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Welcome to our podcast, Band BFS.

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The podcast where we make your music selection less complicated.

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On today's episode, we will be featuring four of our favorite pieces from the TBA, Texas

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Band Masters Association Music Reading Clinic.

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Those are medium difficulty grades two to three.

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The titles are Echoes of Time by Sean O'Loughlin, Always by Joshua Hobbs, Apex Predator by Michael

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Orr, and Windpower by Robert Buckley.

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Cheers to starting the conversation!

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Our first piece we're discussing today is Echoes of Time.

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This is a publisher grade about two and a half.

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It is in the key of concert E-flat.

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It is four four throughout and about three and a half minutes in length.

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This piece has a fair amount of percussion.

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You can get away with five to six percussionists in this.

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Most parts do need to be covered if you needed to cut something you could get rid of the

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bell part.

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There's no solos or anything like that, but relatively simple percussion.

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This piece follows the traditional like slow beginning and then it gets a little faster.

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And it's called Echoes of Time because the composer wrote it as kind of like a nod to

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John Williams music from Indiana Jones.

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So it kind of has like this echo effect going on where like the wood upper people might

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have a part and then low people might have a beat later or two beats later.

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So this piece is pretty cool.

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It's a little bit challenging with counting, but we really like the way that it sounds.

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So it starts off in that slow mysterious mode.

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And I like as you look through the score of this and listen to this, you'll find that

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most of the parts like often what is in the woodwinds is somewhere doubled in the brass,

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which for teaching purposes, you know, if you're talking about maybe a sub non-varsity

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high school ensemble or a non-varsity high school ensemble, this would be something that

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you could do earlier in the year or a varsity band at the middle school level.

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It makes it easier knowing that there's often doubling between brass and woodwind instruments.

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So at the beginning with the lyrical section, basically what happens is there's different

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people changing on different beats.

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So like woodwinds might change on beat one and two and then brass would come in on three

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and then change on four.

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So again, it's got that like echo nature to it.

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Then at 13, it goes a little bit faster with a stately trumpet part.

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The trumpet part does go up to like an upper F in the first trumpet and the clarinet part

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does go above the staff in the first clarinet part as well.

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The echo effects just kind of keep coming back and back, but no difficult rhythms.

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Everything's just dotted half notes or eighth notes.

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At 19, it goes just a little bit more maestoso with more accented nature.

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And then it has a pickardy third, I believe is what it's called in 23 and 24 where everybody

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goes one, three, one.

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And it ends with like a nice fermata.

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And then you go much quicker at 25 with a really fun melody part.

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One of the things I like about the introduction, I mean, he has all of these tempo markings

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in, but it almost has a rubato feel at the beginning.

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So you know, great opportunities to teach watching the conductor, those types of things

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for some of your ensembles at 25.

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Now we pick up energy.

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It's much faster.

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It's marked at 144.

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There's all these rhythmic statements happening, these punctuations that are happening in the

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brass, these moving eighth notes, lots of articulation requirements in terms of technique,

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moving tongue and fingers at the same time, especially for the woodwinds.

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But it's not anything ridiculous.

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Yes.

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It's just like one and two and or two and three.

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There's no sixteenth note patterns or anything like that.

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Just some fast rhythms, you know, eighth note rhythms at a fast pace, some cool percussion

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moments in here.

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Again, like we said, not a ton of percussion parts, but when they do happen, there's kind

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of some cool effects in here, that echo effect like Katie was talking about.

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The horn and trumpet have a little melody line at 33 and it's in unison.

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So the horns do have to go up kind of higher range, but it's not anything that would be

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difficult for a high school non-varsity band or even a varsity middle school band.

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Again rhythms are just super easy.

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We're just having to make sure that we count and come in at the right time.

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This continues on.

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We have like a really fun punctuated section at 45 where the whole band has one and four

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and then big timpani and like Tom's part.

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So it's really cool.

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It does sound like any Indiana Jones-esque.

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A little bit of some syncopated rhythms in the brass part as well.

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And then there's like a part with more lyrical in the upper woodwinds.

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It's more like slurred and lyrical in nature.

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And then the low brass and high brass are punctuating underneath them.

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So it just sounds really cool.

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It sounds like music.

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And there's lots of style markings like you're going to see accents, you're going to see

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staccatos, you're going to see tenuto.

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So making sure that your students have that musical vocabulary and are ready to play that.

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There are some trills in this.

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So a couple of little effects.

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Make sure that trills don't cover up, right?

