String Quartet, String Orchestra - Early Intermediate - Digital Download Composed by Various. Arranged by Colin Kirkpatrick. Christian, Sacred, Praise & Worship, Christmas. Score, Set of Parts. 61 pages. Published by Colin Kirkpatrick Publications

String Quartet Cello,String Quartet,Viola,Violin - Level 4 - Digital Download

SKU: A0.1491580

Composed by Traditional. Arranged by James M. Guthrie. Chamber,Christmas,Historic,Holiday,Traditional. 13 pages. Jmsgu3 #1068280. Published by jmsgu3 (A0.1491580).

Here We Come A-Wassailing is a traditional English Christmas carol with roots that likely extend back to the mid-19th century, if not earlier. The exact authorship of the carol is unknown. The song is associated with the tradition of wassailing, which involves going door-to-door singing in exchange for food and drink. This practice predates Christianity and was part of mid-winter celebrations. The term wassail originates from the Anglo-Saxon greeting waes hael, meaning be in good health. This greeting evolved into a toast, with one person saying was hail and another responding drinc hail while passing around a communal bowl of a drink made from mulled ale or mead, spices, and apples, known as wassail. Wassailing has two primary forms: one that occurs post-Christmas, often associated with Twelfth Night, and another that takes place before Christmas. The latter involves singing carols and sharing wassail from a bowl. At the same time, the former includes rituals to encourage fertility in orchards, such as singing to trees and offering cider-soaked toast. The carol Here We Come A-Wassailing has several variations, including Here We Come A-Caroling and Here We Come A-Christmasing, each with different lyrics but similar themes of merriment and well-wishing for the New Year.

String Quartet String Quartet - Digital Download

SKU: A0.548632

Composed by Gruber. Arranged by James M. Guthrie, ASCAP. Christmas. 7 pages. Jmsgu3 #3400587. Published by jmsgu3 (A0.548632).

Silent Night arranged for string quartet with a re-harmonized final verse.

Silent Night

Origins

Father Joseph Mohr wrote the lyrics for a new Christmas Carol. He wanted the new carol for his Christmas Eve Mass. With only a couple of hours until the service, He asked organist and schoolteacher Franz Gruber to write a melody and simple accompaniment to accompany the lyrics. The result is probably the most famous Christmas carols – Silent Night.

First Performance

Perhaps because the organ was undergoing repairs or to ensure the accompaniment was easy enough, Mohr asked Gruber to write it for the guitar. Mohr played the guitar, and Mohr and Gruber gave the world premiere performance at the Christmas Eve Mass in 1818 at St. Nicholas Church in Oberndorf in Salzburg.

Original Score

Eventually, the original score became lost, and Mohr's name was largely forgotten.  Though the public initially recognized Gruber as the composer, many people began rumors that a more famous composer was responsible over time. Thus, they floated the names of Haydn, Mozart, and even Beethoven. Authorities eventually settled the matter when a manuscript in Mohr’s handwriting turned up in 1820. Consequently, we learn that Mohr wrote the lyrics in 1816, and Gruber composed the melody in 1818.

Popularity

Nonetheless, Silent Night is still very popular. Singers have performed this song in nearly every genre and multiple languages. Perhaps the most famous version is the one Bing Crosby crafted. This version is the third best-selling physical single recording in the history of recorded music. This recording was released in 1935 and sold at least 30 million copies.

Only two songs have ever sold more. Elton John released Candle in the Wind 1997 and sold 33 million copies. The record for most copies ever sold goes to Bing Crosby. He released White Christmas in 1942 and sold 50 million physical copies.

 

 

 

Concert Band - Level 4 - Digital Download

SKU: A0.742741

Composed by Various. Arranged by Randy Calistri-Yeh. Folk,Holiday,Patriotic,Traditional. Score and parts. 401 pages. Custom Chamber Music #350874. Published by Custom Chamber Music (A0.742741).

2nd edition - new and improved.

Volume 1 of our Patriotic collection contains four classic patriotic tunes and three complete Sousa marches. Altogether this has seven songs and over 14 minutes of music that both you and your audience are sure to love. Each song is also available separately from the publisher link above.

These arrangements can be played with anywhere from 3 to 7 parts, with a great deal of flexibility in instrumentation. This makes it ideal for bands of all types (school, community, or professional). This is one of the most versatile collections you'll ever use!

