Full Orchestra - Level 3 - Digital Download SKU: A0.979772 Composed by Anon. Arranged by Robert Luke Thompson. Christmas,Contemporary,Holiday,Renaissance,Traditional. Score and Parts. 44 pages. Monkspath Music #6079181. Published by Monkspath Music (A0.979772). The Coventry Carol originates from a medieval mystery play entitled The Pageant of the Shearmen and Tailors. The play depicts the Christmas story, from the Annunciation (where the Angel Gabriel appears to Mary), to the Massacre of the Innocents (where King Herod of Judea orders the death of all male infants near Bethlehem under the age of two). It is this tale that the Coventry Carol depicts, taking the form of a lullaby sung by the mothers of the murdered children. As is appropriate, the music is in a minor key – this arrangement uses G minor and D minor as a homage to well-known harmonisations by Thomas Sharp and Henry Walford Davies. It is unknown when the words were first set to music, but a proposed date is 1591, or earlier! Other interesting musical features include the use of a ‘Picardy third’, and ‘false relations’, contributing to the haunting quality of this enduring piece, both in the heart of the English Midlands, and further afield. This arrangement is suitable for all orchestras of beginner-intermediate ability or higher. There is plenty of interest for both experienced players, and for newcomers. The instrumentation is designed to facilitate both a full sound, but also for flexibility, which is often desired by school, youth, and amateur orchestras. For further pieces, view the Monkspath Music catalogue and click here!

Full Orchestra - Level 4 - Digital Download SKU: A0.869351 Composed by Thomas Oboe Lee. 20th Century,Baroque,Classical,Contemporary,Romantic Period. Score and parts. 81 pages. Thomas Oboe Lee #15869. Published by Thomas Oboe Lee (A0.869351). Instrumentation: 3232-4331-timp-2perc-strings. When I received the invitation from Jonathan Cohler to write a Concerto for Orchestra for the Brockton Symphony, I immediately thought of all the composers who wrote works inspired by Bartok’s seminal work of the same title: Roger Sessions, Elliott Carter, Michael Tippett, Witold Lutoslawski, Joan Tower and, most recently, Jennifer Higdon. My Concerto for Orchestra, opus 111, is in five movements. It will be heard without pause between movements. I. Largo … Misterioso! II. Allegro con moto … Evidence!!! III. Adagio … Epistrophy! IV. Andante … In Walked Bud! V. Presto … Rhythm-a-ning!!! My initial idea for the Concerto was contrast - contrast between the timbres and colors that the various sections in an orchestra provide. For example, the woodwinds would provide a sharp contrast against the brass; the percussion section against the strings, etc. I also was interested in writing a work where each movement would flow into the next without pause – thus providing another form of contrast, that of tempi and mood change. A third form of contrast would be the different styles and forms of music that I would come up with. And I had a lot of fun conjuring up the many possible scenarios and orchestral tableaux. I actually started with the second movement: the Allegro con moto. I wanted something that had a nice surging quality that the whole orchestra could jump into. When I finished that, I thought perhaps it would be too intense for the opening of the work. I thought, maybe I should begin with something slower, more brooding in nature before the explosive stuff. I noticed that Carter’s Concerto began with a slow Introduction. It had a title: Misterioso. Being an avid fan of Thelonious Monk, aka Thelonious Sphere Monk, Misterioso brought to mind a Monk composition of the same title. That epiphany gave me the idea of naming each of the five movements after a Monk tune. Monk’s Misterioso is a blues with an insistent theme of 8th note patterns of rising 6ths; which has nothing to do with my first movement. My Misterioso features a solo for the bass clarinet in the midst of a shimmering atmosphere that is punctuated by accents in the bass. They are both mysterious, but divergently opposed in mood and substance. Monk’s Evidence is a tune with jabs and punches, irregularly placed within the measure – not unlike what I did in the second movement. This movement is perhaps the most Monk-ish of all. Monk’s Epistrophy is a tune constructed with a four-note pattern that is angular and twisted. I wrote a solemn brass choir movement that is an epistle in nature, a sermon of sorts. The title of Monk’s In Walked Bud refers, of course, to the amazing pianist Bud Powell. I took the word walk and translated it into an andante. What resulted was a silly, but jolly movement featuring the woodwinds. I wanted to end the work with a fast and furious finale. Inspired by the word rhythm in Monk’s Rhythm-a-ning, I began the last movement with a solo for the percussion section – timpani, tom-toms, bass drum!!! The orchestra eventually joins in the mayhem, breaking into a scherzo-like frenzy. It ends with a big bang!!! Enjoy!!!Audio link: https://thomasoboelee.bandcamp.com/album/concerto-for-orchestra-opus-111-2005