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The rest of the ensemble.

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We get to 63, now the brass kind of have a little moment where it's almost this half-time

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type melody and the woodwinds are moving eighth notes over it.

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Lots of woodwind eighth notes making sure that they stay together, moving those fingers

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together.

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Again, more of this type, this echo type effect.

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Yep.

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And then as we get towards the end, there's like a real dramatic moment where everybody's

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got a piano.

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We're going to back down and keep going.

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And then there's a, it kind of builds and builds and everybody plays on a different

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beat.

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One, two, three, four, one, two.

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And it builds to a fermata and then a cutoff.

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And then there's literally three beats of silence.

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It's almost like a grand pause.

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Yeah.

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Except it's metered, right?

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And then everybody comes back in and it has a really fun finish again with big timpani

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and Tom's moments.

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So this piece is fun.

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If you're looking for a piece to like play maybe on a spring concert or even if you're

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a conductor of an all region band, this would be fun to do with students.

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It is just a lot of fun because it sounds like Indiana Jones, which is awesome.

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It has a lot of energy, but teachable, great things that you can work on with your students,

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but relatively easily teachable.

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Our next piece is Always by Joshua Hobbs.

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And it is also marked as a grade 2.5 on the PML.

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So this one is absolutely gorgeous.

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We love this.

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This is written, I think this is a fabulous piece to introduce a younger high school band

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or an older middle school band to really beautiful lyrical style.

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I mean, lots of sustained phrases.

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The title of this piece, the composer says, was taken from one of the most powerful quotes

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from Harry Potter.

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So for all of you Harry Potter fans out there, maybe you will catch that nod.

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Admittedly, I do not get that.

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But he says that it is about how he feels about his wife, that he will love her always

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and forever.

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So you can imagine the beautiful music that this conveys his emotions for his wife.

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It's about four minutes in length.

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It is pretty long.

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It is in 4-4 in the key of concert B-flat throughout.

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And I mean, just a ton of like, I think of taffy phrases in this like no seamless sound,

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no breath sump bar lines.

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I mean, you look at it and you see a bunch of white notes on the page, but it I think

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is deceptively challenging.

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Yeah, and it's absolutely beautiful.

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So the percussion parts are not very difficult.

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So just keep that in mind.

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They're playing.

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It's a little piece, but really you could play this piece with probably four people

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or five.

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And if you program something like this, I mean, always we recommend keeping your percussion

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students in mind.

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If you're programming this, you want to make sure that you're programming other pieces

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that are challenging your percussion students.

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So it starts off with like a beautiful mid voice melody.

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Trumpets kind of take over a lot of like four leading to one.

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Lots of hairpin dynamics.

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We're going to do a crescendo, day crescendo has a beautiful alto saxophone solo at five

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or it could be a solely as well.

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And the clarinet part is talking back and forth with the saxophones.

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Then the flutes kind of take over and have the melody along with the saxophone.

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There's some challenging cross tuning here in the woodwinds between saxophone flute and

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oboe all in the same octave with each other.

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So something to consider for sure.

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This is a bit more of a demanding piece in that the trombone euphonium part are not the

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same.

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They do not mirror each other most of the way through.

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So you do want to make sure you have like more mature euphoniums that can count and

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play their own part.

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The horn line is really gorgeous.

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Many times throughout this piece as well.

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Lots of really beautiful eighth note phrases that are flowing in and out with the same

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melody that comes back and forth so it's just like added an extra textural layer.

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And it's so because this is so slow right here those eighth note moving lines that you

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have that are between clarinet and alto especially is going to be like, you know, making sure

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they're moving their fingers in time together.

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Younger players are certainly going to tend to rush and compress those rhythms.

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There's a lot of really beautiful writing for the euphonium.

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And it a lot of times gets to be with maybe tenor or barry sax and bassoon.

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So they don't have like one of those typical boring parts.

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It is features like the color instruments a lot more, which I think is really makes

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it a unique piece.

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There's lots of different rhythms.

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There's some triplet rhythms.

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There's dotted eighth, sixteenth rhythms.

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But again, it's a slow metronomic pace.

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So it's not anything difficult to play articulation wise.

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You have to make sure kids can understand like going back and forth between a triplet

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feel and an eighth note feel in the same measures as well.

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There's a cool chimes part, which you know, you don't always have that every day.

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And then the horn line goes on alone with the melody and everybody else is backing them

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up.

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Then the euphoniums and trumpets take over with bassoon.

