm patterns is four 16th notes followed by a quarter note. With fast articulations the shorter the note value, the more legato it should be played. So, when I play the 16th-notes quarter-note call-and-response game, I have the students touch the reed just enough to interrupt, but not stop, the vibration of the reed. 
    By the end of the first year when students have a characteristic tone and know how to articulate both legato and staccato phrases, I begin to teach double tonguing using call-and-re­sponse games with the syllables dee, gee rather than tuh, kuh, which is often used by brass players. I use one eighth note followed by two 16th notes and a quarter note in the game. Students single tongue the eighth note and double tongue the 16th notes.  Again, I stress relaxation and a very light contact with the reed.

Small Movements
    Teaching articulation is related to the mechanics of the joint: knowing which part of the tongue touches which part of the reed. The tickle method can also show students how to develop both legato and staccato articulations with the very small movement of a relaxed tongue. Finally, students learn light, consistent articulation that will serve them throughout their playing careers.  

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Breathing
    Although breathing is extremely important, young students want to play, so I do not talk about it right away.  I start with buzzing before moving to breathing exercises. I have students say oh! and then try to get them to do it a few more times with increased enthusiasm each time. When they do this strongly enough I switch the syllable to poh and have them whisper it with as much enthusiasm as possible. Then I demonstrate how to say poh while inhaling; I place my hands on my midsection to show students how it grows larger while doing this.
    When teaching a masterclass I bring pieces of one-inch diameter PVC pipe – one for each student. I ask students to put their mouths all the way around the tube and inhale. It is almost impossible to breathe through these tubes if a player is tense.
    Students will be able to inhale through the tubes easily, but it is important that they take in lots of air when the mouthpiece is in front of them. The best exercise with the breathing tubes is to alternate breathing from the tube and buzzing the mouthpiece, so students get used to the kind of breath they should take.
    Some young players puff out their cheeks, which is never acceptable. Show these students how they look in a mirror; sometimes this is enough to make them stop. Ask students who still puff to put the instrument down and exhale a stream of air at their palm while puffing the cheeks. Then have them do the same without puffing. Point out how puffed cheeks make the facial muscles too relaxed to blow a strong stream of air. When they blow without puffing, the facial muscles are much firmer.

Adding the Trumpet
    All the work on breathing and buzzing should transfer to producing a beautiful, dark, and resonant trumpet sound. I play a G4 for the students to demonstrate a good sound, and then have students imitate me, holding a G4 for as long as comfortably possible at a medium dynamic. Students should focus on the sound, and I frequently ask them to play one at a time so I can help each one produce a clear and centered sound right away. The goal is for students to play with a good sound every time they bring the instrument up to the face. The best way to practice this is to hold a note for eight beats, then rest for eight beats.      This give students plenty of opportunities to practice breathing, articulating, and holding a good sound as well as time to rest.
    After long tones I like to introduce lip slurs, using this simple pattern:

     Students should concentrate on producing a clean sound through the lip slur and holding the low note for as long as possible. Students should rest for as long as they hold the low note and the rest for as long as they held the low note, and then do the next half step. If a student plays with an unclean sound or cannot match pitch, have him go back to the mouthpiece and buzz it. In fact, a good way to teach this exercise is to have half the students play it while the other half buzz, then switch.

Tonguing
    Many young players have difficulty tonguing clearly. The tip of the tongue should be placed behind the top teeth right where they meet the gum. I prefer the syllable tu because it most closely follows the sound the air should make as it flows out. Review correct inhalation, then have students say tu and blow on their hands – they should feel a steady, focused stream of air. I give students simple quarter- and eighth-note patterns to keep the tongue moving. Students should play chromatically down to low C, although younger students can just play down the C major scale.

