Jenny's Final Thesis

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EFFECTIVE COMPOSITION AND ORCHESTRATION TECHNIQUES

FOR HIGH SCHOOL WIND BAND

A Project Report

Presented to

the Faculty of the Department of MusicCalifornia State University, Los Angeles

In Partial Fulfillment

Of the Requirements for the Degree

Master of Music

Commercial Music Composition/Arranging

By

Jennifer M. AmayaJune 2008


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2008

Jennifer M. AmayaALL RIGHTS RESERVED


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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

I wish to thank Richard Watson and the El Dorado High School wind

bands for bringing my thesis music to life. As a composer, there is no better

feedback about ones own compositions than hearing them rehearsed and

performed by the ensemble for which the music was intended. My experience

with El Dorado High School was both educational and inspiring, and the concert

they generously staged for me was a major contribution to what was the best

experience of my life as a composer.

Others who contributed to the final outcome of the compositions, and who

deserve many thanks for their help with this project include Rita Watson at

Bernardo Yorba Middle School, Bincins Garcia at Esperanza High School, and

the students of the California State University, Los Angeles Symphonic Band.

I am also grateful for the support and encouragement of the Music

Department faculty at California State University, Los Angeles. I especially

would like to thank Steve Wight for teaching me the orchestration tricks that have

eluded me in my education for so long, Deborah Holland for being the first of my

professors to allow me to write the music of my roots, and Abel Ramirez for

giving me the insight, skill, and confidence to take my place on the conducting

podium.


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My maternal grandfather, John Lane, deserves many thanks for strapping

me into an accordion when I was eight years-old, for convincing me that I could

compose music even though I told him I could not, and for all of the

embarrassing orchestration lessons he gave me, blasting John Philip Sousa out

of his blue Ford Taurus while driving me to junior high school. He is my genetic

link to music, and he will forever be with me in spirit.

I would also like to thank: Richard Briggs, my high school band director

and first composition teacher, in particular for teaching me the important art of

musical notation; Dr. Lloyd Rodgers at California State University, Fullerton, for

scaring me into becoming a tough and talented composer; Joseph Alfuso for

mentoring me well beyond the one day in 1993 that he was required to; Dr.

Charles Richard at Riverside Community College for encouraging me to pursue

the field of music technology and commercial music; and my friend Laura

Perlman, for giving me the daily strength and determination to do the impossible

during this final quarter of my degree.

Of course, I could not have survived as a student and musician without the

generous support of my mother, Barbara, who has supported my composition

career from the beginning, when she provided me with my first 386 computer

loaded with Encore 3.0 and Master Trax Pro. I thank her for giving me a

wonderful start in life, for teaching me to be a strong and assertive woman, and

for exposing me to another of my hobbies and loves, horses. Jack, Yeti, and


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Buddee have provided me with an abundance of outside recreation, a mental

break from the pressures of music and school, and a fear for my life that far

outweighs my fear of this project.

Finally, I thank my husband, Alex, who has been everything I am not:

Patient, understanding, calm, and forgiving. He is the reason I live for the

moment, I laugh often, and I love the world around me. I hope he will forever

enjoy being my second set of ears


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ABSTRACT

EFFECTIVE COMPOSITION AND ORCHESTRATION TECHNIQUES

FOR HIGH SCHOOL WIND BAND

By

Jennifer M. Amaya

In this project, various techniques of composition and orchestration are

discussed for their performance effectiveness in music intended for the high

school wind band ensemble, an increasingly popular medium for new

compositions. Because of the nature of the ensemble, the exact instrumentation

and the ability level of the individual instrumentalists can vary greatly; therefore,

composers of wind band music must not only understand the traditional art of

composition and orchestration, but must cover their tracks by using various

techniques to avoid potential troubles in the future within their orchestration.

The music in this project was composed and rehearsed with the author

present, so that potential problem spots within the composition or orchestration

could be discovered, corrected, and discussed. Within this paper, each

composition is analyzed, its potential or pre-existing problems are highlighted,

and proper solutions are given. Concert recordings and musical scores are also

provided for further analysis.


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TABLE OF CONTENTS

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ....................................................................................... iii

ABSTRACT .......................................................................................................... vi

LIST OF FIGURES ............................................................................................... x

CHAPTERS

1. INTRODUCTION ........................................................................................... 1

2. METHODOLOGY .......................................................................................... 6

3. ANALYSIS OF MUSIC FOR THE EFFECTIVENESS OF HIGH

SCHOOL WIND BAND PERFORMANCE ......................................................... 9

General Issues Affecting All Works ................................................................ 9

Specific Issues Affecting Individual Works ................................................... 14

"American Spirit" ................................................................................ 14

"Latvian Folk Song Suite" ................................................................... 23

"Weekdays in Valencia" ..................................................................... 26

"The Great Indian Wars" .................................................................... 36

"Quit Clownin' Around!" ...................................................................... 43

4. CONCLUSION ............................................................................................ 57


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BIBLIOGRAPHY ................................................................................................. 58

APPENDIX Musical Scores ............................................................................. 60

This Project is accompanied by a CD and DVD which are housed

in the Music and Media Center of the Library.


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LIST OF FIGURES

Figure 1: Horns Written in Unison, "Weekdays in Valencia" ............................... 10

Figure 2: French Horns Written in Harmony, With F Horn 2 Doubled in

Trombone 2, "Latvian Folk Song Suite" ......................................................... 10

Figure 3: Out-of-Tune Tuba Note, "The Great Indian Wars" ............................... 12

Figure 4: Original Woodwind Run, Bars 11-12 ................................................... 16

Figure 5: Original Woodwind Run, Bars 19-20 ................................................... 16

Figure 6: Original Woodwind Run, Bar 51 .......................................................... 17

Figure 7: Corrected Woodwind Run, Bars 11-12 ................................................ 17

Figure 8: Corrected Woodwind Run, Bars 19-20 ................................................ 18

Figure 9: Corrected Woodwind Run, Bar 51 ....................................................... 18

Figure 10: Original Trombone Harmony, Bars 40-44 .......................................... 19

Figure 11: Corrected Trombone Part, Bars 40-44 .............................................. 20

Figure 12: Forte-Piano Markings on Chords Sustaining Underneath

Woodwinds .................................................................................................... 22

Figure 13: Original Opening of "Latvian Folk Song Suite" .................................. 24


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Figure 14: Re-arranged Opening of "Latvian Folk Song Suite"........................... 25

Figure 15: Original Ending of 1st

Movement, "Latvian Folk Song Suite" ............. 25

Figure 16: Re-arranged Ending of 1 st Movement, "Latvian Folk Song Suite" ..... 25

Figure 17: Original Trumpet Arrangement, Bars 45-48, "Smieklis Man" ............. 26

Figure 18: Re-arranged Trumpet Arrangement, Bars 45-48, "Smieklis Man" ..... 26

Figure 19: Original Opening of "Weekdays in Valencia" ..................................... 29

Figure 20: Revised Opening of "Weekdays in Valencia" .................................... 29

Figure 21: Original Forte-Piano Figure, Bars 4-5 ................................................ 30

Figure 22: Brass Attack While Woodwinds Sustain, Bars 4-5 ............................ 32

Figure 23: Final Notation, Bars 4-5 ..................................................................... 33

Figure 24: Crescendo Built Into the Orchestration, Bars 19-22 .......................... 34

Figure 25: Decrescendo Built Into the Orchestration, Bars 31-32....................... 35

Figure 26: The Opening to "The Great Indian Wars" .......................................... 38

Figure 27: Crescendo Written Into the Orchestration ......................................... 39

Figure 28: Reduced Orchestration for Trumpet Solo, Bars 11-14....................... 40

Figure 29: Original Trumpet Solo Now Doubled in Clarinet 1 ............................. 41

Figure 30: Notes at Different Speeds in Different Textures ................................ 42

Figure 31: The Extra-Musical Opening of "Quit Clownin Around!" ..................... 46


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Figure 32: The "Ring Master" Introduces the "Flying Trapeze," and the

Choreography Begins in all Resting Parts (Only Brass are Shown) .............. 47