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So again, he did a very like interesting color pairing on the melody throughout along

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with clarinet one.

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That gorgeous little horn feature in there is also cued in alto.

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So it is not the range is not extensive for horn at all, but it is cued in alto if horns

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are not a strength because they are literally the only people who play the melody in that

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section there.

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We start to add more people in doubling on that same melody.

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We have this gorgeous counter melody that gets added in with the first trumpets and some

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trombones, but we thicken up the texture with the woodwinds and the horns doubling what's

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happening in the woodwinds.

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More cool chime effects.

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Otherwise, just a lot of effects in the percussion section.

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And then this really interesting moment where there's it's like a woodwind and percussion

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feature and you get some cool color statements from like the bassoon.

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And again, it's cued in other instruments, but I really like his writing here.

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At 39, it's back to thinned out in nature.

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So the horns and tenor sax start off and then the trumpets come in and kind of thicken

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it up a little bit.

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Then we all crescendo with the ritardando and then hit a big moment at 43 with just

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big moments.

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Now everybody in the upper woodwinds and trumpet has that alto solo from before.

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And then that cool counter melody line comes back in clarinet two this time bassoon, tenor

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sax, horn and euphonium.

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It's just gorgeous.

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And it's like a conversation back and forth.

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And then we all kind of lead in with another ritardando and now some accents hitting into

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49 to 50.

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So it's a big moment, a big cool low brass moment with euphonium, low reeds.

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The euphonium part in this, I think is really, I think it's a really cool, really cool euphonium.

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The timpani gets to play a really cool part as well while we just have some like trilling

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and soft parts in the upper woodwinds.

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And then it kind of thins out a little bit towards the end.

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We end with like this really pretty like release, fermata eighth note.

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And then everybody comes in on beat three and then softer into beat one.

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And the end, I will tell you those last six measures or so I think might be one of the

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most challenging parts of the piece, just making sure alignment is exactly in time,

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breathing together, starting together, not bumping the starts of notes.

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But a absolutely beautiful piece, gorgeous, highly recommend if you're looking for something

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to stretch your students musically.

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In a lyrical way, yes.

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Our next piece is called Apex Predator by Michael Orr.

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And this piece is rated as a grade two on the PML.

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All right.

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So Apex Predator is in the key of concert B flat and four four and three four.

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It kind of goes or four four and two four.

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Like it does a little bit of four and three four mixed meter in this.

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Oh, you're right.

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I apologize.

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I'm missing and mixing the other piece.

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So a little bit of mixed meter in this.

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This was one of my favorite pieces from the new music clinic.

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I thought it was really, really cool.

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The percussion in this is awesome.

236
00:14:30,640 --> 00:14:32,040
There are a lot of percussion.

237
00:14:32,040 --> 00:14:35,520
You need six players minimum on this one.

238
00:14:35,520 --> 00:14:40,640
And the most important vibes, timpani and the Tom part.

239
00:14:40,640 --> 00:14:44,480
If you have more than six players, you can certainly split some of the parts and make

240
00:14:44,480 --> 00:14:47,040
it a little bit easier on your kids.

241
00:14:47,040 --> 00:14:52,720
But this is this piece is meant to represent that the predator at the top of the food chain,

242
00:14:52,720 --> 00:14:53,720
right?

243
00:14:53,720 --> 00:14:56,080
The lion, the one at the very top, the apex predator.

244
00:14:56,080 --> 00:14:59,560
So such such a cool piece.

245
00:14:59,560 --> 00:15:05,880
The whole piece starts off mysterious and slow with a very extended flute solo that

246
00:15:05,880 --> 00:15:09,640
you could also make into a flute solely if you would like to.

247
00:15:09,640 --> 00:15:15,200
And it's supposed to represent like the apex predator is like creeping in the bushes looking

248
00:15:15,200 --> 00:15:16,640
for its prey.

249
00:15:16,640 --> 00:15:18,720
So it's like very slow.

250
00:15:18,720 --> 00:15:24,120
And then there's like these little like oney and a twoy and a three and a four, like from

251
00:15:24,120 --> 00:15:25,720
different instruments in the clave.

252
00:15:25,720 --> 00:15:28,240
It's get to have it vibraphone.

253
00:15:28,240 --> 00:15:30,840
It's like little like what's happening over there.

254
00:15:30,840 --> 00:15:32,640
Those kind of like cool effects.

255
00:15:32,640 --> 00:15:37,040
There's trombone glissandoes down like, ooh, the apex predators on the right.

