String Quartet String Quartet - Level 4 - Digital Download SKU: A0.773330 Composed by Various. Arranged by Yoel Epstein. Christian,Contemporary,Jewish,World. Score and parts. 37 pages. Yoel Epstein #4285845. Published by Yoel Epstein (A0.773330). These six songs have become icons of remembrance of the six million Jews who died in the Holocaust. They are traditionally played on Holocaust Day, which is on the 28th day of the Hebrew month of Nissan in Israel, or January 27th in the rest of the world. Unter Dyne Vyse Shteren (Under the Starry Sky) was written by Avraham Sutskover, a leading Yiddish poet, while trapped in the ghetto of Vilna, in July 1943. Days before the ghetto was destroyed and all the Jews murdered, Sutskover escaped to the forest with his wife. He reached Russia, and in 1947 moved to Palestine. He died in Israel in 2010 at the age of 96. The poem was set to music by Avraham Brodna, a simple laborer in the Vilna ghetto who died in a concentration camp. Ani Maamin (I Believe): The words to this simple song are of the Jewish prayer I believe with perfect faith in the coming of the Messiah. The tune is attributed to Azriel David Festig, a leading Warsaw hazzan (cantor) who died in the Holocaust. The song was performed after the war by Rabbi Shaul Yedidia Eliezer Taub, the Admor (Rabbinical leader) of the Modzitz Hassidic sect, and has become the iconic song of the remembrance in the Hassidic community. Shtiller Shtiller (Hush Hush) was written by Alexander Volkovitzky, then a 12-year-old boy, in the Vilna Ghetto in the spring of 1943. Volkovitzky, who wrote the melody for a song contest organized to encourage the cultural life of the ghetto, eventually came to Israel where he (under the name Alexander Tamir) became a leading pianist and music educator. The words are by Shmerke Kacserginsky, a leading poet of Vilna, who later escaped the Holocaust and migrated to South America. Papirossen (Cigarettes) actually predates the Holocaust by 15 years. It was written by Yiddish actor and composer Herman Yablokoff in 1922 in Grodno, Poland. Yablokoff later immigrated to America, where he produced a musical Papirossen that incorporated the song. It was later made famous by the Barry Sisters, a Yiddish popular music group. Donna Donna was written by Shalom Secunda, with words by Aaron Zeitlin for the Yiddish musical Esterke in 1940. Though the song originally related to the 600-year-old legend of a Polish king who married a Jewess, it quickly became associated with the Holocaust because of its haunting message. The song has entered the popular folk repertoire, with canonical renditions by Joan Baez, Theodore Bikel, and many others.  Hatikva (the Hope) is Israel's national anthem. The words are by Naftali Zvi Imber, and the tune is a traditional eastern European tune.  You are welcome to try some of my other arrangements. In addition to the songs offered on this site (you can see them at http://www.sheetmusicplus.com/search?Ntt=Yoel+Epstein ), I have arranged three songs from the Holocaust, which I arranged and distribute for free on IMSLP. You can find them at http://imslp.org/wiki/Category:Ravpapa. If you need arrangements of any of these songs for special combinations of instruments, feel free to contact me, and I will try to accommodate. Write me at yoelepst@gmail.com. Hope you enjoy.  