Figure 33: A "Flying Trapeze" Interruption and Continuation .............................. 48

Figure 34: The Clarinet Soli and "Squeak" Indication ......................................... 48

Figure 35: Clown Band Notation and Instruction ................................................ 49

Figure 36: The "Tight Rope" Music ..................................................................... 50

Figure 37: Suspenseful Brass chords and Frightened Gasps ............................ 51

Figure 38: The Layering of Themes and Ideas ................................................... 52

Figure 39: Chaos Erupts as Band Members Throw Balloons and Break Out

in Laughter ................................................................................................... 54

Figure 40: The Final Events in "Quit Clownin Around!" ...................................... 55


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CHAPTER 1

Introduction

The British Army Band was the model for the American Military Band,

which was the father of todays American concert band. Distinct from the

symphony orchestra, the American military and concert bands did not completely

conform to the repertoire of the Europeans. American military band music, such

as that written and conducted by Patrick Sarsfield Gilmore (1829-1892) and John

Philip Sousa (1854-1932), had a national character and served strictly as

entertainment for the general public. 1 Paralleling the development of the

American military band was the growth of music instruction in American schools,

leading eventually to the formation of the Eastman Wind Ensemble by Frederick

Fennell in 1952, and, in turn, to a revolution for American wind bands and their

literature.

Along with the establishment of the Eastman Wind Ensemble, Frederick

Fennell wrote a letter to composers asking for new music that would fit within the

guidelines of the standardized instrumentation of his new ensemble. Composers

responded, and Fennells idea of establishing a new medium of musical

activity 2 began to surface. Prior to 1960, most works for band were orchestral

1 Frederick Fennell, Time and the Winds: A Short History of the Use of Wind Instruments in the Orchestra, Band and the Wind Ensemble (Kenosha, WI: Leblanc Publications, Inc., 1954), 37-39.2 Fennell, Time and the Winds , 52.


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transcriptions or military marches. After a record number of commissioning

projects, and with the help of many dedicated wind band conductors, original

wind band literature has made more advancement in the past fifty years than in

all the years before it combined. No other ensemble in history has made as

much advancement in as short a time frame.

Perhaps the reason for this symphonic boom rests in the wind bands

place in the American education system. Fortunately, and unfortunately, there is

a huge market today for educational symphonic band literature. As W. Francis

McBeth states, The school band programsrepresent about ninety-nine percent

of all band programs in this country. 3 In addition, it is important to consider that,

an oversupply of excellent wind players is the reverse side of Americas string

problem. Wind players will outnumber those who play strings 4 The

unfortunate side of this dilemma rests on the attitudes of many of todays artists

and composers who cannot take the wind ensemble seriously, due to what they

consider a lack of artistic maturity, both as an ensemble and within its literature.

Many of the wind band critics, however, are stuck in the past with a vision of the

band as nothing more than entertainment at a local park and during high school

football games. These skeptics have, obviously, not opened their eyes to the

fortunate side of the recent wind ensemble explosion: Opportunity. For

composers, especially, the opportunity exists to have works commissioned,

3 Frederick Fennell, The Wind Ensemble (Arkadelphia, AR: Delta Publications, 1988), 2.4 Keith Brion, The Professional Wind Ensemble, The Instrumentalist , February 1972, 25.


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performed, and purchased by countless numbers of school ensembles. In

addition, they have the opportunity to help young musicians explore new music

and learn. Further, should a composer prefer to only write music for the sake of

art, professional wind ensembles do exist today; and these ensembles, as well

as many of the university-level wind ensembles, are waiting for a more artistic

repertoire to surface.

Some artists have caught onto this new, profitable and satisfying

market 5 for composers. Famous composers such as Varse, Poulenc, Copland,

Barber and Harris (to name only a few) have now contributed to the wind

ensemble repertoire. 6 Most importantly, however, the field has opened to new

composers. One example is Frank Ticheli, who has synthesized educational and

artistic concert band music together into one package a package that includes

some of the most performed and highly-regarded works for wind band today.

The mystery the author wished to solve in this project is why some wind

band pieces and composers are more successful in the educational market than

others. In the educational wind band market there is a preference for music that

sounds good after a minimal amount of rehearsal and effort; thus it is important

for composers of such music to fully understand the ensemble, the instruments

within the ensemble, the various levels of musical abilities for which they are

5 Fennell, Time and the Winds , 52.6 Frank Battisti, The Twentieth Century American Wind Band/Ensemble: History, Development and

Literature (Fort Lauderdale, FL: Meredith Music Publications, 1995), 99-101.


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CHAPTER 2

Methodology

In order for this project to be successful, it was important for the author to

have previously established positive working relationships with a variety of wind

bands and their directors. A plan was developed months in advance of the final

concert to prepare the simplest of the tunes, American Spirit, for several

rehearsals and discussions with band directors. The author was able at that time

to observe rehearsals of other wind band pieces as well. This research phase

proved to be invaluable to the author. Surprisingly, the time spent with a strong

junior high school band and its director was the most helpful in defining potential

problem areas for all levels of wind bands and the music that they play. The

results of these findings are discussed within the musical analyses.

After its revision, American Spirit was rehearsed by several groups

again, and the result was an obvious improvement. The techniques applied to

American Spirit were then applied to the remaining pre-existing compositions

for the project, and were used when composing the new music for the project as

well. In addition to observations, readings, and discussions with band directors,

the author continuously worked with an orchestration teacher, who gave the

author additional ideas and suggestions that were also tested in rehearsal.


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The music for this project was written and voiced at an upright acoustic

piano. The music was notated for band using Sibelius 5 music notation software,

running on a Hewlett-Packard Pavilion dv9000 laptop computer. The parts and

scores were printed on a Hewlett-Packard Officejet 7400 series printer. The

scores were bound using a proClick manual hole punch and proClick spines.

A final concert was scheduled with El Dorado High School in Placentia,

California, and deadlines for the final submission of works were established

between the author and the band director. A rehearsal schedule was also

established so that the author could be present during rehearsals, to continue to

monitor the music for potential problems. Updates of the music were given out

regularly during the weeks and days prior to the final concert. The author was

also invited to conduct the final piece, Quit Clownin Around!

Concert flyers and programs were created, a sound engineer was hired to

record the music, and the final revisions of the tunes were completed the day

before the concert. Using a high school ensemble proved to be a valuable

decision, as the author was relieved of a majority of the concert-planning duties,

including the hiring of musicians, the scheduling of rehearsals, locating and

booking a site, and insuring that the bands equipment was delivered and set up

properly. The most difficult challenge for the author after the writing phase was

complete was locating a large, steel triangle to be used in The Great Indian


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Wars. The author was able to locate and purchase the instrument from the

blacksmith at Knotts Berry Farm in Buena Park, California!

With only a few rehearsals available due to scheduling difficulties and

conflicts, the El Dorado High School wind bands learned and performed five new

works for band at a formal forty-five-minute concert in Yorba Linda, California on

April 29, 2008. The concert was recorded and an analysis of the completed

works follows.


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CHAPTER 3

Analysis of Music for the Effectiveness of High School Wind Band Performance

General Issues Affecting All Works

The two main issues that composers face when writing educational wind

band music are the uncertainty of the number of instruments within the

performing ensemble and the varying ability levels of the individual

instrumentalists. The size and ability level of wind band ensembles can vary

greatly from school to school, and even from one class to another at the same

school. Composers must, therefore, take much care in preparing their music for

these unknown challenges. Careful decisions must be made, in particular, when

writing French horn parts, to insure that the parts will balance effectively, as

bands can have an average of anywhere from one to four horns (or possibly

more) in the ensemble. Also, it is impossible to know whether a band will have

instruments such as an oboe, bassoon, bass clarinet, or baritone saxophone.

Some bands may have several of each of these instruments, and other bands

may not have any of them. This creates obvious challenges for the composer.

In this project, only two French horn parts were written in each

composition, and the two parts were often written in unison as shown in Figure 1.


