SKU: A0.813826

Largo (from Symphony No. 9 in E minor) (From the New World) (Db) (Clarinet Quintet) - Intermediate - Digital Download. This marvelous arrangement of the Largo, based on the second movement of Antonin Dvorak's Symphony No. 9 in E minor, would be a fabulous addition to any music library and could be performed for concerts, recitals and church services, especially Funerals, but would be appropriate any time during the church year. This arrangement is suitable for high school and college students but professional musicians would also enjoy playing this selection. Included are a score and a complete set of parts (18 pages). This selection is one of the many arrangements from the The Regis Bookshar Trumpet Ensemble's extensive music library which are being made available for the first time.

Symphony No. 9 in E minor, Op. 95 (subtitled From the New World and popularly know as the New World Symphony), was composed by Antonin Dvorak in 1893 while he was the director of the National Conservatory of Music of America from 1892 to 1895. It premiered at Carnegie Hall in New York City on December 16, 1893 and has been described as one of the most popular of all symphonies. The second movement of the symphony, upon which this arrangement is based, is marked Largo, and begins with a harmonic progression of chords which is then followed by a solo instrument playing the famous main theme.

Dvorak was interested in Native American music and the African-American spirituals he heard in North America. While director of the National Conservatory he encountered an African-American student, Harry T. Burleigh, who sang traditional spirituals to him. Burleigh, later a composer himself, said that Dvorak had absorbed their spirit before writing his own melodies. Dvorak stated:
  
  I am convinced that the future music of this country must be founded on what are called Negro melodies. These can be the foundation of a serious and original school of composition to be developed in the United States. These beautiful and varied themes are the product of the soil. They are folk songs of America and your composers must turn to them.

He further explained how Native American music influenced his symphony:

  I have not actually used any of these (Native American) melodies. I have simply written original themes embodying the peculiarities of the Indian music, and, using these themes as subjects, have developed them with all the resources of modern rhythms, counterpoint, and orchestral colour.

In 1893, a newspaper interview quoted Dvorak as saying, I found that the music of the negroes and of the Indians was practically identical, and that the music of the two races bore a remarkable similarity to the music of Scotland. Most historians agree that Dvorak is referring to the pentatonic scale, which is typical of each of these musical traditions.

Dvorak was influenced not only by music he heard, but also by what he had seen, in America. He wrote that he would not have composed his American pieces as he had if he had not seen America. It has been said that Dvorak was inspired by the wide open spaces of America, such as the prairies he may have seen on his trip to Iowa in the summer of 1893. Notices about several performances of the symphony include the phrase wide open spaces about what inspired the symphony and/or about the feelings it conveys to listeners.

The theme from the Largo was adapted into the spiritual Goin' Home (often mistakenly considered a folk song or traditional spiritual) by Dvorak's pupil, William Arms Fisher, who wrote the lyrics in 1922. Regis Bookshar thought it would be wonderful if other instrumentalists could have the opportunity to play this beautiful melody, so, in addition to this version for a Clarinet Quintet, he has made quite a few other arrangements of this selection which are readily available for a wide variety of instrumenta.

SKU: A0.1163661

Avatar: The Way of Water, is the long-awaited sequel to the award-winning film from 2009.  The soundtrack for the new film was written by Simon Franglen, who originally wrote 5 hours of music to cover any and all situations in the almost 3-hour movie.

The Songcord is a beautiful song that is heard twice in the film – at the beginning and at the end.  A songcord is a mnemonic device used by the Na’vi that assists them in storytelling.  In this song, Neytiri is thanking Eywa – the Great Mother - for her family.

This arrangement is scored for clarinet choir – Eb, 4 Bb, alto, bass, and contrabass. 

One of the most important parts of this piece is what helps create the mood, which is where the part called “Shimmer� comes in.  In an interview, Simon Franglen said that an important part of the music is the feeling of light, and he achieved that by including shimmering sounds into his tunes.  With that in mind, “Shimmer� part can be played by hanging a few keys (house keys, car keys, etc.) that have different pitches on short lengths of string.  Use a small metal or wooden object to lightly hit the keys to create little “dings�.

Be creative with this percussive part!  You can use a little xylophone, bells, etc.  The idea is to create a magical mood without overpowering the music.  Play this part wherever there is a note in the measure.

Always keep the melody prominent.  Play this slowly and freely, with a lot of rubato.  

Duration: 3.75 minutes.

SKU: A0.548650

Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring from Bach's Cantata 147, arranged for the clarinet choir.
1 Eb Clarinet
3 Bb Clarinets
1 Alto Clarinet
1 Bass Clarinet
1 Contrabass Clarinet
Score: 18 pg. Parts: 2 pg. Duration: 5:00 with optional repeat.

Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring

Bach composed a cantata called Herz und Mund und Tat und Leben. Though it is the 32nd cantata, it is listed as BWV 147. Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring is the 10th movement of the cantata. It was customary to use previous melodies as a basis for a new work - a practice called Cantus prius factus. So, the chorale melody for this piece is a historic tune called Werde munter, mein Gemüthe. Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring is customarily performed at weddings and during major church seasons such as Easter and Christmas.

Bach Overview

First, Johann Sebastian Bach may be the greatest composer in music history. Indeed, he was prolific. As a result, everyone has heard of his works. Furthermore, these works number well over a thousand. People are probably most familiar with instrumental works such as the Brandenburg Concertos and the Goldberg Variations. But, similarly famous are such noteworthy works as the Well-Tempered Clavier, the Musical Offering, and certainly the Art of Fugue. His most famous vocal works seem to include the most noteworthy Mass in B Minor. Also, the St. John Passion and certainly the Christmas Oratorio are the most noteworthy.

 History

Bach came from a long line of musicians and, above all, composers. Consequently, he first pursued a career as a church organist. As a result, he gained employment in various Protestant churches in Germany. He worked as a court musician in Weimar and Köthen for a while. Here he probably developed his organ style and, likewise, his chamber music style. Eventually, he gained an appointment as Cantor of St. Thomas in Leipzig. Here he worked until difficulties with his employer ultimately drove him away. The King of Poland finally appointed him as court composer.

 Style

It seems like Bach created a fascinating new international style. He synthesized elements of the most noteworthy European music ideas into his new style. This new style was probably his synthesis of European musical rhythm and form. Furthermore, in addition to his complete mastery of counterpoint and motivic development, his sense of harmonic organization probably propelled him to the top.

Revival               

Mendelssohn conducted a Bach revival in the nineteenth century. His effort probably helped to re-familiarize the public with the magnitude of Bach’s works. During this period, scholars published many noteworthy Bach biographies. Moreover, Wolfgang Schmieder published the BWV (Bach Werke Verzeichnis). As a result, this is now the official catalog of his entire artistic output. The BWV number allows us to locate a work in the catalog. Sometimes scholars will use an S (Schmieder) as an abbreviation for BWV.

SKU: A0.1236416

The American epic war movie, The Longest Day, was filmed in black and white and released in 1962. It is based on Cornelius Ryan's 1959 non-fiction book of the same name about the D-Day landings at Normandy on June 6, 1944.  The picture opens with a view of the beach and the sounds of the waves washing ashore.  There is a lone helmet lying upside down on the beach, and over the sounds of the sea, and we hear the motif from Beethoven's 5th Symphony, the dot-dot-dash of morse code signaling V, for victory.  Throughout the film we hear variations on the theme of the march which culminates in the playing of the full march as the credits roll. Here scored for clarinet choir is the march from The Longest Day, as written by Paul Anka.

SKU: A0.796738

For Advanced Intermediate Clarinet Choir. 40 pages, including one sample part page for display here. Duration: 3 minutes.
This uptempo, disco- and soul-pop number with punk influences debuted as Justin Timberlake's fifth U. S. No. 1 single and is one of the top 20 longest running No. 1 singles on the Adult Contemporary chart. This arrangement spreads the almost uncontrollable joy among all the players in your ensemble, and its appeal will be to young and old alike. Its Advanced Intermediate difficulty will be sufficient enough to wow and yet accessible enough for an audience filled with pop-music lovers and arts aficionados alike. An optional cut from Rehearsals C to I makes this an ideal encore on a recruiting or publicity tour: short, but...wow!

Thank you for considering this work; your reviews of my work are really important to me. Follow Gary D.Belshaw Music on Facebook and Twitter (@GaryDBelshawMus). A like on this Sheet Music Plus page will be deeply appreciated.

Take pride in your copy of this work.
   1. Avoid cheap 20-lb office supply paper. Invest a couple extra bucks in some 22- or 24-lb. paper.
   2. Avoid bright white papers: look for beige, tan, or natural paper.
   3. Always use a smooth-finish paper stock.
   4. One final thought: if you have access to a printer or copier that will take 9 x 12 stock, your pages will be more like traditional printed music in size. Obtaining paper stock with the other elements listed above will result in music sheets that would look startling similar to products from long-established publishing houses.

SKU: A0.1342325

This medium-difficulty arrangement of Dragonborn, the theme from the popular video game Skyrim will delight your audience, and offer a great teaching opportunity for playing in the 12/8 time signature. The piece is scored for 3 B-flat clarinets, 1 E-flat alto clarinet and 1 B-flat bass clarinet.  Be sure to check out the video for the full-length recording of the piece with score view.