256
00:15:37,040 --> 00:15:38,560
Oh, it's on the left.

257
00:15:38,560 --> 00:15:39,760
So it's really neat.

258
00:15:39,760 --> 00:15:43,880
The kids like the writing because it is so just effect driven.

259
00:15:43,880 --> 00:15:46,360
Now, a lot of them don't play for a while.

260
00:15:46,360 --> 00:15:51,080
So make sure you play it with a group that can can handle that.

261
00:15:51,080 --> 00:15:54,320
Then there's an abrupt Allegro.

262
00:15:54,320 --> 00:15:58,520
It changes to being about three times as fast or twice as fast.

263
00:15:58,520 --> 00:16:04,520
And it's now in three, four time when we get to this section, I really, really feel like

264
00:16:04,520 --> 00:16:08,720
there's this rhythmic ostinato that first shows up in the percussion and then it eventually

265
00:16:08,720 --> 00:16:10,560
gets passed around the whole ensemble.

266
00:16:10,560 --> 00:16:15,920
I feel like the percussion in this piece, it needs to be treated as its own ensemble.

267
00:16:15,920 --> 00:16:20,200
Like I would strongly recommend even teaching it to your percussion separate from the wind

268
00:16:20,200 --> 00:16:26,440
players and approaching it like it was a percussion ensemble, they need to be that confident in

269
00:16:26,440 --> 00:16:31,440
their parts independently in order for it to blend well when it adds in with the rest

270
00:16:31,440 --> 00:16:32,440
of the ensemble.

271
00:16:32,440 --> 00:16:37,640
There's some odd syncopated things that if they aren't super comfortable with, it's not

272
00:16:37,640 --> 00:16:39,880
going to align well with the band.

273
00:16:39,880 --> 00:16:43,600
But the percussion part is so cool treated as its own ensemble.

274
00:16:43,600 --> 00:16:48,400
It starts off with Marimba playing the ostinato and then the vibraphone comes in with the

275
00:16:48,400 --> 00:16:52,200
melody, then the toms come in four measures later.

276
00:16:52,200 --> 00:16:55,480
So it's like it's layering and layering different parts.

277
00:16:55,480 --> 00:17:00,200
At 25, the flutes come in with the first statement of the melody.

278
00:17:00,200 --> 00:17:05,520
And then the brass come in while they are finishing their melody with these little hits,

279
00:17:05,520 --> 00:17:07,320
one and, and.

280
00:17:07,320 --> 00:17:10,800
So it's really fun because it's like now that you're looking for the predator, he's coming

281
00:17:10,800 --> 00:17:11,800
for you.

282
00:17:11,800 --> 00:17:12,800
You hear all these cluster chords.

283
00:17:12,800 --> 00:17:15,200
Yeah, yeah, it's really neat.

284
00:17:15,200 --> 00:17:18,280
At 41, the flute, clarinet and oboe have the melody.

285
00:17:18,280 --> 00:17:22,800
And again, we have these hits and brass, but they're not like the same each time.

286
00:17:22,800 --> 00:17:27,880
So the kids have to be really good at counting and know when their hits are going to occur.

287
00:17:27,880 --> 00:17:31,800
Then it goes back into four for and it's kind of lyrical in nature, even though it's still

288
00:17:31,800 --> 00:17:35,440
fast with clarinet and horn having melody.

289
00:17:35,440 --> 00:17:38,600
Then the trumpets kind of take over that melody.

290
00:17:38,600 --> 00:17:42,720
And then it leads up again to where we have, we have a little percussion feature for a

291
00:17:42,720 --> 00:17:45,840
second in the Tom's part.

292
00:17:45,840 --> 00:17:48,680
And then it kind of dies back down.

293
00:17:48,680 --> 00:17:53,120
And then we have a three, four part again with an ostinato and percussion.

294
00:17:53,120 --> 00:17:58,560
And this is the melody again, but now it's in the mid voices, euphonium, trombone, horn,

295
00:17:58,560 --> 00:18:00,280
alto and tenor.

296
00:18:00,280 --> 00:18:02,120
And very exposed and very exposed.

297
00:18:02,120 --> 00:18:03,520
There's nothing else going on.

298
00:18:03,520 --> 00:18:08,440
So they have to really be able to hear their part and match and tune across the ensemble.

299
00:18:08,440 --> 00:18:09,800
Then we're leading up again.

300
00:18:09,800 --> 00:18:15,600
At 69, it's all the upper people again with the melody, including trombone one this time.