The songs included in Volume 1 are:
The Star-Spangled Banner (US National Anthem), by John Stafford Smith.
America the Beautiful, by Samuel Ward.
Battle Hymn of the Republic (Mine Eyes Have Seen the Glory).
My Country, 'Tis of Thee (America, known as God Save the King/Queen in England).
Stars and Stripes Forever, by John Philip Sousa.
Washington Post March, by John Philip Sousa.
Semper Fidelis, by John Philip Sousa.

Each song is in its original key, so it is easy to combine these with your own choir or piano/organ parts. The difficulty level ranges from medium-easy to medium-advanced. The arrangements respect the original style of the composers while greatly expanding the instrument flexibility.

This collection contains a full score, as well as individual parts in all the appropriate clefs and transpositions to support the following ensembles:
Brass trio, quartet, quintet, and sextet.
Woodwind trio, quartet, quintet, and sextet.
String trio, quartet, quintet, and sextet.
Clarinet trio, quartet, quintet, and sextet.
Saxophone trio, quartet, and quintet.
Mixed trio, quartet, quintet, and sextet (all with optional percussion).
Wind ensemble, brass ensemble, string orchestra, full orchestra, and full band.

The parts are described as follows:
Part 1: Main melody. Piccolo, Flute, Oboe, Bb Clarinet, Soprano Saxophone, Bb Trumpet, Violin, Viola.
Part 2: Main harmony, possibly some B-section melody. Bb Clarinet, Alto Clarinet, Alto Saxophone, Bb Trumpet, Violin, Viola.
Part 3: Other harmony. Bb Clarinet, Alto/Bass Clarinet, Alto/Tenor Saxophone, French Horn, Bb Trumpet, Trombone, C/Bb Euphonium, Violin, Viola, Cello.
Part 4: Main bass line. Bass Clarinet, Baritone Saxophone, Bassoon, Trombone, Bass Trombone, C/Bb Euphonium, Tuba, Cello, Bass.
Part 5: Other harmony. Bass Clarinet, Baritone Saxophone, Bassoon, Trombone, Bass Trombone, C/Bb Euphonium, Tuba, Cello, Bass.
Part 6: Main melody down an octave, with some additional notes. Bass Clarinet, Bassoon, French Horn, Trombone, C/Bb Euphonium, Cello, Bass.
Part 7: Optional percussion (snare drum, bass drum, cymbal) that can be added to any of the above combinations, or skipped entirely.

We recommend the following combinations:
Trio: Parts 1, 2, 4 (#4 works better than #3 for trio).
Quartet: Parts 1, 2, 3, 4.
Quintet: Parts 1, 2, 3, 4, 5.
Sextet: Parts 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6.
Septet: Part 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7.

Be sure to also check out our three volumes of Christmas Carols for All!

String Quartet Cello,String Quartet,Viola,Violin - Level 3 - Digital Download

SKU: A0.1312368

Composed by John Jacob Niles. Arranged by Joel Jacklich (ASCAP). Chamber,Christmas,Folk,Holiday,Traditional. 11 pages. Joel Jacklich #901221. Published by Joel Jacklich (A0.1312368).

I Wonder as I Wander by John Jacob Niles is here arranged by Joel Jacklich (ASCAP) for voice and string quartet.

� Wonder as I Wander nis a Christian folk hymn, typically performed as a Christmas carol, written by American folklorist and singer John Jacob Niles. The hymn has its origins in a song fragment collected by Niles on July 16, 1933.[1][2][3][4][5]

While in the town of Murphy in Appalachian North Carolina, Niles attended a fundraising meeting held by evangelicals who had been ordered out of town by the police.[1][5] In his unpublished autobiography, he wrote of hearing the song:

A girl had stepped out to the edge of the little platform attached to the automobile. She began to sing. Her clothes were unbelievable dirty and ragged, and she, too, was unwashed. Her ash-blond hair hung down in long skeins. ... But, best of all, she was beautiful, and in her untutored way, she could sing. She smiled as she sang, smiled rather sadly, and sang only a single line of a song.[2]