    Another exercise that keeps the tongue working and the air moving is to have each student hold the top of a piece of paper in front of his mouth while blowing steady, tongued quarter notes on it. The bottom half of the paper should blow away and stay away as each student tongues. If the paper moves in and out with each quarter note, the air is not flowing and the sound on the trumpet will be choppy. It takes quite a bit of steady air to keep the paper from moving in and out. After students can tongue well, add the mouthpiece and then the trumpet. Play quarter notes on G4

Posture and Hand Position
    Although good posture is important, frequently telling students to sit up may increase body tension. A student of mine once auditioned for Vincent Cichowicz at Northwestern. During band rehearsals I frequently told students to sit up, and she did, but Mr. Cichowicz told her that her posture was so perfect it was causing too much tension. If the shoulders are not relaxed breathing will be restricted. The other extreme, slouching, is equally bad; elbows should not be able to touch the hips or waist. A trumpet player’s elbows should be six to eight inches from the body. It may be necessary to give the trumpet section more space so elbows are not touching each other. Students who habitually slouch should stand until they are used to playing with good posture.
    Inexperienced trumpeters tend to play with their bells in the stand or angled at the floor (as in the photo on the left). The trumpet bell should be slightly below parallel to the ground, and the bell should be out of the stand. Students should adjust the music and music stand appropriately to the correct bell angle rather than the other way around.
   

    Young players make several common hand position mistakes. The right thumb should be under the leadpipe between the first and second valves. It should not protrude up and around the leadpipe by the first valve; this will cause the fingertips to be at an incorrect angle on the valve tops. Many inexperienced players struggle with the third valve getting stuck because of this poor hand position.
     Many teachers have students place the right pinky on top of the pinky hook on the leadpipe. This is a good idea, as students may attempt to use the pinky hook to put pressure on the lips to play higher. Students should attempt to play higher by flowing faster air through the instrument rather than adding pressure.

Care and Maintenance
    Every four to six months students should carefully take the trumpet apart – remove the slides and valves – and run it under lukewarm tap water. I usually hold the instrument from the bell and let water run all the way through it. Using an old rag or cloth, gently wipe the gunk from the slides and valves, while avoiding getting the felt pads wet. Purchase a mouthpiece brush and slide snake, and gently pull the snake through the slides to remove the build-up. I prefer a combination of slide grease and valve oil to relubricate the slides.
    Ideally, all instruments will be in working condition before a masterclass, but so many directors have such limited time that care and maintenance might need to be part of the class, assuming supplies, including a working sink, are available. A session on care and cleaning midway through a masterclass can be a good break from playing. An alternative is to prepare a handout listing the necessary tools and instructions for cleaning the instrument.

Third Valve Slide
    If students have never learned to extend the third valve slide for low D and C#, a masterclass is an excellent place to introduce this. Have students play a C scale with the slide in for D, then out for D. Then give each player an opportunity to experiment with the slide and a tuner, so everyone can see how far out the slide must go to be in tune. When each student knows how far to kick the slide out, play “Mary Had a Little Lamb” starting on E so students can practice triggering D while tonguing correctly and flowing air through the horn. If students struggle with all three of these, have them slur the song to keep the air moving.
    End the masterclass by playing a song or etude. Simple duets or trios are good as well, and parts can be switched between players.    

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Shepherd’s Hey.

