Shenandoah (full set)

SKU: AP.36-10205066

ISBN 9781628760781. UPC: 659359725395. English.

SHENANDOAH is one of America's most popular folk songs. It is a capstan (or short haul) chanty of American origin whose subject is said to be the Valley of the Shenandoah (between the Blue Ridge and Allegheny mountains) and the great Indian chieftain after whom both the valley and the river were named. American cavalrymen sang it, and it became a rowing song sung on midwestern rivers. This fine orchestral setting by Albert Davis of Shenandoah captures the rich folk quality inherent in this lovely melodic song.

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SKU: CL.026-4384-01

A beautiful setting of this famous melody! It begins with a solo or soli for any instrument(s), then flows in and out of various textures, building to a dramatic finale. Very effective in helping smaller bands sound full and mature. An excellent choice to help develop blend, balance, intonation, and lyrical playing. An excellent contest selection, or perfect as a daily warm-up. Your students will ask to play Shenandoah every day!

About Build-A-Band Series

The Build-A-Band Series provides educational and enjoyable music for bands with incomplete or unbalanced instrumentation. Written using just four or five parts (plus percussion), these effective arrangements will work with any combination of brass, woodwind, string and percussion instruments as long as you distribute the parts so that each of the five parts is covered. All of the publications in the Build-A-Band Series have been arranged to be playable with any instrumentation as long as each part is used: 1st Part, 2nd Part, 3rd Part, 4th Part, and Bass Part. (Please note: In some of these arrangements the 4th Part, and the Bass Part are the same, making it possible to play those arrangements with only 4 parts.)

SKU: CF.YPS214

ISBN 9781491152331. UPC: 680160909834. Key: Bb major.

This new piece from composer George Sweet is a delightful combination of Scotland the Brave and Amazing Grace. Each tune on its own is wonderful, but in Sweet's setting, they are masterfully layered to reflect the composer's Scottish-American heritage. This presentation of a Scottish melody with Americana-inspired harmonies is a stunning example of compositional craft.
Bravery and Grace is a setting of the unofficial Scottish national anthem, Scotland the Brave. While the melody is taken from Scotland the Brave, the accompaniment and harmony both have a “Western Americana” feel, reminiscent of composers like Roy Harris and Aaron Copland.  This combination of a Scottish melody with American harmony is a reflection of the composer’s Scottish-American Heritage.The piece begins with a fragment of Scotland the Brave presented in a lush and reflective context. The main theme is performed in full by the upper voices at m. 9. The middle voices perform the material at m. 17, and the lower voices perform it again at m. 33. This results in a loud passage representing pipers at m. 46. The traditional spiritual Amazing Grace appears suddenly at m. 51 in a somewhat polytonal setting. This is, once again, reminiscent of practices of the aforementioned American composers.  After this lyrical presentation, a fragment of the main theme returns at m. 66. This is followed by a broad restatement of the theme at m. 70 and a brisk conclusion with a final flair of polytonality.