SKU: A0.1142520

A preview score of 5 pieces for clarinet quartet based on the poems by: Rudyard Kipling: Boots: Infantry Columns Composed Fiona Hickie Lord Alfred Tennyson: Sweet and Low Composed Sir Joseph Barnby Frank MacNamara: Moreton Bay Composed Frank MacNamara Thomas Moore: Last Rose of Summer Traditional William Blake: March of Mendacity (based on The Liar) Composed Fiona Hickie.

SKU: A0.1242589

This Bach organ fugue was arranged for clarinet choir by Andrea Toven in 1994.  This arrangement was premiered by the St. Olaf Clarinet Choir in daily chapel in April 1994, and the preview audio sample is from that performance. The arranger was the contrabass clarinetist.

This arrangement is scored for Eb clarinet, 3 Bb clarinets, F basset horn, bass clarinet, and Bb contrabass clarinet.

SKU: A0.845643

Henry Mancini's Peter Gunn Theme is one of the most popular TV themes ever written. He won an Emmy and two Grammy awards for the Peter Gunn soundtrack album, and the theme has been recorded by a huge number of musicians including the Blues Brothers, Aretha Franklin, Jimi Hendrix, and Duane Eddy. This arrangement for clarinet quartet is great fun to play, and it's possible to add a little improvised solo for any of the players over the final chord.

The PDF download includes a full score and all 4 parts: 3 Bb Clarinets and 1 Bass Clarinet.

If you like this arrangement, please consider leaving a review.

SKU: A0.1294025

“A Watery Life� was written in early 2023 for the “Klarinet Kerfuffle�, a day of workshops and recitals for clarinetists of all ages in Saskatchewan. It is a short piece that uses two familiar tunes to illustrate some musical concepts and techniques.

First comes “Row Your Boat�, played with harmonies and then in a round (canon). Then we move into “Lightly Row� following a short transition. This is harmonized and the bass clarinet plays an Alberti bass. After playing through this once, there is a passage that combines the two songs, using passing tones and rhythmic variation to add interest.

Lyrics of “Row Your Boat�:

Row, row, row your boat gently down the stream!
Merrily, merrily, merrily, merrily, life is but a dream!

Lyrics of “Lightly Row�, as I learned them:

Lightly row, lightly row, o’er the glassy waves we go!
Smoothly glide, smoothly glide, on the silent tide!
Let the winds and waters be mingled with our melody.
Sing and float, sing and float, in our little boat!

Please let me know if you perform this piece, and don’t forget to review it!

SKU: A0.504100

Silent night – the Christmas classic in a very sophisticated Jazz Waltz arrangement with some reharmonisation that will give to you a new view on the Christmas classic by Organist Franz Xaver Gruber (1787–1863). Instrumentation: Clarinet 1 & 2 in Bb, Basset Horn/Clarinet 3 in Bb, Bass Clarinet in Bb Listen to the video recording - a challenge for your ensemble. Please don't forget to review your purchase - you will help other musicians to choose the perfect arrangement for their ensemble. Thank you very much! Important note: All our arrangements, esp. Big Band and Concert Band arrangements are played and prooved with our own ensembles with great fun and success. Please let us know if you have any request, question or if you need transposed parts. Any individual arrangement and substitute parts are available on request. Call +49 (0) 172 2515987 - E-Mail: info@the-hit-factory.com. - www.the-hit-factory.com - facebook: https://www.facebook.com/hitfactorymusic.

SKU: A0.1169298

Avatar: The Way of Water, is the long-awaited sequel to the award-winning film from 2009.  The soundtrack for the new film was written by Simon Franglen, who originally wrote 5 hours of music to cover any and all situations in the almost 3-hour movie.  

From Darkness to Light is a beautiful instrumental piece in the movie that shows off the beauty of the water.  On paper, the music seems a little too simple, but the chord progressions together with the moving parts make for quite a beautiful and memorable piece.  

This arrangement is scored for clarinet choir - Eb, 4 Bb, alto, bass and contrabass.  

One of the most important parts of this piece is what helps create the mood, which is where the part called “Shimmer� comes in.  In an interview, Simon Franglen said that an important part of the music is the feeling of light, and he achieved that by including shimmering sounds into his tunes.  With that in mind, this is how the “Shimmer� part can be played:  Hang a few keys (house keys, car keys, etc.) that have different pitches on short lengths of string.  Use a small metal or wooden object to lightly hit the keys to create little “dings�.  

Be creative with this percussive part!  You can use whistle tones, a little xylophone, wind chimes, etc.  The idea is to create a magical mood without overpowering the music.  Play this part wherever there is a note in the measure.  

Duration: 3.75 minutes.

SKU: A0.845746

This short arrangement for standard clarinet quartet captures the essence of the brilliant BBC TV theme, ideal for opening a dance-themed programme or for using in workshops or as part of outreach work.

The PDF download includes a full score and all 4 parts: 3 Clarinets in Bb, and 1 Bass Clarinet.

If you like this arrangement, please leave a review.