Conducting Changes
    A tempo that works is always the initial responsibility of the conductor. In this case the composer has done everything to provide guides to a proper tempo, beginning with that typical Graingerism: “Flowingly,” and continues with two equally characteristic descriptions: “Very feelingly” and “gently but feelingly,” and there is of course his metronome marking of quarter = 80.
    It should be obvious from all of this that Grainger hoped he might avoid having his interpreters choose a pulse that would find the music wallowing around in a pool of sentimental slush, the players gasping for breath, and those beautifully proportioned lines sagging at every seam. “Dyingly but graspingly” might better describe what is frequently heard rather than what is prescribed. Conductorial maturity regardless of age may be said to have arrived to some degree when one no longer conducts slow music too slowly or fast music beyond its pace.
    Everything plays beautifully at Grainger’s 80 pulses. The casting of these as quarters in 4/4 for military band as opposed to his setting in eighths at 4/4 for the string orchestra version always causes me to pause and think before I conduct one or the other. In either case the initial silent pulse must be definite and inviting. Obviously he is depending on the simple visual flow of quarters to provide the band with a pulse projection that encases his rhythmic needs within a single bar. Average band players and bandmasters in 1918 may not have been secure with eight slow pulses to a measure, and if Grainger’s experiences at Fort Hamilton and Governor’s Island had taught him so, this is probably why this version moves by the quarter note.
    Balances demand careful listening with all lines subjugated to the melody, which must be projected with greatest breath support in full keeping with Grainger’s exhortation to ultimate expression. The five different instrumental sonorities that he has selected [1-16] require careful balance within themselves, that they may blend into a homogeneous sonority.
    I have usually been happiest with the sound when I add more horns and urge the trombones to carry the leading quality, using as many baritones as available, but asking them to let their numbers, in a solidly supported piano, blend with the trombones rather than dominate them. All should play vibrantly, especially the trombones. Note that way back in 1918, Grainger asked the baritone and tenor sax to play with vibrato. All must play with the greatest possible sostenuto, clinging to every note for its full value and beyond, seeking the ultimate ensemble as the lines move in their marvelous way.
    The line above the tune, the one I call the cantilena (cornet 1, horn 1, soprano sax), has a special presence. Grainger sought to color it through his inclusion of the soprano sax amongst the sonorities of the brass. If your set of parts does not include one for soprano sax, this player can use the first cornet part for the first 16 measures.
    The cantilena must not be so unobtrusive as to lack presence as sounds begin to build in the second section (D) [17]; intensities generate of themselves, peaking at the climax [25 and 26] in an unmistakable musical fulfillment. But it is the closing, the releasing phrase [28-32] that demands the greatest discipline, the ultimate in breath support, the complete conductorial control of nuance and sonority.
    As the first complete statement approaches its conclusion [29], all should release the G7 chord deftly and cover that release with sufficient resonance to allow a skillful breath with which to finish the phrase [29-32].
    The beginning of the second statement [33] seems to demand five solo players, to be joined by a sixth where a choice between tenor sax and bassoon may be made for that important lowest line [37]. This suggested contrast, achieved by thinning the texture, follows the thick richness that is the hallmark of the first statement. Vibrant solo playing here is certain to bring sonic and artistic rewards, allowing critical control of the delicate nuances and minimum dynamics, all of this under the aura of expressiveness that has been so lovingly instilled by the composer.
    All instruments may be utilized as more and more instrumental voices gather around the action [41] and the midway point is reached [48]. In the interest of effective ensemble and the momentary emotional release to be found here, the conductor should extract the ultimate in tonal support from the players toward that release leading to the great tutti at [49]. All parts with a whole note at measure 48 should be edited as in this example for the first cornet:
    And now everybody should be at it, playing vibrantly and with a great singing sound. Whenever the excitement of playing such beautiful music grows as it does here all players must remember the constant need for the ultimate in breath support to drive the airstream on through the instruments. When vibrancy is added to all of this the music seems to soar off into a sonic realm that transcends the mere instruments producing it.
Every line is important, and it is up to the conductor to be sure that lines do not become buried within instrumental textures just about as thick as one is likely to find. As the music begins to louden [56] all must remember that any accents are to be played espressivo and tenuto. In the gathering excitement, the conductor and the players must hold sound in reserve for each pulse. Grainger’s request for sound must be served by those horns, cornets, clarinets, oboes, and saxes who must literally thrust their rising F major triad up through the rest of the band. It is vital to remember that the pulse of the music must continually press the great sounds forward, keeping the melodic line aloft and driving the rich harmonies to their climax [58].
The suspended cymbal [56-60] should be used to heighten the excitement of the climax, not to dominate it. The soft drumstick indicated should be a pair of felt timpani or yarn-wound marimba mallets.

The Final Cadence
    “Slow off lots” and “soften gradually” tell us what we need to know; if everything is kept as expressive as possible, the steady approach to the final cadence shimmers in beautiful sounds, capped by the closing harmonies of the horns and trombones.

    The final F major chord is a typical Grainger voicing, and its balance is not easy to achieve. The close intervals in the two bottom octaves (with their forbidden doubled fifth, a C natural) are more a pianoforte voicing than anything else. Scored for bassoon, baritone sax, and baritone, this fifth of the chord is certain to be present.

    It has long been my feeling that Irish Tune from measure 49 to the end is among the most demanding scores in the basic band repertoire for the conductor, and the first of these demands is to keep the music moving while all revel in the great bath of souds that Grainger has provided. I resort to a basic large pulse of two beats to the bar after establishing tempo in 49, returning to four pulses at “Slightly Slower,” where the conductor should indicate with steadily rising motion the stretch of the fourth quarter note in measure 57. The four-pulse continues to the end. When the conductor keeps the two fermatas of bar 63 moving upward, all is in position for the final fermata and its appropriate descending physical motion. Players and conductor should remain motionless for about five seconds after the sound has ceased, to continue the spirit of the music in the silence that grows from its termination. 