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Since horns balance differently than other instruments, the presence of more

than one horn on a featured musical line is very important to the orchestration. In

this project, where the second horn part differed from the first, the second part

was always carefully doubled in another instrument within the ensemble. Figure

2 shows that the second horn part is doubled in the second trombone.

Figure 1: Horns Written in Unison, Weekdays in Valencia

Figure 2: French Horns Written in Harmony, With F Horn 2 Doubled in

Trombone 2, Latvian Folk Song Suite

This careful attention gave the author the assurance that the important

horn lines would most certainly be heard, as they would hopefully be played by at

least two horns at the same time. Also, if there was only one horn present in the


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ensemble, the second horn part would not be entirely absent from the texture

because of its doubling.

All of the oboe parts in this project contained music that was doubled in

either the flute, clarinet, or bassoon parts. The author took much care to write

the oboe in as a desired color, but to insure that if there were no oboes in the

ensemble, the musical lines would not be missing in the performance.

Composers who write oboe solos and features in band music are smart to cue

the solo in another instrument. Many composers choose to write oboe solos as

straight-muted trumpet cues, to cover the part in the event that there is no oboe

player. In this project, the author did not feature the oboe, so no cues were

necessary. The bassoon poses the same problem as the oboe, and the author

handled the bassoon similarly. Often times, the bassoon has been doubled with

the bass instruments or other woodwinds.

Most high school bands will have a bass clarinet and baritone saxophone,

however it is important for wind band composers to know that not all high schools

will have these instruments. It might not be the best idea to feature a bass

clarinet or baritone saxophone in educational wind band music, but if a composer

does, it is advised to either double or cue the part in another bass instrument. In

this project, the bass clarinet had an important role in the first movement of the

Latvian Folk Song Suite. Fortunately for the author, the high school ensemble

that performed the work had two bass clarinet players.


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Another consideration for all educational wind band music is that of

instrument and performer limitations. Because the performers are not yet

professionals, it is advised to keep in mind the comfortable instrumental range for

each instrument (a high range can be particularly difficult for many young trumpet

players, for example), the break on the clarinet (one would probably not want a

high school clarinet section to have to trill between Bb and B on the staff), and

notoriously out-of-tune notes, such as the tubas low C in the authors Great

Indian Wars composition (Figure 3), which required careful attention in

performance.

Figure 3: Out-of-Tune Tuba Note, The Great Indian Wars

Part and score preparation is also a very important factor that affects the

success of a composers music when it gets into the hands of a high school band

director. The score needs to be as clearly-marked as possible, and printed as

large as possible. The parts must be clearly-marked as well, and printed as

compactly as possible, with clean page turns. In the scope of this project, the

author learned that the best way to achieve this arrangement is by using


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combined parts on single staves in the score, and extracting the instruments to

their own parts for the performers. By combining parts on one staff in the score,

the composer saves a considerable amount of space on the score page and,

thus, the size of the score will be slightly larger for the director. By separating the

parts for the performers, the composer will give the instrumentalists the

opportunity to have a clear and less confusing performance. Additionally,

composers must be sure to have both a Baritone B.C. (bass clef) and a Baritone

T.C. (treble clef) part available for the performers. Directors tend to prefer

viewing the B.C. part in the score so that they do not have to figure out the

transposition.

Finally, percussion parts pose several problems. First, composers should

know that directors are appreciative when the percussionists are given an ample

amount of music to play. 8 Often times, bands will contain a large number of

percussionists who stand at the back of the ensemble with not much to do. So,

throughout this project, the author took advantage of having an abundance of

percussionists. The trouble with writing a fair amount of music for a large

number of percussion instruments is in organizing all of them into a condensed

number of parts that will make sense to the performers. The mallet instruments

(xylophone, bells, marimba, and vibraphone), as well as the timpani, often are

assigned to their own staves and parts, both in the score and extracted for the

8 Dr. Abel Ramirez, California State University, Los Angeles, personal communication, Fall 2007.


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performers. Other instruments, including but not limited to snare, bass drum, all

types of cymbals, tom-toms, tambourine, triangle, and toys can all be combined

onto one or more staves, depending on where they are employed in the

composition, the number of parts a composer can fit onto one staff at a time

without confusion, and a number of other factors. In short, a composer must take

a huge amount of care in preparing percussion parts. It is also suggested to

provide a cover page on each percussion part that indicates all of the employable

instruments for the part, and the approximate number of players that will be

needed to play them.

All of the above issues were taken into consideration and handled

carefully within all of the projects compositions.

Specific Issues Affecting Individual Works

American Spirit

American Spirit was originally written in 1998 for the Placentia-Yorba

Linda Unified School Districts annual band pageant. The original arrangement

was for mass marching band, to be performed by all of the districts high school

and junior high school marching bands on a single football field, all together, at

one time. The piece is the least difficult of the five tunes being analyzed here,


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because it was and still is intended to be performed by students at the junior high

school level. Since 1998 it has been re-orchestrated for the concert band

ensemble (which necessitates adding concert instruments such as oboe,

bassoon, and bass clarinet, and re-writing the percussion to accommodate for

concert, rather than field, instruments).

This work is a patriotic medley that includes portions of George M.

Cohans Youre a Grand Old Flag (1906) and Yankee Doodle Dandy (1904),

and Gen. Edmund L. Grubers The Caissons Go Rolling Along (1908), all of

which are in the public domain. The authors influence on the arrangement can

be heard in the playful and clever countermelodies, musical transitions, and bass

lines.

As the first and simplest piece included in this project, American Spirit

was used as a research model for the author, before a majority of the writing and

re-writing of music for this project occurred. The piece received several test runs

at Bernardo Yorba Middle School (in Yorba Linda, CA), under the direction of

Mrs. Rita Watson, a seasoned band director. Rita offered the author many

valuable comments and suggestions that would eventually prove highly effective

in performance, and which would dramatically improve the clarity of this work, as

well the others that followed. The most important of the comments will be

discussed here.


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The first troubling spot in the orchestration occurred at bars 11 and 12

(Figure 4), where the piccolo, flutes, and first clarinet were to play an eighth-note

melodic run. The run was mostly scalar, but contained some chromatic tones

that proved difficult for the middle school musicians to play at the indicated

tempo. This problem also occurred in Bars 19 and 20 (Figure 5), and at Bar 51

(Figure 6).

Figure 4: Original Woodwind Run, Bars 11-12

Figure 5: Original Woodwind Run, Bars 19-20


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Figure 6: Original Woodwind Run, Bar 51

The author found that these melodic figures were also difficult for high

school players to perform at the fast, desired tempo. To fix this problem so that

the runs would be easier to play and, thus, clearer in performance, the notes

needed to be broken up amongst the players, and the rhythms simplified. 9 The

solution was as follows, in Figures 7-9.

Figure 7: Corrected Woodwind Run, Bars 11-12

9 Professor Steve Wight, California State University, Los Angeles, personal communication, Winter 2008.


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Figure 8: Corrected Woodwind Run, Bars 19-20

Figure 9: Corrected Woodwind Run, Bar 51

These adjustments proved valuable to the composition and its

performance. All of the notes in the runs were covered by the three instruments,

so that nothing was missing from the musical lines. In all three examples, the

beginning of the runs were emphasized by the Clarinet 1 and Flute 2 parts, whichcontained only the first two eighth notes leading to the downbeat on beat 3. The

Piccolo and Flute 1 emphasized the second half of the figure by entering directly


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on beat 3. Written this way, the notes and rhythms were easier for the musicians

to play, which gave them more confidence. The result was that the figures came

through the texture more clearly. This orchestration trick was employed in other

pieces in this project, where it again proved valuable.

Another issue within the orchestration of American Spirit occurred in the

trombone harmonies. Where melodic figures need to break through the texture

in the trombones and low brass, it is not always necessary to harmonize them, as

in Figure 10. Especially with young trombone players, this sort of close harmonic

doubling can create a very muddy sound.

Figure 10: Original Trombone Harmony, Bars 40-44

The way the author decided to clear up the muddy trombone sound was to

do away with most of the close harmonies almost altogether, except at important

places where harmony would be effective and easier for the young musicians to

play. In this particular example, the author kept the harmony on beat 1 of bar 40,

and allowed the trombones to play the melodic figure in unison through the end


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of the phrase. The result, shown in Figure 11, was pleasant, and exactly what

the author was hoping for. Again, this technique was employed many times in

the music that is contained within this project, and always proved to be effective.

