(Correlates ith String Exlorer, ook 1, nit 9) Grade Level: 1½ Shee May Safely Graze Johann Sebastian ach Arranged by Andre H. Dabczynski n s t r u m e n tat i o n Conductor Score... 1 Violin... 8 Violin... 8 Violin (Viola )... 3 Viola... 5... 5 String ass... 5 iano Accomaniment... 1 A ne and elcome treatment of one of ach s most memorable orks. Sensitively arranged for young orchestra, the gentle essence of ach s original aria is maintained hile all the sections of the orchestra have an oortunity to lay the rich melodies and counteroint. Concert audiences and students alike ill be touched by the lyricism and musicality of this iece, yet it is remarkably uncomlicated to rehearse and erform. Here is an arrangement that almost lays itself, all ith a eaceful sirit that your beginning students ill surely remember long after the concert is over. revie Only Legal se Requires urchase A DVSON O lease note: Our band and orchestra music is no being collated by an automatic highseed system. The enclosed arts are no sorted by age count, rather than score order.
rogram notes n 1716, the great German aroque comoser Johann Sebastian ach (1685 1750) as emloyed as a musician and comoser for Duke Ernst Wilhelm in the court at Weimar. ach as asked to comose a secial iece to mark the 53rd birthday of the Duke s good friend, Duke Christian von Sachsen-Weissenfels. The birthday as to be celebrated ith a large hunting arty folloed by a banquet and musical entertainment. ach resonded ith his Cantata 208 (a cantata is a large ork for chorus, soloists and orchestra erformed ithout staging). t as the first cantata that ach rote that as not focused on a church theme, and became knon as the Hunting Cantata. Nearly 0 minutes in length, it as one of ach s longest cantatas, almost a one-act oera. The ork featured four characters in a Greek setting. One of the characters is ales, goddess of the flocks, ho sings a haunting sorano aria titled Schafe können sicher eiden ( Shee may safely graze hen a good sheherd kees atch [and] good rulers govern ). This serene aria has become one of ach s most recognized orks. t conveys a aroque vision of astoral simlicity, earthly beauty, and eace that resonates ith listeners even today. notes to the conductor The essential beauty of J.S. ach s Shee May Safely Graze lies in the oignant joining of the rimary aria melody ith an exquisite countermelody. All of this is enhanced by the ork s marvelous ground bass line and edal foundation. The arrangement begins ith the countermelody resented in thirds in the violins (in the lace of the original flutes) over a bass edal tonic. The violas and celli maintain an inner heartbeat-like accomaniment that rovides a rhythmic ulse as ell as harmony. Note that the reeated quarter notes in this voice should remain very steady henever the figure aears. The notes may be layed searately, or ith a gently-searated hooked boing attern (don-don, u-u). The main melody aears at m.9 in the three loer voices, ith the violins no taking over the rhythmic/harmonic function. Roles are reversed at m.17 hen the violins comlete the second half of the theme. At m.28, the countermelody attern returns from the beginning. Violins restate the rimary melody at m.36, ith the other instruments serving the rhythmic accomaniment. The second half of this melody is then stated by the violas and celli, ith the violins simultaneously erforming the countermelody, all over a rich bass line. The arrangement closes ith the same melodic material ith hich it began, enhanced this time by a final fading ritardando. revie Only Legal se Requires urchase
CONDCTOR SCORE Duration - 2:10 Violins Viola (Violin ) String ass iano Accomaniment (Vln. ) iano Accom.?????? Moderato (Œ = 112) * * Moderato (Œ = 112) Shee May Safely Graze 1 2 Johann Sebastian ach Arranged by Andre H. Dabczynski (ASCA) 3 8 9 9 * * 9.... 5 revie Only Legal se Requires urchase 6 7 * Alternate boing for searate quarter note atterns ( Œ Œ Œ Œ ) - - - - È È Coyright 2008 by Highland/Etling ublishing, a division of Alfred ublishing Co., nc. All rights reserved. rinted in SA. 10 3
(Vln. ) iano Accom. (Vln. ) iano Accom.??? 17 11 n n?? 17 n?.. 12 a. a 13.... 1 15 16 revie Only Legal se Requires urchase 17 18 19 20 21 22
5 (Vln. ) iano Accom. (Vln. ) iano Accom.??? 23 28?? 28? 2... 25 26... 27 revie Only Legal se Requires urchase 28 29 30 31 32
6 (Vln. ) iano Accom. (Vln. ) iano Accom.?????? 33 3 35.. 36 36. 36... 37 revie Only Legal se Requires urchase N, 38 39 * Alternate boing for searate quarter note atterns ( Œ Œ Œ Œ ) - ÈÈ - - - 0 1 2 3
7 (Vln. ) iano Accom. (Vln. ) iano Accom.?????? n n n.. 5 a a a 1 6. 7... 8 revie Only Legal se Requires urchase 9 50 51 52 53
8 (Vln. ) iano Accom. (Vln. ) iano Accom.??????.. 5 55 55 59 f f 55 60 56 rit. rit. 61 57 62 58 revie Only Legal se Requires urchase 63