The post Irish Tune from County Derry appeared first on The Instrumentalist.

Moving Players, Passing Sounds
    The most representative composition is Russell Peck’s Cave of the Winds (Galaxy), a work that requires performers to memorize the music so they can move to a variety of locations during the piece. Fisher Tull’s Studies in Motion (Southern) uses a traditional seating arrangement as the instrumentalists pass sounds from side to side of the ensemble in prescribed motions, conveying the idea of space.
    The first spatial works actually date from the late-16th century and include Gio­vanni Gabrieli’s Canzonas (Musica Rara). Some of the music from this time was played from bell towers for civic timekeeping or ceremonial purposes. A modern piece in this style is Richard Mohaupt’s Town Piper Music (G. Schirmer). Handel wrote his Concerti a due Cori (Barenreiter) to perform during the intermissions of his later oratorios.
    Typically, spatial works use one of three different kinds of placement: offstage, anti­phonal (horizontal), and vertical. Each has its own challenges and opportunities for performance, yet all are useful as a way to heighten the musical experiences of the audience.

A Carthage Concert
    A recent concert at Carthage Col­lege in Kenosha, Wisconsin in­cluded the following selections, performed without a pause and with the ensemble placed at various locations throughout the venue. Asterisks denote spatial placement pieces.

American Patrol (for three bands)* by Francis Mea­chem, arranged by Morton Gould (G. Schirmer).
Canzon a duodecimi toni a 8* by Giovanni Gabrieli, edited by Mark Scatterday (Warner Bros.).
Crug-Y-Bar from Household Music by Ralph Vaughan Williams (Oxford).
Bali* by Michael Colgrass (Carl Fischer).
“Finale” from Octet by Stravinsky (Boosey & Hawkes).
Fields* by James Syler (Ballerbach).
From the Steeples and Mountains* by Ives (Peer-Southern).
Xochipilli by Carlos Chavez (G. Schirmer).
“Allegro” from Saxophone Quartet by Elliot Del Borgo.
Praeludium (for five wind bands)* by David Bedford (Novello).

     Many 20th-century composers place musicians offstage in their works, with such examples as Holst’s The Planets (Boosey & Hawkes), Respighi’s Pines of Rome (Ricordi), and Mahler’s Sym­phony #3 (Schott). Other such works in­clude H. Owen Reed’s La Fiesta Mex­icana (Mills); Ingolf Dahl’s Sinfonietta (Broude); and Frank Ticheli’s Angels in the Archi­tecture, Pacific Fanfare, and American Elegy (Manhattan Beach).

Know the Score, Plan Ahead
     One aspect of staging works with offstage players is whether the musicians are needed onstage for the balance of the piece once the offstage portion is over. Optimally, the offstage performers should be additional players so the ranks of the ensemble are not diminished. Depending on the work, the performers may have to travel to their offstage position during lengthy rests in the piece. As the sound on the stage will likely be different from that in the hall, it is important to assess the balance of the band and offstage players from the audience’s perspective.
     Bali, a remarkably colorful work by Michael Colgrass, commemorates the musical spirit of the Balinese people. In the central section the scoring indicates three offstage oboes (optional clarinets) playing a lament that is particularly inspired and effective. Colgrass writes no other music for the oboes in this work, so the players should remain offstage for the entire work.
     Aside from the oboe soli, the position of the percussion and piano in Bali is also important; both have subdued and aggressive writing in the score. Here the orchestra bells and keyboard percussion should be to the side of the ensemble, preferably near the solo clarinet and saxophones be-cause these instruments share melodic material.