Figure 11: Corrected Trombone Part, Bars 40-44

Two other notes about trombone writing are important to mention. The

author originally presented this work with a Trombone 3 part. In general, most

band music, even at the high school level, is limited to only two trombone parts.

A third trombone part is normally only added for effect, or to double the bass, if

necessary. Also, it is common, especially in young band music, for the

trombones, when given an important melodic or harmonic line, to be doubled in

the tenor saxophone part. 10 This gives the trombones a musical reference to

listen and tune to. In general, this sort of doubling adds much clarity to the

melodic or harmonic line in music at both the junior high and high school levels.

Other doublings of importance include doubling the French horns with the alto

saxophones, and duplicating bass line features, not only in the baritone

10 Rita Watson, Bernardo Yorba Middle School, personal communication, Spring 2008.


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saxophone (which may not even be present at the junior high level), but in the

tenor saxophone as well. 11

Later rehearsals of American Spirit with the high school ensemble

brought out one more minor issue in regard to the woodwind runs mentioned

earlier. Where those melodic eighth-note runs occurred in the upper woodwinds

(referring to Figures 7-9), many of the other, more powerful instruments in the

texture were sustaining chords below them. The author found that adding forte-

piano dynamics, followed by crescendos on the sustained tones, was quite

effective in allowing the woodwind runs to pierce through the texture to be heard.

The final notation is shown in Figure 12.

11 Ibid.


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Figure 12: Forte-Piano Markings on Chords Sustaining Underneath Woodwinds


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Latvian Folk Song Suite

The author was first exposed to Latvian folk music while singing in a

womens choir under the direction of Dr. Vance Wolverton, at California State

University, Fullerton. It was immediately obvious to the author that the folk songs

would transfer positively to the wind band ensemble. The suite was written

exclusively for this Masters project, as an academic exercise, with permission

from Dr. Vance Wolverton, who is also the official editor of the womens choir

arrangements of the folk songs, on which the authors arrangement was based.

Melodijas, the first movement of the suite, is an original folk song written

by composer P teris Barisons (1904-1947). The authors arrangement is a direct

setting of Barisons womens choir arrangement for wind band, with a slight

adjustment in orchestration and composition to accommodate for the presence of

bass instruments. Smieklis Man, the second movement of the suite, is a

traditional Latvian folk song. This arrangement was based on the womens choir

arrangement of the tune by arranger Aldonis Kalni .

Latvian Folk Song Suite was rehearsed and performed by a high

schools intermediate-level wind band. It was immediately obvious that the

authors decision to begin the work with an important soli in the Clarinet 3 part,

followed by an entrance of Clarinet 2, and then Clarinet 1 (Figure 13), was a

mistake. For an important soli such as this, the author learned that the strongest


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players should always be employed. The fact that this particular ensemble had a

weak clarinet section only compounded the problem.

Figure 13: Original Opening of Latvian Folk Song Suite

When writing band music, one never knows the strengths and

weaknesses of the ensemble that will perform the works. The author was under

the impression, based on years of observation, that most high schools have very

strong clarinet sections that could handle the soli as written in Figure 13. The

authors assumption was incorrect, however, and a valuable arranging lesson

was learned in the process. Whenever possible, the strongest players should be

trusted and featured on important musical lines, such as in this introduction. The

music was easily re-arranged as shown in Figure 14, and the positive effects

were immediate. The same issue was addressed at the end of the first

movement as well, as shown in Figures 15 and 16.


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Figure 14: Re-arranged Opening of Latvian Folk Song Suite

Figure 15: Original Ending of 1 st Movement, Latvian Folk Song Suite

Figure 16: Re-arranged Ending of 1 st Movement, Latvian Folk Song Suite

The second movement, Smieklis Man needed very little correction.

There were two places in the arrangement where the author made a personal

decision to change a doubling in the trumpet section so that the melody (the top

notes) would speak more clearly. This occurred at bars 27 and 28 (not pictured

here), and again at bars 45-48 (shown in Figures 17 and 18). The result was

exactly as the author hoped the melody and harmony were balanced better,


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with the melody speaking slightly stronger than the harmony, rather than the

undesired reverse effect.

Figure 17: Original Trumpet Arrangement, Bars 45-48, Smieklis Man

Figure 18: Re-arranged Trumpet Arrangement, Bars 45-48, Smieklis Man

Weekdays in Valencia

Weekdays in Valencia is one of the authors original works for band. The

piece began as a brass quintet project several years ago while the author was

attending the California Institute of the Arts in Valencia, CA. While it is generally

appropriate for a composer to share a story about the deep and meaningful

inspiration surrounding a work, the true inspiration for this piece of music actually

came out of the war that the author and her dorm roommate had declared on


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28

through the texture with enough power to be heard. The fix for this orchestration

weakness was simple the author doubled the figure in the Trombone 2 and

Baritone Saxophone parts. The trombones and saxophone gave the note more

weight and a better attack, which is exactly what the author desired. The result is

shown in Figure 20.


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Figure 19: Original Opening


Figure 20: Revised Opening



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31

Prior to the completion of the composition, however, it was suggested to

the author 12 to allow the woodwinds to maintain the written figure, but to have the

brass only attack the front end of the note on beat 4 of bar 4 (to create a better

attack), and to bring the brass back in to complete the crescendo on beat 2 of bar

5 (enhancing the crescendo effect). Figure 22 shows the result of those

instructions.

The result of Figure 22 was not adequate, however, as the woodwinds

were not strong enough, even with the removal of the forte-piano marking, to

sustain the sound without support from the brass. The third and final option was

to combine the two ideas, giving the woodwinds some brass support on the

sustained tones while leaving some of the brass instruments on the beat 4

attack, and bringing them in at the end of the crescendo for more emphasis.

Figure 23 shows the final notation.

12 Professor Steve Wight, California State University, Los Angeles, personal communication, Spring 2008.


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Figure 22: Brass Attack While Woodwinds Sustain, Bars 4-5


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Figure 23: Final Notation, Bars 4-5


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Finally, Weekdays in Valencia provides several examples of how to build

crescendos and decrescendos by adding to and removing from the orchestration,

similar to how the crescendo was built in the example above. Crescendo

examples occur in bars 19-22 (pictured in Figure 24), and extended examples

occur in bars 48-65 and 76-93. Decrescendo examples occur in bars 31-32

(Figure 25) and 68-74. The larger examples can be viewed in the Appendix.

Figure 24: Crescendo Built Into the Orchestration, Bars 19-22


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Figure 25: Decrescendo Built Into the Orchestration, Bars 31-32


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The Great Indian Wars

The Great Indian Wars is a programmatic work that musically attempts to

recreate the major events in the lives of the American Indians between 1840 and

1890, the time of the great Indian wars. The piece begins with a brief, calm

introduction that represents the Indians territory, followed by the introduction of

the western settlers and their quest for gold. The music takes the listener

through the ups and downs of several battles fought by the Indians in the late

1800s, and exposes the listener to the great art of Indian ghost dancing. The

piece ends with a representation of the historic Battle of Wounded Knee, followed

by the bright and modern sound of hope for the future of the great American

Indian race. The piece was originally written by the author while just a junior in

high school, and was premiered by the El Dorado High School band in 1995. It

was re-orchestrated for its 2008 debut.

The 1995 orchestration had an abundance of issues that needed to be

corrected, some of which were quite obvious. First, in the original version there

were pan flute melodies written throughout the piece that were assigned to be

played by a synthesizer. The synthesized and amplified pan flute proved to be

an unnecessary distraction. The part was, thus, re-written for a solo flute and

solo piccolo to play together. The result of this doubling was a slightly breathy

and slightly out-of-tune flute-like sound that acoustically represented the pan flute

well. In fact, this doubling was the perfect solution in the absence of a real pan


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flute. In general, a single synthesized instrument does not blend well into the

texture of a band, with the exception of a synthesized bass, which many directors

will use if their ensembles are lacking bass instruments.