String Quartet String Quartet - Level 3 - Digital Download SKU: A0.773332 Composed by Sutskover / Brodna. Arranged by Yoel Epstein. Christian,Jewish,Sacred,World. Score and parts. 10 pages. Yoel Epstein #4286147. Published by Yoel Epstein (A0.773332). This song has become an icon of remembrance of the six million Jews who died in the Holocaust. It is traditionally played on Holocaust Day, which is on the 28th day of the Hebrew month of Nissan in Israel, or January 27th in the rest of the world. Unter Dyne Vyse Shteren (Under the Starry Sky) was written by Avraham Sutskover, a leading Yiddish poet, while trapped in the ghetto of Vilna, in July 1943. Days before the ghetto was destroyed and all the Jews murdered, Sutskover escaped to the forest with his wife. He reached Russia, and in 1947 moved to Palestine. He died in Israel in 2010 at the age of 96. The poem was set to music by Avraham Brodna, a simple laborer in the Vilna ghetto who died in a concentration camp. This is one of four songs for Holocaust Remembrance Day that I have arranged for string quartet. The set of songs is available for download at https://www.sheetmusicplus.com/title/four-songs-of-the-holocaust-arranged-for-string-quartet-digital... The other songs areAni Maamin (I Believe): The words to this simple song are of the Jewish prayer I believe with perfect faith in the coming of the Messiah.  Shtiller Shtiller (Hush Hush) was written by Alexander Volkovitzky, then a 12-year-old boy, in the Vilna Ghetto in the spring of 1943. Hatikva (the Hope) is Israel's national anthem. The words are by Naftali Zvi Imber, and the tune is a traditional eastern European tune. You are welcome to try some of my other arrangements. In addition to the songs offered on this site (you can see them at http://www.sheetmusicplus.com/search?Ntt=Yoel+Epstein ), I have arranged three songs from the Holocaust, which I arranged and distribute for free on IMSLP. You can find them at http://imslp.org/wiki/Category:Ravpapa. If you need arrangements of any of these songs for special combinations of instruments, feel free to contact me, and I will try to accommodate. Write me at yoelepst@gmail.com.  Hope you enjoy.

String Quartet Cello,Double Bass,Piano,String Quartet,Viola,Violin - Level 3 - Digital Download SKU: A0.1376321 By Heidi Savoie. By Heidi Savoie. Arranged by Heidi Savoie. Classical,Contemporary,Jazz,Pop,Singer/Songwriter. 15 pages. Heidi Savoie #960865. Published by Heidi Savoie (A0.1376321). This score is an arrangement for piano, violin I and II, viola, cello, bass with optional drums.Backstory: Years ago I wrote a simple piano piece for my students. As instrumental music can fully exist outside the confines of words, it can be difficult to find the right title for something that is pure sound and possibility. I took inspiration from the time of year in which I had composed it and stamped it, “Almost May�. Like springtime in the Northern Hemisphere, “Almost May� unfolds slowly and majestically, with ever-evolving layers for the senses to discover. What to listen for: ThemeThe main theme is first presented by the piano with minimal fanfare. This part was written to be easy enough for a child, which despite being sparing of notes, delivers rich harmonic content. Every note has been carefully curated for the optimal combination of accessibility and depth. Weaving chromatically into distantly-related keys, the melody takes small steps into contrasting musical spaces. In a wordless procession, the storyline plays out, as if the theme discovers that someone very different lives next door, and they slowly become inseparable. The piano is accompanied by an airy touch of brushes against a snare drum, like the pitter patter of soft feline steps. In the low frequency range, the upright bass supports and deepens the tonal palette with its earthy underpinnings. What to listen for: Variation I The unmistakable string section arrives like a breath of warm air. Lush, warm and reassuring like sunshine on your cheeks, the string parts begin with long tones. This broadness and stability will evolve into more layers of complexity throughout the section. While the role of the string section is background accompaniment, it undergoes textural changes which allow for some layers to briefly rise to the forefront as melody. Careful listening to the string parts will reveal an oceanic churning, a motion from background to foreground with expansions and contractions along the way. Floating overtop this density is the improvised piano solo, with ascending gestures that progress in detail and density. Each instrument enters a general unfolding and growth period in the first variation. The bass and drums include more fills than before, as the ensemble tends gradually toward more grandeur. What to listen for: Variation II The final variation opens with a decadent treatment of the melody. What was initially expressed by a soloist as a childlike plea is reimagined as a two-part conversation between the piano and lead viola. The obbligato voiced in the viola is a derivation of the melody that holds the space between phrases so the listener's attention is passed seamlessly between the piano and viola part. This dialogue features commentary on the original melody in the form of ornamentation and taking surprising pathways to expected destinations. The rhythm section (bass and drums) takes more liberties in creating a verdant soundscape as the ensemble rises to a final climax. Credits: I would like to thank Cole Canaday for the nuance, imagination and depth of understanding with which he brought this piece to life. I would also like to thank Blake Hamilton and Anastace for providing invaluable audio engineering feedback.