Exploiting Special Sounds
     Composers Henry Brandt and James Syler both understand – and exploit – the special sound characteristics that result from placing instruments in different ways in a performance area. Syler’s Storyville uses a soprano voice and saxophone solos offstage, with numerous sets of small wind groups on stage and a clarinet choir upstage.
     For On the Nature of Things Brandt has a clarinet choir on stage, with the remaining instruments situated throughout the concert hall, including a brass group centrally located on the main floor. Solo horn, glockenspiel, oboe, and flute are in the balcony; a woodwind trio is at the rear of the house; and a set of bass instruments are to the rear and under the balcony. Brandt is one of the few composers to position instruments vertically this way.
     Brandt and Syler have also composed pieces with antiphonal groups, such as American Debate (Carl Fischer) and Fields, that are technically easy to play. American De­bate uses the polymetric effect of one group playing in 6/8 meter while the other group answers by interjecting ideas in 2/4.
     Fields, a work of considerable depth and beauty, has two antiphonal groups on stage as well as a flugelhorn and percussion offstage. One of the most engaging aspects of the score is the harp and piano placed in be­tween the two wind groups. Alto flute, soprano saxophone, flugelhorn (on­stage as well as offstage), and piccolo trumpet provide additional color.

Colorful Ives
     Charles Ives based many works on his own experiences of hearing music played from various locations and in various keys around his native Dan­bury, Connecticut. While not explicit in the score, performances of The Unanswered Question (Peer), From the Steeples and Mountains, and Variations on Jerusalem the Golden (G. Schirmer) benefit from having a distinct space between groups of instruments.
     Keith Brion’s version of the Jerusalem the Golden variations gives the solo brass ensemble enough time to travel to a variety of locations in the auditorium to portray a competition between bands meeting at the town square. This work gives directors a perfect way to project spatial movement from onstage to offstage as well as to a vertical position using the balcony.
    I selected the three antiphonal works for the Carthage program to demonstrate a chronological progression of antiphonal music. Gabrieli’s Canzona was performed from balconies to the left and right of the audience, following the practice at St. Mark’s Cathedral in Venice. Morton Gould’s arrangement of American Patrol uses three small bands of similar instruments (piccolo, two clarinets, trumpet, cornet, trombone, tuba, and percussion) positioned to the left, center, and right of the audience. Gould constructed the work to demonstrate the stereo recording technique for Doub­ling in Brass (RCA) in 1959. This recording is available now in a two-CD set, Brass and Percussion. The performance at Car­thage was the first public performance of the work, which was previously played only for the recording session. It has been available on rental for many years.

Quadraphonic Sound
    David Bedford’s Praeludium dates from the 1980s and takes a quadraphonic approach to spatial sound with four small wind groups of clarinets, trumpets, and horns positioned to the sides of a large wind band. Additional players are not required for Praeludium because the small wind groups are scored aside from the requirements for the large band.
    The time and effort to prepare a spatial work, whether it is antiphonal, in a vertical configuration, or used offstage, gives your players and audience an engaging musical experience. Certain performance spaces are more conducive to these types of pieces, yet almost any concert quickly becomes more distinctive and memorable when it includes a spatial composition.  

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Music
    I believe the music must come before the drill, otherwise the drill is just a confusing exercise in memorizing counts. If students learn the music first they can connect the motion on the field to a broader concept.
    At the start of the season, a music segment will consist of reading through each piece while I notate any awkward spots and work through them slowly. Problems may also become a scheduled segment at the next rehearsal.  I might also schedule 20 minutes to practice a list of things in the first half of a tune. A typical entry in my rehearsal plan might look like this:

         City of Angels: Big breath right before measure 9. Mellos and altos to play out on the decending accents in 13-14. Band should feel the transition to allegro with mark time while listening for eighth notes in preceding measure. Trombones get off ties. All eighth-note pickups should be short in allegro section. Memorize 1-36.

    The next two segments of rehearsal would build on this.

        (20 minutes) Guard/Percussion return from sectionals; City of Angels: Percussion eyes on drum major for transition to allegro. Bass drum eighth-note pulse becomes quarters in the allegro. Drums play out through horn line fp. Horn line listen back to percussion for tempo – no rushing. Eighth-note pickups in horn line must match with snares each time. Memorize 1-36.

    As the season progresses I might devote 10 minutes to just a few measures of music. A difficult, two-measure woodwind lick may fill a 10-minute slot, which can be broken down even further. I might hear alto saxes for a minute, then clarinets, then flutes, then all three sections together for two minutes, then the full band for the last five. The goal is to keep the rehearsal moving while being diligent about the problems to be fixed. Too many times directors take a stop-and-fix-it approach, which drives players crazy and is an entirely reactive strategy.