Next, the opening of the work, which was airy and ethereal, needed more

help to be convincing. Originally, the brass instruments were blowing air through

their horns over a timpani and suspended cymbal roll. The timpani roll was much

too bright and percussive for the desired air-like effect, so bass drum proved to

be a much better choice. A tam-tam roll was added into the texture, as well, with

wind chimes 13 and the suspended cymbal roll entering later. The saxophones

were added to help the brass by passing air through their horns as well. The

French horns were eventually asked to rest and not blow air, because it proved

difficult for them to blow air through their horns without creating sound. All of

these changes to the texture were beneficial and helped to create the desired

soundscape shown in Figure 26.

13 The author originally asked for a bell tree instead of wind chimes terms which are sometimes usedinterchangeably in composition. Professional players are often good at making educated decisions onwhich instrument to use (in this case, it was actual wind chimes that were desired). High schoolpercussion players, on the other hand, tend to make very literal choices. The author learned during the firstrehearsal that the proper term to use if wind chimes are desired is wind chimes, not bell tree.


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38

Figure 26: The Opening to The Great Indian Wars


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39

As discussed earlier, the technique of writing crescendos and

decrescendos into the orchestration was employed in this composition as well.

An example occurs early, in bars 9-10, as shown here:

Figure 27: Crescendo Written Into the Orchestration


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Solos were also a problem in the original orchestration of this work

because often times they were difficult to hear. Where this problem occurred,

instruments were either taken out of the texture, or instruments were added to

the solo part in order for it to be heard. The first example shows up in bars 11-

14. This particular trumpet solo needed to be handled with extra care because it

was written in the low range of the trumpet. Figure 28 shows the final

orchestration. Originally, the Tuba part was doubled in the Trombone 3 part. (It

has already been established that a Trombone 3 part was probably not

necessary to begin with, so it was removed from the orchestration entirely.)

Figure 28: Reduced Orchestration for Trumpet Solo, Bars 11-14


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In Figure 29 (below), what was originally a trumpet solo has now been

doubled in the Clarinet 1 part. The result was a beautiful musical line that was no

longer hidden within the texture. The author first asked for a solo trumpet and

solo clarinet to solve this problem, but found that opening up the part to all

Trumpet 1 and Clarinet 1 players was the best solution.

Figure 29: Original Trumpet Solo Now Doubled in Clarinet 1


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42

Finally, to create a sense of atmosphere in the composition, the author

learned to mix a number of timbres with a number of rhythmic speeds on the

same notes in the texture. 14 This technique became useful many times

throughout this project, but particularly in bars 47-55 in The Great Indian Wars.

In the example pictured in Figure 30, the addition of only two clarinets, one

sustaining the written note A, and the other playing the notes of the vibraphone

triplets as sextuplets, twice as fast, creates a sense of atmosphere that otherwise

would have been lacking. In this example, the clarinets are not heard as

clarinets; rather, they lie in the texture as an underlying, interesting, yet

unidentifiable noise. This is probably the most useful of the orchestration

techniques the author learned in the scope of this project.

Figure 30: Notes at Different Speeds in Different Textures

14 Professor Steve Wight, California State University, Los Angeles, personal communication, Spring 2008.


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44

The clown band that appears in the middle of the work (bar 181)

contains the same instrumentation as that of the old Ringling-Barnum clown

band. A famous 18 th-century clown, Grimaldi, inspired the clown bands trumpet

solo. Grimaldi was well-known for the very dramatic presentation of his songs.

In this piece, the trumpet player is asked to interrupt a peaceful song by crying,

coughing, drinking water, and sneezing, amongst other annoying things. The

spoken phrase within the composition, Here we are, was a common clown

phrase that was used by the Ringling-Barnum clown band (and is used in this

work as well) to interrupt the circus acts, drawing attention to the clowns.

After all of the acts have been introduced and the circus is coming to an

end, this piece transforms back into reality: The performers become band

members again, and as their inappropriate concert behaviors continue, their

conductor brings out the overlooked double meaning of the title of the work as

he/she shouts, Quit Clownin Around! In its entirety, Quit Clownin Around! is

an epic adventure for high school band. It is a guaranteed crowd-pleaser and a

fun, challenging addition to any high school bands repertoire.

All of the techniques and issues previously discussed in this chapter were

at some point employed in this composition. The challenge that this particular

work brings to the composer is that of clearly notating the musical transitions

(which can be quite dramatic in this piece), as well as notating the extra-musical

ideas so that they are clear to the band members and conductor. For a truly


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effective performance, this piece needs to flow like a well-rehearsed stage

production.

First, the author prepared very clear and detailed notes for the conductor.

These notes have been included with the score. It is clear that a majority of the

responsibility for the effectiveness of this works performance belongs to the

conductor, who must prepare everything well in advance of rehearsal. An

abundance of time signature and tempo changes within one piece, alone, can

confuse a seasoned conductor; yet, in this piece, the time signatures and tempos

take a back seat to the ever-changing musical textures, choreography, and other

extra-musical events, which the conductor must be well aware of and prepared

for.

First, at the start of the piece, the instruments enter, uncued, at random,

and gradually exit as the trumpet fanfare begins. Figure 31 shows this

preparation for the woodwinds. Similar indications were given to the other

instruments in the ensemble as well.


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Figure 31: The Extra-Musical Opening of Quit Clownin Around!

The next example shows the trumpet ring master fanfare that introduces

the flying trapeze section of the work, which is represented as a silly, repetitive

waltz. There is a choreography indication in all of the resting parts (Figure 32).

The choreography, which is explained in the conductor notes, asks for the band

members to sway back and forth to the music, and to look up as if they are

watching the flying trapeze. The flying trapeze section of the work is constantly

interrupted by chromatic falls, wah-wah effects, and out-of-place beats. The

choreography stops and starts as well. Figure 33 gives one example of this


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47

interruption. Also, the clarinet soli (shown in Figure 34) asks for some players to

overblow and squeak, which increases the comedic effect.

Figure 32: The Ring Master Introduces the Flying Trapeze, and the

Choreography Begins in all Resting Parts (Only Brass are Shown)


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Figure 33: A Flying Trapeze Interruption and Continuation

Figure 34: The Clarinet Soli and Squeak Indication

For the clown band section of the work, the main band parts have been

hidden from the score, and the new clown band parts appear, labeled as solo

parts. Again, the clown band section is explained thoroughly in the conductor


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notes. Figure 35 shows an example of the clown band notation. Notice the text

indications for the comedy acting written into the Solo Trumpet B part. This is a

good example of a place in the music where the conductor must know exactly

how to instruct the performer. Notes are given, but there is much open to

interpretation. For reasons like this, Quit Clownin Around! requires adequate

conductor preparation and group rehearsal time.

Figure 35: Clown Band Notation and Instruction

The tight rope section of the work is represented by a combined timpani,

snare drum, and bass drum roll (for suspense), together with an ornamented

ascending staccato note pattern in the woodwinds. The staccato notes give the

impression of someone stepping carefully across the high wire.


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Figure 36: The Tight Rope Music

Similar to the flying trapeze section, the tight rope section is also

interrupted by various events. In Figure 37, suspenseful brass chords give the

impression that the tight rope walker has nearly fallen off of the high wire. In

reaction, the band members are asked to point up in the air while shouting

frightened gasps.


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51

Figure 37: Suspenseful Brass Chords and Frightened Gasps


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52

All of the themes and ideas introduced in the composition are eventually

weaved together later in the work. In Figure 38, bars 270-276, the layering of

various themes and ideas is quite apparent:

Figure 38: The Layering of Themes and Ideas


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53

Another extra-musical idea happens in bars 280-293. In bar 280 the

woodwinds are instructed to blow up balloons. In bar 288, they are told to let

balloons fly toward conductor. Everyone in the ensemble is then instructed to

point at the conductor (who is dodging the balloons), and to eventually break out

into uncontrollable laughter. Notice that the music has been written to

specifically sound as if the instrumentalists are stopping their performance

randomly because they cannot hold back the laughter. The addition of the police

whistle in the percussion section adds a unique effect as well that of someone

trying to control and stop the chaos.


