SKU: A0.1284108

What's This? is a song from the film, The Nightmare Before Christmas sung by Jack as he is exploring Christmas Town as he discovers something the citizens of Christmas Town do differently than the citizens of Halloween Town do differently. A reprisal of the song was sung when Santa made it snow in Halloween Town.

SKU: H1.C6028ODP

Words by William Dix. Luke 2.

Original Christmas ballad with words by William Dix This Christmas ballad by Joel Raney takes a fresh approach to an old carol by pairing the familiar text with a new, original tune. All three verses are incorporated with the middle verse using the carol GREENSLEEVES, but in common meter. This is the title selection from Joel's top-selling cantata from 2015, What Child Is This (#8661). Orchestrations: Conductor's Score, Flute, Oboe (or Soprano Sax or Clarinet), B-flat Clarinet, Horn in F (or Also Sax or Clarinet), 2 Trumpets (or Alto SaX0, 2 Trombones (or Baritone T. C. or Tenor Sax), Percussion 1 & 2, Piano, Synth, Electric Bass, 2 Violins, Cello/Bassoon (or Bass Clarinet)and String Reduction.

SKU: A0.525335

What a Wonderful World is a song written by Bob Thiele (as George Douglas) and George David Weiss. It was first recorded by Louis Armstrong and released in 1967 as a single, which topped the pop charts in the United Kingdom, though it performed poorly in the United States because Larry Newton, the president of ABC Records, disliked the song and refused to promote it. After appearing in the film Good Morning, Vietnam, the song was re-released as a single in 1988, and it rose to number 32 on the Billboard Hot 100.Armstrong's recording was inducted in the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1999. This arrangement is for vocal and orchestra.

SKU: A0.1301805

This Is What Falling In Love Feels Like | JVKE

About the Piece
JVKE's ability to use samples and strings has pushed him to be one of the ones to watch. The way of focusing on sounds to articulate true feelings such as the one this song showcases will help push him to begin thinking more creatively and venture into incorporating even more interesting elements within his pop discography.

About the Composer

From the breathtaking landscapes of New Zealand, Ken weaves melodies and harmonies that captivate and transport listeners to another realm. Specialising in screen composition, and versatile jazz renditions, each piece is a unique auditory experience, meticulously crafted to resonate with the soul. Whether you're seeking a composition that tells a profound story or a vibrant jazz chart that dances with energy, Scores by Ken promises unparalleled originality and precision in every note.

SKU: A0.1018921

Fugue: Wear Pearls and Smile is, on the outset, a fast, rambunctious adventure for many voices playing at the same time. It was conceived as a pairing for the equally vivacious second symphony of Ludwig van Beethoven–his 250th birthday is this year–but can stand on its own as one of my hardest, most challenging works to cook up.

This piece is dedicated to those forced to appear positive when internally they’re falling apart. The title is inspired by a quote that’s been with me for a while, Why is it that men can be bastards and women must wear pearls and smile? by Lynn Hecht Schafren, the celebrated American jurist famous for campaigning for gender equity in courts. I’m taking the quote out of its initial context, but the power of that quote, for me, exemplifies how hard it is to maintain a sense of emotional decorum and dignity when you’re authentically a hot mess. And what’s more of a musical hot mess than a fugue?

There are two realities to this piece. I’ll quote Dmitri Shostakovich, from his autobiography: The rejoicing is forced, created under threat, […] It’s as if someone were beating you with a stick and saying, ‘Your business is rejoicing, your business is rejoicing,’ and you rise, shaky, and go marching off, muttering ‘Our business is rejoicing, our business is rejoicing.’ On the one hand, it is insincere happiness, cloying perhaps. But the other truth, I’ll quote Oscar Hammerstein II, from The King and I: While shivering in my shoes / I strike a careless pose / And whistle a happy tune / And no one ever knows, / I'm afraid. I forced myself, against all impulses of my current being, to forge happiness. This piece, with its origin being a mental puzzle (fugues are puzzles), it became a construct where I could lift myself up and regain a sense of purpose. Therefore, it is invented–out of a literal need to survive–pure, genuine happiness.

Future Performances: If you are interested in performing this work, please e-mail me.

ABOUT THE COMPOSER:

Benjamin Sajo (b. 1988) is a Canadian composer of contemporary classical music, as well as an educator. Since developing a fiercely independent creative voice upon the completion of his studies at Western (2010) and McGill Universities (2013), he continues to find inspiration from the intersection of mythology, art, and nature upon the contemporary human experience. In 2019, he released his premiere album of original music, The Great War Sextet: Canadian War Poetry with Trombone & Strings , with support from the Ontario Arts Council. He is a member of SOCAN and the League of Canadian Composers.

SKU: A0.1018872

Programme Notes:

 Icarus Also Flew takes its title from the first line of the poem Failing and Flying by Jack Gilbert. He is referring to the classical myth of Daedalus and Icarus, an inventive father and son who bravely escape from their imprisonment in a tower by collecting the disposed feathers of seabirds, then fashion wings out of them and fly away. While the story is often treated as a morality tale--listen to your elders, don’t get cocky like the young man, Icarus, who, in such an understandable state of elation, ascended too close to the sun thus causing the wings to melt and his tumbling to his Mediterranean death--what Jack Gilbert reminds us is how regardless of one’s failure, the sheer transcendental experience of mortal flight remains glorious and unforgettable. Icarus’s fall was not into a legacy of disdain and oblivion, but in truth, he had come to the end of his triumph.

 This piece was the first of a series I composed during the Covid-19 quarantine conditions of 2020, to serve as potential contemporary preludes for each of Ludwig van Beethoven’s nine symphonies--his two hundred and fiftieth anniversary was this year!--though they can all stand on their own on any program. The connection, in this case, is with his celebrated fifth symphony in C minor--the Fate symphony, as it is commonly known. I’ll let the listener find their own connections.

About the Composer:

Benjamin Sajo (b. 1988) is a Canadian composer of contemporary classical music, as well as an educator. Since developing a fiercely independent creative voice upon the completion of his studies at Western (2010) and McGill Universities (2013), he continues to find inspiration from the intersection of mythology, art, and nature upon the contemporary human experience. In 2019, he released his premiere album of original music, The Great War Sextet: Canadian War Poetry with Trombone & Strings, with support from the Ontario Arts Council. He is a member of SOCAN and the League of Canadian Composers.