The girl, named Annie Morgan, repeated the fragment seven times in exchange for a quarter per performance, and Niles left with three lines of verse, a garbled fragment of melodic material—and a magnificent idea.[2][5] (In various accounts of this story, Niles hears between one and three lines of the song.[2][4][5][6]) Based on this fragment, Niles composed the version of I Wonder as I Wander that is known today, extending the melody to four lines and the lyrics to three stanzas.[2][3][5] His composition was completed on October 4, 1933.[2] Niles first performed the song on December 19, 1933, at the John C. Campbell Folk School in Brasstown, North Carolina.[2][6] It was originally published in Songs of the Hill Folk in 1934.[4][6]

References
1. Bradley, Ian. The Penguin Book of Carols. Penguin (1999), p148. ISBN 0-14-027526-6.
2. Pen, Ron. I Wonder as I Wander. A Kentucky Christmas (George Ella Lyon, editor). University Press of Kentucky (2003), p200–201. ISBN 0-8131-2279-1.
3. Studwell, William E. The Christmas Carol Reader. Haworth Press (1995), p111. ISBN 1-56024-974-9.
4. Emmons, Shirlee & Wilbur Watkin Lewis. Researching the Song: A Lexicon. Oxford University Press (2006), p242. ISBN 0-19-515202-6.
5. Niles, John Jacob. I Wonder as I Wander. Archived 2006-03-25 at the Wayback Machine John-Jacob-Niles.com.
6. Stulken, Marilyn K. With One Voice: Reference Companion. Augsburg Fortress (2000), p25. ISBN 0-8066-3843-5.

Program Notes from Wikipedia.

String Quartet String Quartet - Digital Download

SKU: AX.00-PC-0000073_VN3

3rd Violin (Viola [TC]). Arranged by Edmund J. Siennicki. Instructional. Part. 12 pages. Alfred Music - Digital Sheet Music #00-PC-0000073_VN3. Published by Alfred Music - Digital Sheet Music (AX.00-PC-0000073_VN3).

UPC: 038081002743.

A four volume collection of arrangements from grade 3 string quartets. Contains music from the Baroque and Classical eras as well as folk melodies and Christmas carols. A great way to introduce young string players to chamber music playing. Titles: Suite for Strings * Little Fugue, Handel * Baroque Fugue * Sonatina, Lichner * Two Pieces, Pleyel * Allegretto, Pleyel * Quartet in G, Stamitz.

String Quartet String Quartet - Digital Download

SKU: A0.749830

Composed by Evelyn R. Larter. Arranged by Evelyn Larter Music. Christian,Christmas,Concert. Score and parts. 10 pages. Evelyn R Larter #3630085. Published by Evelyn R Larter (A0.749830).

This is a set of supplemental string quartet parts for the beautiful Austrian carol, arranged in slow Jazz ballad style, but not intended for stand alone performance. It is from a set of international carols commissioned by clarinetist Lydia Calhoun for her CD, Carols for the King from Around the World, released in 2015. For more advanced performers, this perennial favorite is suitable for Christmas concerts and church preludes or offertories; it can be taken at either a moderate or a slower tempo, and is around 5 minutes in length. Those musicians who purchased Volume Two of the clarinet collection, or the solo version for cello and piano may be interested in adding strings to their performances.  See also the full score for clarinet, string quartet and piano, and for cello, string quartet and piano. The MIDI recording is of the clarinet version. More carols from the set will be made available in due course. For more information on my music, please visit www.evelynlartermusic.com or my Facebook page for Evelyn Larter Music.

String Quartet String Quartet - Level 4 - Digital Download

SKU: A0.836707

Composed by Brian Joyce. Christmas,Contemporary. Score and parts. 67 pages. Brian Joyce #3226073. Published by Brian Joyce (A0.836707).

What’s Christmas without a few toys?

Here is a new suite of older carols for string quartet in which each musician is required to play a wee bit of percussion in addition to his or her real instrument. The potential for entertaining visual theater is nearly as high as the potential for mishap. (If all goes according to plan, nothing should actually go airborne.)

This is something of a sequel to my earlier Christmas quartet And Therefore Be Merry, which has never been out of print since it was first published over twenty years ago. But where that work was a continuous medley, this is a set of independent and more fully developed movements, each able to stand on its own.

As mentioned above, each member of the quartet is responsible for a small item of percussion. These are all things which could readily be found in a local school band room: a triangle, a tambourine, a suspended cymbal - played with a soft (yarn) stick - and a small frame drum, played with the bare hand.