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Figure 39: Chaos Erupts As Band Members Throw Balloons and Break Out in

Laughter


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55

Eventually, the piece comes to a close when the instrumentalists stop

following the conductor and start playing random musical events. The conductor

cuts them off (with a large, rehearsed gesture), and screams, Quit Clownin

Around! The remainder of the piece is conducted, but many of the musicians

have been instructed to stand and sing their parts (instead of playing), and to

strike a pose at the end. Figure 40 gives an example of the various events that

occur in the last few bars of the piece.

Figure 40: The Final Events in Quit Clownin Around!

Quit Clownin Around! is a great example of how composers can create

an element of controlled chaos in composition. Clearly-marked scores and

parts, as well as carefully-prepared conductor notes are essential for a

successful performance of a work that involves extra-musical material.


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The results of all of the techniques discussed in this chapter can be heard

on the accompanying CD, and can be seen and heard on the accompanying

DVD to this project.


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57

CHAPTER 4

Conclusion

The music contained in this report and the accompanying recordings

reflect years of work and research into the art of composing music for high school

wind band. The ability to rehearse the music with the ensemble, to make

changes to the music, and to receive immediate feedback gave the author a

considerable advantage when preparing to analyze the orchestration and

composition techniques that were effective, and those that were not.

The techniques learned by the author that proved to be most effective

throughout this project include proper doublings of instruments (doublings that

are specific to band, as discussed in the analysis chapter), the careful handling of

instruments that may not be present in some bands, using the orchestration to

create crescendos and decrescendos, the careful handling of attacks and

sustains, mixing the speeds and timbres of notes and patterns, and the clear and

meticulous preparation of the score and parts. All of these components are

essential in creating music that can be placed in front of a band and performed

successfully with a minimal amount of rehearsal.

With the honest and unbridled feedback gathered from this project, the

author certainly plans on continuing to write new music for band.


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BIBLIOGRAPHY

Barisons, P teris. Melodijas. Santa Barbara, CA: Santa Barbara Music

Publishing, 1997.

Battisti, Frank. The Twentieth Century American Wind Band/Ensemble: History,

Development and Literature. Fort Lauderdale, FL: Meredith Music

Publications, 1995.

Brion, Keith. The Professional Wind Ensemble. The Instrumentalist, February

1972, 25.

Cohan, George M. The Yankee Doddle Boy. New York: F. A. Mills, 1904.

Cohan, George M. Youre a Grand Old Flag. New York: F. A. Mills, 1906.

Fennell, Frederick. Time and the Winds: A Short History of the Use of Wind

Instruments in the Orchestra, Band and the Wind Ensemble. Kenosha,

WI: Leblanc Publications, Inc., 1954.


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Fennell, Frederick. The Wind Ensemble. Arkadelphia, AR: Delta Publications,

1988.

Gruber, Edmund L. The Caissons Go Rolling Along. New York: Philip Egner

and Frederick C. Mayer, 1921.

Kalni, Aldonis, arr. Smieklis Man. Santa Barbara, CA: Santa Barbara Music

Publishing, 1997.


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APPENDIX - Musical Scores

American Spirit


The Great Indian Wars

Quit Clownin Around!


73/154


74/154


75/154


76/154


77/154


78/154

The Fall of the Indians

47 48 49 50 51

Picc.

1

Fl.

2

Ob.

1

Bb Cl.

2-3

Bb Bs. Cl.

Bsn.

1

Eb A. Sax

2

Bb Ten. Sax.

Eb Bari. Sax.

1

Bb Tpt.

2-3

F. Horn 1-2

1

Tbn.

2

Euph.

Tuba

Timp.

Mallets

Perc.

Solo w/ Flute

mp

3 3

Solo w/ Picc.

mp 3 3

Two Only - div.

pp *rhythms & breaths do not have to be accurate through bar 55

6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6

mp

Solo

3

3

Vib. (Soft Mallets)

mp 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3

3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3

3 3 3 3

pp

The Great Indian Wars6


79/154

52 53 54

rit.

rit.

rit.

rit.

slower

slower

slower

slower

55

q= 70

q= 70

q= 70

q= 70

56 57 58 59

accel.

accel.

accel.

accel.

Picc.

1

Fl.

2

Ob.

1

Bb Cl.

2-3

Bb Bs. Cl.

Bsn.

1

Eb A. Sax

2

Bb Ten. Sax.

Eb Bari. Sax.

1

Bb Tpt.

2-3

F. Horn 1-2

1

Tbn.

2

Euph.

Tuba

Timp.

Mallets

Perc.

3

3

Solo

mf

3

6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6

mp

mp

mp

Solo

3 3

3 3

mp

mp

mp

mp

mp

3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3

pp

T.T.

pp

let ring

mp sus. cym.

pp

B.D.

pp

pp

The Great Indian Wars 7


80/154


81/154


82/154


83/154


84/154


85/154


86/154

105 106 107 108 109 110

q.= q

111 112 113 114

accel.

accel.

accel.

accel.

115

Picc.

1

Fl.

2

Ob.

1

Bb Cl.

2-3

Bb Bs. Cl.

Bsn.

1

Eb A. Sax

2

Bb Ten. Sax.

Eb Bari. Sax.

1

Bb Tpt.

2-3

F. Horn 1-2

1

Tbn.

2

Euph.

Tuba

Timp.

Mallets

Perc.

Solo w/ Flute

mf

pp

Solo w/ Picc.

mf

pp

f

choke

To Snares Off... Wind Chimes

mf

let ring

Sleigh Bells

f

tamb.

f

Low Tom mf



87/154

Indian Ghost Dancing

q= 140

q= 140

q= 140

q= 140

116 117 118 119 120 121 122 123 124 125 126 127

Picc.

1

Fl.

2

Ob.

1

Bb Cl.

2-3

Bb Bs. Cl.

Bsn.

1

Eb A. Sax

2

Bb Ten. Sax.

Eb Bari. Sax.

1

Bb Tpt.

2-3

F. Horn 1-2

1

Tbn.

2

Euph.

Tuba

Timp.

Mallets

Perc.

mp

3

mp

3

mp

Shaker

mp

Snare- Snares Off

Wind Chimes

let ring

mp

let ring

mp

Toms (4) - Hard Mallets

mp

(B.D.)

The Great Indian Wars 15


88/154

128 129 130 131 132 133 134

poco accel.

poco accel.

poco accel.

poco accel.

135

Picc.

1

Fl.

2

Ob.

1

Bb Cl.

2-3

Bb Bs. Cl.

Bsn.

1

Eb A. Sax

2

Bb Ten. Sax.

Eb Bari. Sax.

1

Bb Tpt.

2-3

F. Horn 1-2

1

Tbn.

2

Euph.

Tuba

Timp.

Mallets

Perc.

ord. (tutti)

mf

A2, ord.

mf

mf

mf

f

mf

mf

mf

f

f

f

f

fp

a2 fp

Solo

mf All

fp

div. fp

mf fp

mf fp

mf

fp

cresc.

cresc.

let ring

Snare w/ Snares On (roll)...

mf

cresc.

sus cym. mf

cresc.



89/154


90/154


91/154


92/154


93/154


94/154


95/154


96/154

Copyright 2008 J. M. Amaya, ASCAP

J. M. Amaya

q= 140

q= 140

q= 140

q= 140

Weekdays in ValenciaFull ScoreFor Wind Band

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

Piccolo

1

Flute

2

Oboe

Bb Clarinet 1

Bb Clarinet 2

Bb Clarinet 3

Bb Bass Clarinet

1

Eb Alto Sax

2

Bb Tenor Sax

Eb Bari Sax

1

F Horn

2

Bb Trumpet 1

Bb Trumpet 2

Bb Trumpet 3

1

Trombone

2

Baritone B.C.