301
00:18:15,600 --> 00:18:17,720
So sorry, trombone part this time.

302
00:18:17,720 --> 00:18:22,960
So it does go up a little higher into upper D and E flat in this piece.

303
00:18:22,960 --> 00:18:26,680
It's really thickly scored in the middle, but it's really exciting and fun.

304
00:18:26,680 --> 00:18:32,920
77, we go back into four, four, and it's another little lyrical nod again with horn and alto

305
00:18:32,920 --> 00:18:33,920
sax.

306
00:18:33,920 --> 00:18:37,600
But now the upper woodwinds have a little counter melody on top, which is fun.

307
00:18:37,600 --> 00:18:40,960
So in my mind, I hear this as I listen to it.

308
00:18:40,960 --> 00:18:44,280
When the percussion are playing and aggressive and it's all of that stuff, that's like the

309
00:18:44,280 --> 00:18:45,280
predator.

310
00:18:45,280 --> 00:18:47,920
And then when we get this little flowy, the percussion drop out and you just hear the

311
00:18:47,920 --> 00:18:49,240
cymbal stuff.

312
00:18:49,240 --> 00:18:50,760
And it's more that flowy melody.

313
00:18:50,760 --> 00:18:52,760
That to me is like the prey.

314
00:18:52,760 --> 00:18:57,480
The thing being, yeah, the prey running and larynx.

315
00:18:57,480 --> 00:19:02,240
And then it continues kind of this flowing nature for a while in the four, four time signature.

316
00:19:02,240 --> 00:19:07,440
This is a great opportunity for you to teach where to breathe, not on bar lines so that

317
00:19:07,440 --> 00:19:12,120
it's very seamless, that all whole notes go all the way to a rest.

318
00:19:12,120 --> 00:19:14,400
Or if you have a half note, it goes all the way to four.

319
00:19:14,400 --> 00:19:17,720
So if you're starting on B2, sorry.

320
00:19:17,720 --> 00:19:21,040
But just making sure that the values are all the way through and people aren't all breathing

321
00:19:21,040 --> 00:19:22,040
at the same time.

322
00:19:22,040 --> 00:19:25,640
Just teaching that is really important.

323
00:19:25,640 --> 00:19:30,000
Then again, at 93, we go back into three, four, much of the same.

324
00:19:30,000 --> 00:19:35,640
We have like a more accented part at 104 and then a humongous active percussion part with

325
00:19:35,640 --> 00:19:37,480
vibraphone being the melody.

326
00:19:37,480 --> 00:19:40,640
And it's the only thing with the melody going on in the ensemble.

327
00:19:40,640 --> 00:19:41,640
Yep.

328
00:19:41,640 --> 00:19:46,400
At 109, we get all these like cool glissandos and rips from the band along with these big

329
00:19:46,400 --> 00:19:47,480
hits.

330
00:19:47,480 --> 00:19:50,520
So this is definitely like the prey and the predator fighting here.

331
00:19:50,520 --> 00:19:52,160
This is the fight scene.

332
00:19:52,160 --> 00:19:57,200
And it goes on for a long time with a big lead up in the trumpet too and horn part with

333
00:19:57,200 --> 00:20:01,720
like bell tones along with clarinet too and alto too, big 2D accents.

334
00:20:01,720 --> 00:20:05,560
Brass are going to be really important for giving this powerful effect.

335
00:20:05,560 --> 00:20:11,240
And then it's literally unison rhythms with big power hits and then big rests.

336
00:20:11,240 --> 00:20:13,320
So everybody has to know how to count their parts.

337
00:20:13,320 --> 00:20:15,720
Not difficult, but it all lines up.

338
00:20:15,720 --> 00:20:17,160
Then we kind of come down from there.

339
00:20:17,160 --> 00:20:21,280
It's like the fight is over, percussion takes over again.

340
00:20:21,280 --> 00:20:26,160
Then it ends with the flute solo, maybe like the prey died and the flute is sad.

341
00:20:26,160 --> 00:20:31,160
It doesn't go back to being slow, but it's just more lyrical in nature like the beginning.

342
00:20:31,160 --> 00:20:33,920
And then it fades out and it ends really quietly.

343
00:20:33,920 --> 00:20:36,320
So this piece is so fun.

344
00:20:36,320 --> 00:20:41,480
The kids love it because it does have like a yes, it has a cinematic or a programmatic

345
00:20:41,480 --> 00:20:42,880
feel to it.

