Top 10 Lists for Secondary Bands and Orchestras Middle School Band Among the Clouds Brian Balmages FJH $80 Grade 3 (MBDA 2013 List) This piece is challenging to play expressively while staying in tune A Childhood Hymn David Holsinger Wingert Jones $45 Good for teaching smooth, legato style while playing soft; not a lot of percussion; need solid horn players Aztec Erik Morale FJH $70 Areas to work on independence and intonation; staccatos, releases, and articulation; diverse percussion section Chester Variations Elliot Del Borgo Hal Leonard $45 Great for teaching chorale style with legato, phrasing, and breath support; introduces theme and variation form Grant County Celebration Mark Williams Alfred $48 Good for teaching syncopation; call and response in woodwind and brass; accents; octaves and tuning; change of meter and tempo; road map of D.C. al fine Symphonette for Band Frank Erickson Bourne Co $38.50 a hard grade 2 Teaches suite style; vastly extends range, especially in clarinet; 3 part clarinet and trumpet splits Dance Celebration Robert W. Smith
Alfred $50 An easy grade two, good for a musically weaker group; has repeated layers and ostinatos Two British Folk Songs Elliot Del Borgo Hal Leonard $50 Introduces British style of music; 2 movements Korean Folk Song Rhapsody arr. James Curnow Hal Leonard $50 Features the pentatonic scale; round The Steppes of Russia Elliot Del Borgo Shawnee Press $65 Grade 3 (MDBA 2013 List) Good festival piece because the range isn t too challenging and a desireable tone quality is more easily achieved; the students enjoy it Middle School Orchestra Canon in D Pachelbel, arr. Caponegro Kendor Music Inc. $48 Bass and cello intonation work; pushes violins; students like to play this popular tune Two Selections by Handel arr. Caponegro Kendor Music Inc. $32 Good transition from grade 2 to 3; water music and the minuet; baroque style teaching; first and second ending Eclipsys Sean O Loughlin Carl Fischer $40 Challenging parts in violin and viola; good use of accents; nice tonality which the kids love (Irish fiddle music); interesting cello and bass Quintus Larry Clark
Carl Fischer $40 Spiccato bow; good transition piece to grade three; D.C. al Coda; viola and cello with melody Star Dancer Mark Williams Alfred $42 Important accents; pizzicato to arco; staggered entrances Crystal City March Mark Williams Alfred $42 Key change; need to not rush pizzicato Dramatic Essay Mark Williams Alfred $42 Need strong cellos; good piece to push from grade 2 to 3 Dance of the Tumblers Rimsky-Korsakov, arr. Dackow Tempo Press $65 Good classical piece; use of spiccato bowing Russian Sailor s Dance Gliere, arr. Allen Hal Leonard $30 Theme and variations; good challenge on a more classical piece Solstice Larry Clark Carl Fischer $50 Moves group up from grade 2 well; spiccato bowing; two sixteenths followed by 8 th note; hooked bows; second violins, cellos, and viola are equal to the violin 1 part with melody Band (High School) Prelude, Siciliano, and Rondo Malcolm Arnold Carl Fischer $110
Straight forward piece in three movements that allows for work on unison tuning; the piece has a lot of energy. Bali Michael Colgrass Carl Fischer $90 Utilizes a diverse percussion section and is very challenging Sky is Waiting Samuel Hazo Hal Leonard $85 Very energetic piece using a lot of percussion; moves a lot and has a catchy melody Nilesdance David Holsinger TRN $90 More rhythmically driving and keeps you on your toes First Suite in Eb Gustav Holst Boosey & Hawkes $115 Fun for students but offers many challenges (wide range); has good contrast in three movements Second Suite in F Gustav Holst Boosey & Hawkes $95 Very similar to the first suite; range is what makes it a 5, and intonation is a challenge English Folk Song Suite Ralph Vaughan Williams Boosey & Hawkes $95 Fun and challenging piece that is motivating with contrasting sections; nothing here is too exposed October Eric Whitacre Hal Leonard $95 Huge with expression; washes of sound are created instead of layered voices; achieves
different timbres of sound Amazing Grace Frank Ticheli Hal Leonard - $98 Grade 5 (MBDA List 2013) Various tonal centers, forces students to listen for intonation, Copland-esque tonality A Movement for Rosa Mark Camphouse Carl Fischer $110 Grade 5 (MODA 2012 List) Very challenging piece, has many solo sections, requires strong players High School Orchestra Concertino for String Orchestra Samuel Adler Schirmer $30 First movement only; a well constructed piece that is not an arrangement; Orange Jam Jeffrey Bishop Kjos $45 Lots of fun and full of good teaching possibilities with extended technique The Bringer of Joy (Based on Jupiter from the Planets) Gustav Holst, arr. Phillippe Alfred $40 beautiful open tone; kids respond well to simple but tasteful melodies Palladio Karl Jenkins Hal Leonard $40 Grade 5 (MODA 2012 List) First movement only; moves quickly with syncopation and kids love it Gigue Fugue J. S. Bach, arr. Doan Ludwig-Masters $35 Grade 5 (MODA 2012 List) Baroque stylings, requires a great deal of focus on the articulation of notes Serenade for Strings Tchaikovsky, arr. Chase
Lake $24 Beautiful arrangement that kids love Folk Tune and Fiddle Dance Perry Fletcher Boosey & Hawkes $65 Fantastic piece for this level; has both dance-like and lyrical elements Snowflake Yukiko Nishimura Carl Fischer $45 Beautiful melodies that are great for tone development; short piece for less proficient groups Bio Rhythms Richard Meyer Alfred $48 Fun piece for building counting confidence and experimenting with percussive sounds Plink Plank Plunk Leroy Anderson Alfred $59 Fun holiday piece that gets kids in the season spirit