Marching
    I have learned a couple tricks to make teaching and cleaning drill go more smoothly. One is to have students end every move in rehearsal by coming to attention and remaining quiet. With everyone silent and still I can make comments and give feedback without having to compete for the band’s attention. After I make my comments, there is time for the other instructors to make corrections while everyone remains in the freeze position.
    Another is after a command to reset, I give students 10 seconds to hurry back to their starting location. Without a time limit, students usually meander back to the starting location. In the time saved with a countdown, I can often get in one more runthrough at the end of each rehearsal. Some directors prefer to reset by marching the band back to its starting location with a cadence or drum taps, but I find resetting to be quicker and less confusing. Plus, it gives students a few seconds to decompress, which improves their focus during a long rehearsal. This is especially helpful when marching practice is held after a full day of school.
    It generally takes about 10 minutes to learn a page of drill. I give students one or two minutes, depending on the difficulty of the maneuver, to find where they have to go, and then we spend the next eight to nine minutes going back and forth to learn and memorize the move. We do the same for each page of drill on the schedule that day. Depending on the complexity of each move, we will learn two to four pages and then spend 10 minutes running those sets back to back.
    Here is an example of how the schedule for a new drill move might look:

        Learn the move from set 4 to set 5. Woodwinds follow the leader, everyone else reshapes.

    I try to anticipate problems that may arise and may schedule two 10-minute segments to learn complex drill moves, such as a pass-through. I begin these by placing students at the count where the pass-through happens, which may be count eight of a 16-count move. With students at the pass-through point, they can see the spacing and who is adjacent. Next we run through the pass-through slowly several times before increasing the tempo.
    For quick reference I will designate particular sets as rehearsal sets by giving them a nickname, such as “star” or “brown.” Typically these are the formations before or after a transition or a particularly complex move. When I call out this name, students know immediately where to go.
    I prefer to end each rehearsal with a run-through. If we spent a rehearsal learning sets 4-9, I will schedule the next-to-last 10-minute segment to run through these six sets. The first run-through might have the drums playing while the horns sing; when that is improved, the full band will march and play several times. In the final 10 minutes of rehearsal we might review the first nine drill sets.

Solving Problems
    Unanticipated problems arise at every rehearsal. The choice is to either grind rehearsal to a halt and waste time experimenting with a hasty solution or simply make note of what happened, think about it overnight, and come up with the best approach for the next rehearsal. It is easy to become sidetracked by the unexpected, and I find it is better to remain focused on the scheduled goals for that day.
    I urge young directors to give specific instructions, not general observations. Instead of a long-winded explanation, boil it down to what students should do. Rather than explain the acoustic properties of low brass instruments, simply say, “Play shorter and it won’t drag.”
    There is no magic to a rehearsal comprised of 10-minute segments, but this kind of planning focuses my teaching. Although I pay attention to the pacing and timing of each rehearsal, I keep things flexible enough to spend more or less time on a given segment as long as the band is making progress. What is important is for the director to have a specific plan and goals for each rehearsal and a clear idea of how best to reach them.

Sidebar: Getting off to a Good Start
    In addition to planning the actual rehearsal, it is important to have everything ready to go at least 10 minutes before the rehearsal starts. Student loading crews can take responsibility for front ensemble and color guard equipment, field markers, podiums, public address systems, and water for breaks. Having everything in place at least 10 minutes before rehearsal gives the student crew enough time to handle unexpected equipment problems as well as enough time to warm up. Without this cushion of time, students and directors are rarely mentally and physically ready to begin a productive rehearsal.
    Rehearsals should start on time. When they consistently start five minutes late and end 10 minutes late, students do not show up on time and do not focus when they are there. Starting and ending on time shows students that you mean what you say and you believe time is valuable.
It is also beneficial to define procedures and specify when things are permitted. As I instruct students to freeze at the end of each drill run-through, I also have procedures in place for such non musical activities as taking attendance and turning in money. The ways in which a rehearsal can be derailed are many; careful planning and preemptive instruction can save the director and students from unnecessary headaches and will lead to more effective rehearsals and better performances.

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