346
00:20:42,880 --> 00:20:44,560
So it's fun.

347
00:20:44,560 --> 00:20:51,920
You could program it with a with a top band in a middle school or in a non varsity or sub

348
00:20:51,920 --> 00:20:55,120
non varsity in a high school easily.

349
00:20:55,120 --> 00:20:59,080
Our next piece is called Wind Power by Robert Buckley.

350
00:20:59,080 --> 00:21:04,760
This one is by far the most challenging of the pieces that we're discussing today.

351
00:21:04,760 --> 00:21:09,680
It's a publisher grade three, though I really feel like it's a pretty challenging grade

352
00:21:09,680 --> 00:21:10,680
three.

353
00:21:10,680 --> 00:21:14,280
It's in the key of four or sorry in the key of concert B flat.

354
00:21:14,280 --> 00:21:19,480
And in the time signature of four, four, it does have some two, four, some back and forth

355
00:21:19,480 --> 00:21:23,040
between four, four and two, four at the beginning and elsewhere in the piece.

356
00:21:23,040 --> 00:21:26,200
But for the most part, it is in four, four.

357
00:21:26,200 --> 00:21:29,760
The percussion, there is quite a bit of percussion in this.

358
00:21:29,760 --> 00:21:34,480
This whole piece is meant to convey the idea of what it says, wind power.

359
00:21:34,480 --> 00:21:36,360
So lots of wind effects.

360
00:21:36,360 --> 00:21:40,040
Because of that, I really feel like all of the percussion parts are really important

361
00:21:40,040 --> 00:21:41,240
to convey that effect.

362
00:21:41,240 --> 00:21:46,680
You're going to need at least six to seven percussionists to pull this one off effectively.

363
00:21:46,680 --> 00:21:50,120
It is also the longest of the pieces that we've discussed so far.

364
00:21:50,120 --> 00:21:51,760
It's about five and a half minutes in length.

365
00:21:51,760 --> 00:21:57,920
So most likely something that you're considering programming more with a high school ensemble

366
00:21:57,920 --> 00:22:03,080
or a middle school ensemble that has some chops that can handle the endurance of this.

367
00:22:03,080 --> 00:22:05,680
Maybe at the end of the year, like a spring concert.

368
00:22:05,680 --> 00:22:08,120
So it starts off with lots of power.

369
00:22:08,120 --> 00:22:09,640
It's fast.

370
00:22:09,640 --> 00:22:13,400
It starts off in four, four to two, four, four, four to two, four.

371
00:22:13,400 --> 00:22:18,440
So it's got this really cool like nature to it, but it's got big hits and then long notes

372
00:22:18,440 --> 00:22:20,040
from the upper people.

373
00:22:20,040 --> 00:22:24,760
One end to hold, one end to una.

374
00:22:24,760 --> 00:22:30,000
So it's got like just this neat like back and forth between lows and highs.

375
00:22:30,000 --> 00:22:35,160
Then the clarinets and saxes have to play this part that's just, it's not difficult,

376
00:22:35,160 --> 00:22:41,640
but it's just slurry little patterns and they have to play it 100% aligned with no percussion

377
00:22:41,640 --> 00:22:42,640
help.

378
00:22:42,640 --> 00:22:47,120
So everybody has to really 100% know their part and move the time in their fingers.

379
00:22:47,120 --> 00:22:51,760
And it is not, it's not one of those eighth note patterns that is like it happens for

380
00:22:51,760 --> 00:22:54,040
one measure and then repeats the next measure.

381
00:22:54,040 --> 00:22:57,320
It is, it's a little melody in and of itself.

382
00:22:57,320 --> 00:23:03,000
So it is really important that that would be like broken down and spend time on and alignment

383
00:23:03,000 --> 00:23:04,000
on this.

384
00:23:04,000 --> 00:23:05,680
And this happens several times in this piece.

385
00:23:05,680 --> 00:23:08,640
So it is definitely, it's, it sounds like wind building.

386
00:23:08,640 --> 00:23:09,640
Yes.

387
00:23:09,640 --> 00:23:13,080
So the clarinet and alto started, then the flutes add in with them, then the trumpets

388
00:23:13,080 --> 00:23:14,840
add in along with marimba.

389
00:23:14,840 --> 00:23:18,760
So trumpets are moving their fingers like it would win speed here.