These are all earlier, earthier carols than what one typically finds on the radio or playing over the speakers at the mall. They include Gloucestershire Wassail, Riu Riu Chiu, Angelus ad Virginem, The Sans Day Carol, The Wexford Carol, and Masters in This Hall. Being perhaps less familiar, they bring a welcome respite from the overworked seasonal fare we all hear a bit too much of each year. They speak of simpler times, and of a far less frantic approach to Christmas. These fresh and inventive arrangements will make a useful addition to a quartet’s repertoire, provided the players have the requisite spirit of adventure.

Score and Parts total 67 pages. Performance time is about 14 minutes.

String Quartet, String Orchestra - Early Intermediate - Digital Download Composed by Various. Arranged by Colin Kirkpatrick. Christian, Praise & Worship, General Worship, Christmas. Score, Set of Parts. 67 pages. Published by Colin Kirkpatrick Publications

String Quartet Cello,String Quartet,Viola,Violin - Level 3 - Digital Download

SKU: A0.505505

Arranged by The Chapel Hill Duo. Christian,Christmas,Sacred. Score and parts. 9 pages. The Chapel Hill Duo #3908909. Published by The Chapel Hill Duo (A0.505505).

The Chapel Hill Duo’s series of Christmas arrangements features traditional carols and popular Christmas themed songs arranged for violin and cello and now also for String Quartet. Unlike most arrangements of traditional carols, the Chapel Hill Duo have used their expertise to develop these carols into unique pieces each with their own artistic merit. Each arrangement is a full-length work, not just 32bars! Many of the arrangements incorporate Jazzy twists and take influences from folk music and pop music as well as utilising exciting virtuosic instrumental techniques.

As full-length arrangements, the Chapel Hill Duo’s Christmas series is perfect for educational purposes such as teaching and workshops and has the potential to be used as part of School concerts, for Christmas parties and as encores in seasonal concerts.

Suitable for intermediate to advanced musicians, these arrangements could be used as a seasonal project for young students or as repertoire for more advanced musicians.

In 2015 the Chapel Hill Duo recorded their own versions of these arrangements, you can buy the album ‘A Traditional Christmas’ at https://chapelhillduo.bandcamp.com/releases and most other online distributors.

Itunes: https://itunes.apple.com/gb/album/a-traditional-christmas/1053382349

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/album/2O8vN7BcTK7hCvpqoaROgS

For more information please visit www.ChapelHillDuo.co.uk.

Or get in touch on Facebook or Youtube at www.Facebook.com/ChapelHillDuo and www.Youtube.com/TheChapelHillDuo

 

String Quartet String Quartet - Level 4 - Digital Download

SKU: A0.505502

By The Chapel Hill Duo. By Tradtional. Arranged by Sarah James & Jaya Hanley of The Chapel Hill Duo. Christmas,Folk,Jazz,Sacred. Score and parts. 14 pages. The Chapel Hill Duo #3908935. Published by The Chapel Hill Duo (A0.505502).

The Chapel Hill Duo’s series of Christmas arrangements features traditional carols and popular Christmas themed songs arranged for violin and cello and now also for String Quartet. Unlike most arrangements of traditional carols, the Chapel Hill Duo have used their expertise to develop these carols into unique pieces each with their own artistic merit. Each arrangement is a full-length work, not just 32bars! Many of the arrangements incorporate Jazzy twists and take influences from folk music and pop music as well as utilising exciting virtuosic instrumental techniques.

As full-length arrangements, the Chapel Hill Duo’s Christmas series is perfect for educational purposes such as teaching and workshops and has the potential to be used as part of School concerts, for Christmas parties and as encores in seasonal concerts.

Suitable for intermediate to advanced musicians, these arrangements could be used as a seasonal project for young students or as repertoire for more advanced musicians.

In 2015 the Chapel Hill Duo recorded their own versions of these arrangements, you can buy the album ‘A Traditional Christmas’ at https://chapelhillduo.bandcamp.com/releases and most other online distributors.

Itunes: https://itunes.apple.com/gb/album/a-traditional-christmas/1053382349

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/album/2O8vN7BcTK7hCvpqoaROgS

For more information please visit www.ChapelHillDuo.co.uk.

Or get in touch on Facebook or Youtube at www.Facebook.com/ChapelHillDuo and www.Youtube.com/TheChapelHillDuo