Percussion Ensemble - Digital Download SKU: A0.984904 By Billy Vaughn. By Bert Kaempfert. Arranged by JohnBeale. Contemporary. Score and parts. 68 pages. John Beale #6442233. Published by John Beale (A0.984904). For over 40 years I have arranged music for my school's musicians to come together and perform in school concerts. They were mostly grades 1-3.  I tried to arrange the parts to be meaningful but at the same time maintaining an effective, complete and pleasing sound. I often arranged parts with individuals in mind. The piano part is there for support and filling in. Not a difficult piece and very repetitive and catchy. I have arranged this piece for a school orchestra made up of pupils of grades 1-3. I suggest a solo for the first 4 bars (I did with a recorder). At F there is a ‘jazz’ style solo. Choose your instrument. Once I did with a recorder. A second time with a trumpet. Beware you won’t get the tune out of your head!!

Percussion Ensemble - Level 3 - Digital Download SKU: A0.984525 By Boney M. By Frank Farian, Fred Jay, and George Reyam. Arranged by S Welburn. Dance,Disco. Score and parts. 41 pages. S J Welburn #4634143. Published by S J Welburn (A0.984525). Arrangement of the 1978 hit single, by German / Caribbean Euro-Disco group Boney M. Taken from their third album Nightflight to Venus, the song was released in August of 1978 and reached No.1 in 5 countries, and peaked at No.2 in the UK.A cover of the song was released in 2007, by Finnish Folk Metal band Turisas. After years of playing it as part of their live shows, they decided to put it to record as a special edition EP in the wake of the success of their second full length album.KEY: G MinorDIFFICULTY: IntermediateThe piece makes use of several repeated rhythmic motifs, so once familiarised it is relatively easy to master. In a couple of spots their are short solo passages, but on the whole instruments work together in their subsections and are little exposed.

Percussion Ensemble - Level 5 - Digital Download SKU: A0.811252 Composed by Antonio J. Garcia. Contemporary,Jazz,Latin,World. Score and parts. 119 pages. Gordon Cherry #6549777. Published by Gordon Cherry (A0.811252). Two Dreams for Trombone and Percussion EnsembleDr. Justin Alexander (Director, VCU Percussion Ensemble) invited me to create a piece for trombone and percussion ensemble that had roles for more- and less-experienced players so that they could mix within the performance. I so enjoyed composing and performing this work. He estimates the overall difficulty grade of Movement I to be a three on a five-point scale and Movement II to be a four, with a grade four for the overall piece; but some players’ parts (within the eight total in the percussion ensemble) are indeed easier.The two Movements are approximately five minutes each.The first Movement  Bilita Mpash (An Amazing Dream) calls for (1) shekeré/guiro; (2) 5-octave marimba (shared with...); (3) 5-octave marimba (shared with previous); (4) claves/drum set with mounted cowbell; (5) bell/mounted cowbell/congas; (6) hi-hat/suspended cymbal; (7) bass drum; and (8) four toms/maracas.The Second Movement (Running with the Tigers) calls for (1) xylophone; (2) vibraphone/glockenspiel; (3) 5-octave marimba; (4) drum set; (5) shaker/samba whistle/congas (opt. voice); (6) triangle/bell tree/hanging bells/agogo bells (opt. voice); (7) bass drum (opt. voice); and (8) Timpani (opt. voice). Pending difficulty levels, the conga and drum set parts can optionally be split among additional percussionists. The score notes offer a stage plot and many rehearsal tips.Bilita Mpash (An Amazing Dream)The 3-2 Rumba Clave anchors this movement, launched by the shekeré. Rhythmic vamps of multiple bars form the landscape over which the trombone’s melody emerges, followed by a move to double-time 2-3 Rumba Clave (with montuno) and back. The trombone soloist improvises without chordal accompaniment for a while so could reflect on the preceding harmonies or instead freely improvise with no concern as to chord changes, while a later section requires improv over chord changes. After the recap, a surprise tag of the ending phrase in Cha Cha sets up the rubato finish. Bilita Mpash (BILL-it-uh m-POSH) is a Bantu term for an amazing dream, a dream so good that it is the polar opposite of a nightmare-a dream in a blissful state where all is forgiven and forgotten2. Running with the TigersThe opening, written-out marimba solo is somewhat of a nod to vibist Gary Burton’s influence in bringing mallets towards the expression of modern jazz. A 9/8 samba-groove (5+4) transforms to 4/4. None of the percussionists have to have a jazz background, though the drum set player would be more challenged if not already exposed to Latin drumming. The improvised solo section could be all solo trombone or could be divided among various performers, including trading. The recap of the tune begins over 5/8 samba (3+2, later 2+3). The closing arrhythmic drum-set solo crescendos as the optional surprise of percussionists’ (or additional) voices sing at the end. The title of this movement refers to a recurring dream my dad would have, as well as to the active movements of my grandson when sleeping in his earliest years.-Antonio J. GarcíaInstrumentation is for:Solo Trombone and 8-part Percussion Ensemble:shekeré/guiro, 2 5-octave marimbas, claves/drumset with cowbell, bell, congas, hi-hat, suspended cymbal, bass drum, toms, maracas, xylophone, vibraphone, glockenspiel, shaker, samba whistle, congas, triangle, bell tree, hanging bells, agogo bells, bass drum and timpani.This rhythmic and dramatic work includes improvisation by the Trombonist. Listen to the brilliant live performance featuring Mr. Garcia and the Virginia Commonwealth University Percussion Ensemble directed by Dr. Justin Alexander.

Percussion Ensemble - Digital Download SKU: A0.962290 Composed by Sergio Roberto de Oliveira (1970 - 2017). 20th Century,Contemporary. Score and parts. 64 pages. Sergio Roberto de Oliveira #2613315. Published by Sergio Roberto de Oliveira (A0.962290). Falls House Press has published his works  Faces and Mot pour Laura in the United States. Various articles in specialized journals and sites have cited the composer, such as the Flutist Quarterly (Circus Brasilis - The flute music of Sergio Roberto de Oliveira), Early Music America (Something New for Early Music), Andante.com (The heirs of Villa-Lobos), 21st Century Music, Musicabrasileira.org, etc. Sergio Roberto de Oliveira has frequently been invited to lecture at American universities, and has spoken at more than a dozen institutions including Princeton and Duke. In 2009 he was Artist-in-Residence at Duke University. In addition the USA and the UK, Oliveira's music has also been played in many countries, with invitations for concerts exclusively with his music in México, Italy and Holland (Amsterdam).  The Spanish Magazine Sonograma has published 2 interviews with Sergio.Sergio is the founder and a member of the group of composers Prelúdio 21. The group is one of the most active worldwide. It holds a distinguished place in Brazilian contemporary music, having been active for 15 consecutive seasons, with a permanent series of monthly concerts since 2008. In 2011 the group released the CD String Quartets, with performances by the Quarteto Radamés Gnattali. Oliveira is also a member of the group of composers Vox Novus, based in New York.To commemorate 15 years of activity as a composer, Oliveira released a box set with 4 CDs, as well as a CD with composer Mark Hagerty, and produced the series QUINZE, with 13 concerts including his works, between July and October of 2012.  More than 130 musicians, including 28 composers, participated of QUINZE (CDs and series).His discography includes 14 CDs as producer, 14 as composer, 22 as general producer, 2 as arranger and 2 as pianist. His catalog of compositions includes approximately 115 works for various ensembles, including Symphony Orchestra.  Sergio Roberto de Oliveira is a member of the Latin Academy of the Arts and Science of Recording.He died from pancreatic cancer in 2017.