390
00:23:18,760 --> 00:23:24,560
And especially, and this has three trumpet parts, three clarinet parts, two alto parts,

391
00:23:24,560 --> 00:23:28,240
three trombone parts and you phony, you phony them and trumpet.

392
00:23:28,240 --> 00:23:30,440
I mean, you phony them and trombone are not the same.

393
00:23:30,440 --> 00:23:31,440
Yes.

394
00:23:31,440 --> 00:23:32,440
And three trumpet parts.

395
00:23:32,440 --> 00:23:35,520
So it's a little bit more beefy for sure.

396
00:23:35,520 --> 00:23:39,360
Then we get to this little ostinato part in the low people at 17.

397
00:23:39,360 --> 00:23:47,240
It kind of reminds me of just like, like a, like a wind power pumping, like the baseline

398
00:23:47,240 --> 00:23:50,480
keeps going and then the ostinato comes in with another part.

399
00:23:50,480 --> 00:23:53,960
So it keeps like kind of passing along with this like slurry part.

400
00:23:53,960 --> 00:23:55,680
I like the baseline.

401
00:23:55,680 --> 00:24:01,440
The euphoniums have to play an upper C and then an upper E flat over and over on an ostinato

402
00:24:01,440 --> 00:24:03,000
on this little syncopated rhythm.

403
00:24:03,000 --> 00:24:04,920
So it's pretty important.

404
00:24:04,920 --> 00:24:08,720
You have pretty strong low brass players for sure.

405
00:24:08,720 --> 00:24:11,120
And then we're continuing the little wind effects.

406
00:24:11,120 --> 00:24:16,200
There's some tremolos in the clarinet two, three alto part.

407
00:24:16,200 --> 00:24:21,360
And then we're, then we kind of like, we have the ostinato happening in the clarinets, but

408
00:24:21,360 --> 00:24:29,240
then more of like a lyrical in nature mid part with like trombone and sax and trumpet.

409
00:24:29,240 --> 00:24:33,600
So you're still getting that driving wind energy from that ostinato and the clarinets.

410
00:24:33,600 --> 00:24:36,520
It's also being doubled in the mallet part as well.

411
00:24:36,520 --> 00:24:38,240
And that passes throughout the band.

412
00:24:38,240 --> 00:24:41,200
Most everybody gets a chance to play that ostinato at some point.

413
00:24:41,200 --> 00:24:42,200
Yep.

414
00:24:42,200 --> 00:24:46,200
Then we go back to kind of like the beginning with the 4 4 2 4 back and forth.

415
00:24:46,200 --> 00:24:51,320
And then we start up again and at 55 now we've got the, the wind is still in the same people,

416
00:24:51,320 --> 00:24:53,740
but it's a completely different wind pattern.

417
00:24:53,740 --> 00:24:57,000
So it's not like Laura said, it's not like something where you'd have the same thing

418
00:24:57,000 --> 00:24:58,000
over and over.

419
00:24:58,000 --> 00:25:00,560
You have to do like little jumps and things like that.

420
00:25:00,560 --> 00:25:04,280
And this, this part here, there are tons of hairpin dynamics in this.

421
00:25:04,280 --> 00:25:09,640
So all of the, the, the alto and clarinet parts, like, like Katie said, all of that

422
00:25:09,640 --> 00:25:10,880
eighth note moving together.

423
00:25:10,880 --> 00:25:16,080
And then there's this long note value in some of the other woodwind instruments, bassoon

424
00:25:16,080 --> 00:25:21,400
and 10 or some of the lower reeds that are happening underneath again, all that hairpin

425
00:25:21,400 --> 00:25:22,400
dynamics.

426
00:25:22,400 --> 00:25:27,000
And then these interesting little pops of sound that come in from some of the other brass

427
00:25:27,000 --> 00:25:30,720
instruments and also some percussion too.

428
00:25:30,720 --> 00:25:33,220
Then we're continuing this little section.

429
00:25:33,220 --> 00:25:38,240
It's just, it's kind of intricately written where not everybody has the same thing.

430
00:25:38,240 --> 00:25:40,960
So this is a pretty mature piece.

431
00:25:40,960 --> 00:25:45,080
You're going to definitely have to make sure you've got good players on all the parts like

432
00:25:45,080 --> 00:25:49,080
trumpet two and three do not always double.

433
00:25:49,080 --> 00:25:53,160
And like again, the euphoniums have a higher range on this piece.

434
00:25:53,160 --> 00:25:57,760
So do trombones, clarinets go up above the staff often.

435
00:25:57,760 --> 00:26:01,240
So all of your woodwinds need to have good technique.

