Nocturne from 'A Midsummer Night's Dream'
Horn or Alto Saxophone Feature
by Felix Bartholdy Mendelssohn
Concert Band - Sheet Music

Soloist(s) with Concert Band (1st Flute/Piccolo, 2nd Flute, Oboe*, 1st Bb Clarinet, 2nd Bb Clarinet, 3rd Bb Clarinet, Bb Bass Clarinet, 1st Bassoon*, 2nd Bassoon*, 1st/2nd* Eb Alto Saxophone, Bb Tenor Saxophone*, 1st Bb Cornet, 2nd Bb Cornet, 1st F Horn, 2nd F Horn, 1st Trombone, 2nd ) - grade 3

SKU: CN.S11197

Horn or Alto Saxophone Feature. Composed by Felix Bartholdy Mendelssohn. Arranged by Geoffrey Brand. Score only. Duration 6:45. Published by G & M Brand Music Publishers (CN.S11197).

Music of calm, romantic beauty. Mendelssohn's incidental music to "A Midsummer Night's Dream" is both dreamy and haunting. The famous horn solos may also be performed by alto saxophone.

Mendelssohn's incidental music to Shakespeare's play, A Midsummer Night's Dream, was written in response to a request from the King of Prussia; the first performance was given at Potsdam near Berlin in 1843. The Nocturne has been described as music of "calm yet romantic beauty." Certainly Mendelssohn's choice of the horn as the solo instrument aptly captures the dreamy nature of this haunting music and has been an important factor in establishing the Nocturne as a favourite concert item in its own right. This arrangement can also be performed with an alto saxophone playing the solo, in which case the 1st horn part should be omitted.