SKU: A0.835449

If you are looking for a genuinely beautiful and rewarding work for solo voice and piano, to fill a 20-minute time slot, then Idylls is for you. It provides an opportunity for both singer and pianist to demonstrate an ability to communicate a wide range of emotions. It is particularly satisfying for the pianist, whose part is anything but subservient to the vocal line and provides an opportunity to shine. At notated tempo the work lasts just under 18 minutes; the concert première performance (in January 2019) lasted just short of 20 minutes because of the slower tempo at which the performers chose to take the fourth song.

While intended primarily for the concert platform, Idylls contains some profoundly Christian themes that may make it suitable also for church use in an appropriate context.

Although intended for professional use, Idylls may be within the technical capability of advanced high school students, noting that the third song ('Of old sat Freedom on the heights') has a piano part that was described as 'challenging' by the professional pianist who first performed it in public (Jonathan Ellis, January 12th, 2019).

As noted above, Idylls can work for church services in various contexts, although not all of the songs are necessarily appropriate to the same context. The lyrics themselves provide the best guidance in this respect.

From observing the rehearsal sessions of the two professionals who first performed the work (Chen Wang and Jonathan Ellis), the composer suggests that none of the songs - however apparently straightforward - should be taken for granted. There are nuances in all of them that require careful attention to timing and pitch. The vocal entries in the opening song require careful attention to pitch. In the second song concentrate on the timing and making it sound as light and dance-like as possible. The third song requires the singer to keep an E-flat in mind at all times (in order to pitch entries) and to sing to strict meter regardless of what the pianist is playing. The fourth song requires both grace and intensity. Pitch is the main issue, particularly some of the B-natural entries; pay special attention to timing in the first verse. The fifth and final song is melodically straightforward; pay attention to timing in the second verse.

Stuart Brown composed Idylls in early 2015 specifically for the London-based Chinese soprano Chen Wang. She performed it in public for the first time, accompanied by Manchester-based pianist Jonathan Ellis, at a concert in the southwest of England in January 2019.

Performing rights are handled in the UK by PRS for Music, in Canada by SOCAN, in the USA by ASCAP, BMI and SESAC. The full list of arrangements can be found at www.prsformusic.com/our-global-network/partners

All contact and other information (including lyrics) can be found on the composer's website at https://stuartbrownmusic.com/discover-11.html

SKU: A0.1327769

The first of its kind, and the first entry in the Accessible Accompaniments library’s collection of small-hand-optimized song literature publications, this is Richard Strauss’s beloved “Zueignung,� from Acht Gedichte, op. 10 (1885), optimized (but not simplified) for the needs of collaborative pianists with small hands. “Small� is generally understood to be just an octave in span, with limited capacity to grab chord tones within a blocked octave aside from the occasional inner fifth.

This edition was inspired by Boosey’s excellent small-hand edition of Frank Bridge’s “Love Went A-Riding� (erroneously labeled “simplified� on the front matter), which thins the large chords that would be problematic or impossible for a barely-an-8ve-reach collaborative pianist to play without adding musically inappropriate rolls or breaks, but also preserves the musical content and grammatically accurate voice-leading. Given that Strauss’s op. 10 collection is much more widespread on today’s concert programs than the Bridge, and given that average conservatory pianist heights and hand sizes have dropped significantly in the 20th and 21st centuries, the need for a similar adaptation in at least some of the op. 10 songs is obvious. Additionally, Strauss’s songs are often so orchestral in spirit—much more so than the Bridge—that the instinct to treat them as orchestral reductions to be adapted by each individual player should be as self-evident and considered as musically appropriate as it would be for any of Strauss’s beloved horn concerti. Performers should feel free to insert their own adaptations, additions, and omissions to this score as needed.

The primary source material for this edition is Henle’s edition of the Acht Gedichte. However, any proprietary material that is not public domain (like their fingerings, front matter, and critical notes) is left out of this edition, leaving only what is public domain and edited by Ms. DiPaolo. Unreasonably large chords and arpeggio figures that would require being reachable by a larger hand have been condensed into figures more appropriate for the just-an-octave hand without sacrificing technique and excitement. This edition makes minor improvements to the engraving, like removing syllabic beaming in the voice and adding octave lines when appropriate. This edition also uses Accessible Accompaniments’ distinctive house style, marked by its visual beauty and ease of reading.

While this song will be published in low, middle, and high keys for your convenience, please feel free to request another transposition if you are purchasing from a site that does not offer automatic transposition or you don’t see the key that you need. As the name says, Accessible Accompaniments is committed to accessibility—and that goes for singers, too!

SKU: A0.1329064

The first of its kind, and the first entry in the Accessible Accompaniments library’s collection of small-hand-optimized song literature publications, this is Richard Strauss’s beloved “Zueignung,� from Acht Gedichte, op. 10 (1885), optimized (but not simplified) for the needs of collaborative pianists with small hands. “Small� is generally understood to be just an octave in span, with limited capacity to grab chord tones within a blocked octave aside from the occasional inner fifth.

This edition was inspired by Boosey’s excellent small-hand edition of Frank Bridge’s “Love Went A-Riding� (erroneously labeled “simplified� on the front matter), which thins the large chords that would be problematic or impossible for a barely-an-8ve-reach collaborative pianist to play without adding musically inappropriate rolls or breaks, but also preserves the musical content and grammatically accurate voice-leading. Given that Strauss’s op. 10 collection is much more widespread on today’s concert programs than the Bridge, and given that average conservatory pianist heights and hand sizes have dropped significantly in the 20th and 21st centuries, the need for a similar adaptation in at least some of the op. 10 songs is obvious. Additionally, Strauss’s songs are often so orchestral in spirit—much more so than the Bridge—that the instinct to treat them as orchestral reductions to be adapted by each individual player should be as self-evident and considered as musically appropriate as it would be for any of Strauss’s beloved horn concerti. Performers should feel free to insert their own adaptations, additions, and omissions to this score as needed.

The primary source material for this edition is Henle’s edition of the Acht Gedichte. However, any proprietary material that is not public domain (like their fingerings, front matter, and critical notes) is left out of this edition, leaving only what is public domain and edited by Ms. DiPaolo. Unreasonably large chords and arpeggio figures that would require being reachable by a larger hand have been condensed into figures more appropriate for the just-an-octave hand without sacrificing technique and excitement. This edition makes minor improvements to the engraving, like removing syllabic beaming in the voice and adding octave lines when appropriate. This edition also uses Accessible Accompaniments’ distinctive house style, marked by its visual beauty and ease of reading.

While this song will be published in low, middle, and high keys for your convenience, please feel free to request another transposition if you are purchasing from a site that does not offer automatic transposition or you don’t see the key that you need. As the name says, Accessible Accompaniments is committed to accessibility—and that goes for singers, too!

SKU: A0.955797

Classically trained singers are generally first contact for most elementary, middle school and high school students via in-school programs, out-reach programs, etc.  For those YAP programs/Studio Artists programs popular music arrangements are needed, and those available leave the singer oft' times wanting something more... This arrangement grew out of such an experience: a gifted singer & her talented pianist showed up at a school with the most generic of printed arrangements. Thus this attempt to create an ensemble of two - performing a tune recognized by all. All it requires is the singers art & soul.