436
00:26:01,240 --> 00:26:03,400
Then we get to this bell tone section.

437
00:26:03,400 --> 00:26:10,160
It's like the wind has been building up and then it is one, three, one, three.

438
00:26:10,160 --> 00:26:11,160
So it's cool.

439
00:26:11,160 --> 00:26:13,640
And then percussion is kind of jamming underneath them.

440
00:26:13,640 --> 00:26:19,040
The percussion part here are putting in all of these little, these little punctuated statements.

441
00:26:19,040 --> 00:26:22,360
It's not just like they're setting the pulse for you or not.

442
00:26:22,360 --> 00:26:25,360
They're adding these effects, which is super cool.

443
00:26:25,360 --> 00:26:31,560
79 comes back again with the same little wind effect in the upper woodwinds.

444
00:26:31,560 --> 00:26:37,960
Then we have like a tenudo melody in the euphonium and trombone one and two line.

445
00:26:37,960 --> 00:26:41,400
Trombone three acts almost like a baseline.

446
00:26:41,400 --> 00:26:45,400
And then they continue on with the ostinato and the, and the different wind effects.

447
00:26:45,400 --> 00:26:51,880
It kind of goes on and on more bell tones, same little percussion effects here and there.

448
00:26:51,880 --> 00:26:56,320
Clarinets are going up to a high D above the staff, then we have the same thing from the

449
00:26:56,320 --> 00:27:00,920
beginning where we have an alignment issue where nobody else is playing except the woodwinds

450
00:27:00,920 --> 00:27:03,640
on the eighth notes, but now we have more of them.

451
00:27:03,640 --> 00:27:08,720
So this is kind of tricky if you don't have kids that can play on a steady pulse on eighth

452
00:27:08,720 --> 00:27:09,720
notes at 140.

453
00:27:09,720 --> 00:27:10,720
Yeah.

454
00:27:10,720 --> 00:27:14,800
This is all three clarinets moving eighth notes, all the flutes, all saxophones, like

455
00:27:14,800 --> 00:27:18,240
just, just making sure again that technique is, is appropriate.

456
00:27:18,240 --> 00:27:22,080
It slows down a little bit at 103 and everybody's got to watch really carefully.

457
00:27:22,080 --> 00:27:27,160
Then there's these really cool like little pizzicato hits from the low reeds and low brass

458
00:27:27,160 --> 00:27:31,520
while we continue the hairpin dynamics and the flowing nature from the upper woodwinds

459
00:27:31,520 --> 00:27:33,200
and upper brass.

460
00:27:33,200 --> 00:27:38,440
At 21, there's a conversation between upper woodwinds and trumpet and then it descends

461
00:27:38,440 --> 00:27:40,120
into horn and euphonium.

462
00:27:40,120 --> 00:27:44,560
We start to add more low brass in on some of those little interjections here.

463
00:27:44,560 --> 00:27:45,560
Yes.

464
00:27:45,560 --> 00:27:49,360
So each part is very individualized, so kids have to be really good at counting.

465
00:27:49,360 --> 00:27:54,800
Then we go back to the faster speed with the ostinato and again the, the woodwindy type

466
00:27:54,800 --> 00:27:55,800
of nature.

467
00:27:55,800 --> 00:27:56,800
It's very much the same.

468
00:27:56,800 --> 00:27:57,800
It's very much the same.

469
00:27:57,800 --> 00:27:58,800
Like what we had.

470
00:27:58,800 --> 00:27:59,800
4, 4 and 2, 4 again.

471
00:27:59,800 --> 00:28:05,240
And it all ends with everybody playing a 2D rhythm at the very end, some tremolos and

472
00:28:05,240 --> 00:28:06,880
then upper woodwinds ending it.

473
00:28:06,880 --> 00:28:12,000
So this piece is really cinematic and it's fun and the kids would definitely be able

474
00:28:12,000 --> 00:28:15,240
to like feel the wind when they play this piece.

475
00:28:15,240 --> 00:28:16,560
It's high energy.

476
00:28:16,560 --> 00:28:18,760
It is a really, really cool piece.

477
00:28:18,760 --> 00:28:24,160
Just be prepared that, you know, your ensemble needs to be able to handle the challenges.

478
00:28:24,160 --> 00:28:28,400
We hope you'll consider programming some of these pieces in your future and thank you

479
00:28:28,400 --> 00:28:46,360
for joining us on this episode of Band BFS.