Tuba

OrchestraBells

TimpaniAb, Bb, Db, G

Cymbals

Tambourine

Snare Drum

Bass Drum

f

f

f

f

f

fp

f

f

fp f

f

fp

f

f

fp f

f

f

f

mp f

f

mp f

f

mp f

f

fp

f

One OnlyTo Straight Mute...

f

fp

f


f fp f


f

fp

f

f

mp f

f

fp

f

f

mp f

f

f

let ring let ring Crash

f

let ring sus. cym.

let ring p f

let ring

(w/ sticks)

f

fp f

f mp f

f

let ring let ring


97/154

9 10 11 12 13 14

Picc.

1

Fl.

2

Ob.

Cl. 1

Cl. 2

Cl. 3

Bass Cl.

1

A. Sax

2

Ten. Sax

Bari. Sax.

F. Hn. 1

F. Hn. 2

Tpt. 1

Tpt. 2

Tpt. 3

1

Tbn.

2

Baritone

Tuba

Bells

Timp.

Tamb.

S. D.

B. D.

f

f

f

f

f

f

f

f

Weekdays in Valencia2


98/154

15 16 17 18 19 20 21

Picc.

1

Fl.

2

Ob.

Cl. 1

Cl. 2

Cl. 3

Bass Cl.

1

A. Sax

2

Ten. Sax

Bari. Sax.

F. Hn. 1

F. Hn. 2

Tpt. 1

Tpt. 2

Tpt. 3

1

Tbn.

2

Baritone

Tuba

Bells

Xyl.

Vib.

Timp.

Cym.

Tamb.

S. D.

B. D.

mf

mf

div. mf

mf

mf

mf

mf

f

mf

f

mf

mf

f

mf

One Only - Straight Mute:

mf


mf


mf

mf

mf

mf

mf

mf

f

mf

f

mf

p

mp

p

Weekdays in Valencia 3


99/154


100/154


101/154

A Tempo

A Tempo

A Tempo

A Tempo

q= 140

q= 140

q= 140

q= 140

38 39 40 41 42 43 44

Picc.

1

Fl.

2

Ob.

Cl. 1

Cl. 2

Cl. 3

Bass Cl.

1

A. Sax

2

Ten. Sax

Bari. Sax.

F. Hn. 1

F. Hn. 2

Tpt. 1

Tpt. 2

Tpt. 3

1

Tbn.

2

Baritone

Tuba

Bells

Xyl.

Vib.

Timp.

Cym.

S. D.

B. D.

mf

mf

mf

mf

mf

mf

mf

mf

mf

mf

Solo:

f

All:

mf

f

mf

Solo:

All:

mf

mf

mf

mf

mf

mf

mf

mf

mf

dry - no pedal:

ride

mf

splash

sus

mf

mf



102/154

45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53

Picc.

1

Fl.

2

Ob.

Cl. 1

Cl. 2

Cl. 3

Bass Cl.

1

A. Sax

2

Ten. Sax

Bari. Sax.

F. Hn. 1

F. Hn. 2

Tpt. 1

Tpt. 2

Tpt. 3

1

Tbn.

2

Baritone

Tuba

Xyl.

Vib.

Timp.

Cym.

Tamb.

S. D.

B. D.

ff

ff

mp div.

ff

ff

mp

mp

ff

mp

ff

mp

mf ff

ff

ff

ff

ff

ff

mp

ff

ff

ff

ff

mf ff mp

mf ff

mf ff

ff

ff

ff

mf ff

mp

p

crash -choke

ff

mp

ff

ff



103/154

54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62

Picc.

1

Fl.

2

Ob.

Cl. 1

Cl. 2

Cl. 3

Bass Cl.

1

A. Sax

2

Ten. Sax

Bari. Sax.

F. Hn. 1

F. Hn. 2

Tpt. 1

Tpt. 2

Tpt. 3

1

Tbn.

2

Baritone

Tuba

Xyl.

Timp.

Tamb.

S. D.

unis.

mp cresc. poco a poco

mp cresc.

mp

cresc. poco a poco

mp

cresc. poco a poco

mp

mp

cresc. poco a poco


mp cresc.

mp

cresc. poco a poco

mp

cresc. poco a poco


mp

cresc. poco a poco

mp

cresc. poco a poco

cresc. poco a poco

mp cresc.

mp



104/154


105/154

A Tempoq= 140

A Tempoq= 140

A Tempoq= 140

A Tempoq= 140

72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80

Picc.

1

Fl.

2

Ob.

Cl. 1

Cl. 2

Cl. 3

Bass Cl.

1

A. Sax

2

Ten. Sax

Bari. Sax.

F. Hn. 1

F. Hn. 2

Tpt. 1

Tpt. 2

Tpt. 3

1

Tbn.

2

Baritone

Tuba

Vib.

Timp.

B. D.

pp

pp

pp

pp

pp

mp

pp

pp

mp

Solo:

pp

pp

mp

pp

mp

pp

mp

mp



106/154

81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88

Picc.

1

Fl.

2

Ob.

Cl. 1

Cl. 2

Cl. 3

Bass Cl.

1

A. Sax

2

Ten. Sax

Bari. Sax.

F. Hn. 1

F. Hn. 2

Tpt. 1

Tpt. 2

Tpt. 3

1

Tbn.

2

Baritone

Tuba

Bells

Vib.

Timp.

Tamb.

S. D.

B. D.

mp

mp

pp

All

p sfz

p

p sfz

p

mp

Solo: pp

mp

mp

p sfz

p



107/154

89 90 91 92 93 94 95

Picc.

1

Fl.

2

Ob.

Cl. 1

Cl. 2

Cl. 3

Bass Cl.

1

A. Sax

2

Ten. Sax

Bari. Sax.

F. Hn. 1

F. Hn. 2

Tpt. 1

Tpt. 2

Tpt. 3

1

Tbn.

2

Baritone

Tuba

Bells

Xyl.

Vib.

Timp.

Tamb.

S. D.

B. D.

mf f

mf

mf

sfz

mf f

mf

sfz

mf

mf

sfz

mf f

mf

sfz

mf f

mf

sfz

mf f

mf

sfz

mf

mf

sfz

mp mf

mf

sfz mp

p mf

f

mf

sfz

mp

mf

mf

mp

All:

mf

mf

mf

mp

mf

p mf

f

mp

mf

p mf

f

mp

mf

All:

mf

mf

f

mp

mf

mf

f

mf

sfz

mf

mf

mf

mf

p mf

f

mp

mf

sfz



108/154

96 97 98 99 100

Picc.

1

Fl.

2

Ob.

Cl. 1

Cl. 2

Cl. 3

Bass Cl.

1

A. Sax

2

Ten. Sax

Bari. Sax.

F. Hn. 1

F. Hn. 2

Tpt. 1

Tpt. 2

Tpt. 3

1

Tbn.

2

Baritone

Tuba

Bells

Xyl.

Vib.

Timp.

Cym.

Tamb.

S. D.

B. D.

mf

f

f

f

f

f

f

f

fp

f

mp f

mf

f mp f

mp

f

f

fp

f

mp

f

f

mp f

mf

f

mp f

mp

f

mp f

mp

f

f

mp

f

mp f

fp

f

fp

f

mp f

mp

f

p

f

f

mp f

f



109/154

101 102 103 104

Picc.

1

Fl.

2

Ob.

Cl. 1

Cl. 2

Cl. 3

Bass Cl.

1

A. Sax

2

Ten. Sax

Bari. Sax.

F. Hn. 1

F. Hn. 2

Tpt. 1

Tpt. 2

Tpt. 3

1

Tbn.

2

Baritone

Tuba

Bells

Xyl.

Vib.

Timp.

Cym.

Tamb.

S. D.

B. D.

ff

ff

div. ff

ff

ff

ff

ff

ff

ff

ff

ff

ff

ff

gl i ss.

ff gl i ss.

ff

ff

ff

ff gl iss . g li s s.

ff

glis s. g li s s.

ff

ff

ff

choke

ff

choke

ff

choke

ff

choke

ff mp choke

ff

ff

ff

ff

mp

choke

ff



110/154

h= 130March

American Spirit Arr. J.M. AmayaFor Middle School Concert Band

Full Score

1 2 3 4

A You're A Grand Old Flag (1906)(George M. Cohan, 1878-1942)

5 6 7 8 9

Piccolo

Flutes 1-2

Oboe

1

Bb Clarinets

2-3

Bb Bass Clarinet

Bassoon

Eb Alto Sax 1-2

Bb Tenor Sax

Eb Baritone Sax

1

Bb Trumpets

2-3

Horns in F 1-2

Trombones 1-2

Baritone T.C.

Tuba

Orchestra Bells

Percussion

f

f

f

f

f

f

f

f

f

f

f

f

f

f

f

f

f

CrashSnare

B.D.

f


111/154

10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18

Picc.

Fl. 1-2

Ob.

1

Bb Cl.

2-3

Bass Cl.

Bsn.

A. Sax. 1-2

T. Sax

Bari. Sax

1

Bb Tpt.

2-3

F Horns 1-2

Tbns. 1-2

Bar. T.C.

Tuba

Bells

Percussion

fp

f

fp

f

fp f

fp

f

fp

f

fp

f

American Spirit2


112/154


113/154

28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36

Picc.

Fl. 1-2

Ob.

1

Bb Cl.

2-3

Bass Cl.

Bsn.

A. Sax. 1-2

T. Sax

Bari. Sax

1

Bb Tpt.

2-3

F Horns 1-2

Tbns. 1-2

Bar. T.C.

Tuba

Bells

Percussion

mf

mf

On Head

American Spirit4


114/154

BThe Caissons Go Rolling Along (1908)(Gen. Edmund L. Gruber, 1879-1941)

37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44

Picc.

Fl. 1-2

Ob.

1

Bb Cl.

2-3

Bass Cl.

Bsn.

A. Sax. 1-2

T. Sax

Bari. Sax

1

Bb Tpt.

2-3

F Horns 1-2

Tbns. 1-2

Bar. T.C.

Tuba

Bells

Percussion

mf

mf

mf

mf

mf

(Sec.)

mf

(Crash)

American Spirit5


115/154

45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52

Picc.

Fl. 1-2

Ob.

1

Bb Cl.

2-3

Bass Cl.

Bsn.

A. Sax. 1-2

T. Sax

Bari. Sax

1

Bb Tpt.

2-3

F Horns 1-2

Tbns. 1-2

Bar. T.C.

Tuba

Bells

Percussion

mf

mf

mf

mf

mf

mf

mf mf

mf mf

mf

mf

mf (Sec.)

(Crash)

American Spirit6


116/154

C

53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60

Picc.

Fl.

Fl. 1-2

Ob.

1

Bb Cl.

2-3

Bass Cl.

Bsn.

A. Sax. 1-2

T. Sax

Bari. Sax

1

Bb Tpt.

2-3

F Horns 1-2

Tbns. 1-2

Bar. T.C.

Tuba

Bells

Percussion

f

f

f

f

f

f

f

f

f

f

f

f

f

f

f

f

(Sec.)

f

(Crash)

American Spirit7


117/154

61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68

Picc.

Fl. 1-2

Ob.

1

Bb Cl.

2-3

Bass Cl.

Bsn.

A. Sax. 1-2

T. Sax

Bari. Sax

1

Bb Tpt.

2-3

F Horns 1-2

Tbns. 1-2

Bar. T.C.

Tuba

Bells

Percussion

(Sec.)

American Spirit8


118/154


119/154

75 76 77 78 79 80

Picc.

Fl. 1-2

Ob.

1

Bb Cl.

2-3

Bass Cl.

Bsn.

A. Sax. 1-2

T. Sax

Bari. Sax

1

Bb Tpt.

2-3

F Horns 1-2

Tbns. 1-2

Bar. T.C.

Tuba

Bells

Percussion

mf

mf

American Spirit10


120/154

81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88

Picc.

Fl. 1-2

Ob.

1

Bb Cl.

2-3

Bass Cl.

Bsn.

A. Sax. 1-2

T. Sax

Bari. Sax

1

Bb Tpt.

2-3

F Horns 1-2

Tbns. 1-2

Bar. T.C.

Tuba

Bells

Percussion

mf

f

mf

f

mf

f

mf

f

mf

f

mf

mf

f

mf

f

mf

f

mf

mf

f

mf f

mf f

mf

mf

(Crash)

mf

American Spirit11


121/154

89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96

Picc.

Fl. 1-2

Ob.

1

Bb Cl.

2-3

Bass Cl.

Bsn.

A. Sax. 1-2

T. Sax

Bari. Sax

1

Bb Tpt.

2-3

F Horns 1-2

Tbns. 1-2

Bar. T.C.

Tuba

Bells

Percussion

f

f

f

f

f

f

f

American Spirit12


122/154

E

97 98 99 100 101 102

Picc.

Fl. 1-2

Ob.

1

Bb Cl.

2-3

Bass Cl.

Bsn.

A. Sax. 1-2

T. Sax

Bari. Sax

1

Bb Tpt.

2-3

F Horns 1-2

Tbns. 1-2

Bar. T.C.

Tuba

Bells

Percussion

American Spirit13


123/154

103 104 105 106 107 108

Picc.

Fl. 1-2

Ob.

1

Bb Cl.

2-3

Bass Cl.

Bsn.

A. Sax. 1-2

T. Sax

Bari. Sax

1

Bb Tpt.

2-3

F Horns 1-2

Tbns. 1-2

Bar. T.C.

Tuba

Bells

Percussion

On Rim

On Head

American Spirit14


124/154

Quit Clownin' Around!For Concert Band

For Richard Watson & the El Dorado High School Band - Placentia, CA

Completed April, 1996 for Richard Watson and the El Dorado High School Symphonic Band Premier Performance, Spring 1996 - El Dorado High School - Placentia, CA

Revised and Edited by Composer, Spring 2008


125/154

a

Performance/Audience Notes

Quit Clownin Around! is a musical composition intended for a high school ensemble. Fromthe bold, majestic appearance of the ring master (represented by three trumpets), to thehilarious and outrageous antics of the circus clowns (represented by the band membersthemselves), this piece attempts to musically and dramatically recreate the highlights of theold-fashioned three-ringed circus.

After the audience enters the tent, the circus begins with a gallant parade. The ring masterintroduces all of the acts, placing the attention of the spectators on certain events, whichbecome wildly interrupted as the circus goes on. The most famous acts, those of the flyingtrapeze and tightrope, are, of course, represented.

The clown band that appears in the middle of the work contains the same instrumentationas that of the old Ringling-Barnum clown band. A famous 18th-century clown, Grimaldi,inspired the clown bands trumpet solo. (Grimaldi was most well-known for the very dramaticpresentation of his songs.) The spoken phrase, Here we are, was a common clown phrase atthe time, and was used repetitively to interrupt and annoy the circus acts.

Finally, as the circus comes to an end, the audience must try to catch a glimpse of all of theacts. It is at this time that the piece transforms us back into reality: The performers becomeband members again, and as their inappropriate concert behaviors continue, their conductorbrings out the overlooked double meaning of the title of the work as he shouts, Quit ClowninAround!

But the circus must live on, and kids will be kids

-- Jenny Amaya


126/154

b

Notes For The Conductor

Bar 1 (The Audience): The entrance of the instruments should be gradual, like an audience showingup for the circus. Even where each family of instruments enters, individuals should enter at random.This should never appear to be scripted. It should be well-rehearsed and verycasual in itspresentation. It is at the performer's discretion to enter at the appropriate time. Performers maychoose their dynamic levels at will - Advise them to be tasteful. Be as creative as you'd like with thisentrance. If the piece is scheduled at the beginning of the concert, you could have the students walkin at random, take their seat, and start playing on their own, as if they are warming up, until they areall present, playing, and ready for the piece to begin. If this work is scheduled in the middle of aconcert, the students could begin Bar 1 on their own, possibly while you are speaking to the audience,so that they can annoy you. Depending on the ability level of your ensemble, the conductor maynot even be necessary until the entrance of the March at Bar 8. It might be more entertaining forthe audience if the conductor is late to the podium. Use your imagin

Jenny's Final Thesis

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