Category: Beginner/Youth Band Composer / arranger: Ron Gardner
Two small band arrangements especially written for young brass players.
Scored for Cornets, Eb.Horns, Baritone/Trombone, Euphonium/Bb.Bass, Eb.Bass and Percussion
Category: Beginner/Youth Band Composer / arranger: Peter Lawrance
Two small band arrangements especially written for young brass players. Scored for Cornets, Eb.Horns, Baritone/Trombone, Euphonium/Bb.Bass, Eb.Bass and Percussion
This invaluable method contains a specially written series of arranged works in a great variety of styles. Everything you could want for a concert selection!
Categories: Beginner/Youth Band, Books, Music of BRUCE FRASER Composer: Bruce Fraser
FOREWORD These studies are designed for Brass bands to use mainly at the start of rehearsals as a flexible way of warming up and developing various technical aspects of playing as a band or team. As in sports teams, the individual is not as important as the complete team, so many of these studies are designed to help the individual players within the band to think and play more as a team, which leads to improved performance.
Although there are percussion parts in the score, it will often be better to work with the brass on their own to allow them to hear really clearly. The complex role of the conductor - you are a manager, a director, an adviser, a shoulder to cry on, a decision maker (therefore, sometimes unpopular), a creator of positive thinking and many other facets. You are not a friend of the players and have to keep a professional distance like a teacher would with students. That does not mean to say that you must not be friendly. Some conductors like to indulge in a dictatorial approach and it has to be said that some players/bands do respond to that. Most conductors nowadays will have a positive approach, always looking for improvement.
You can develop the ability to harness the talents of your musicians and turn them into a more successful musical unit, through using the advice and exercises contained in this method. No method can claim to be 100% totally inclusive, but, using the ideas in this method, you can develop your own confidence and knowledge as a conductor and lead your team to higher musical achievement.
It is important to stress that really successful musicians will have spent a considerable amount of time (hours per day) practising what many players look on as boring exercises like long notes and lip slurring. If you can persuade your musicians to put in something approaching that kind of time through working at the studies in this book, and in home practice, you will find the control of the playing within the band improves.
STUDIES WARM - UP STUDIES STUDIES 1 -10 (without comments)
TUNING STUDIES The largest activity while playing an instrument should be listening to what the player sounds like and comparing that to others in the ensemble. Listening like this creates a team which will tend to play together and in tune. It is when players do not concentrate on listening that things begin to go wrong in ensemble and tuning.
STUDY 11: This study is to allow you or the players to judge a small group of notes against a reference note. The C from the solo cornet can be from one player or the whole section. Listen carefully to the unison, followed by the fourth below, then fifth and then the octave. These are good intervals to use as they sound very sour when not in tune.
STUDY 12: This study will expose the different tuning problems with the different instruments in the band. The problems will be due to the quality and make of the instrument, the inbuilt tuning problems of a particular instrument and also inconsistent playing by the musician. Examples are the low Don Comets which is usually sharp and has to be lipped down or flattened using a trigger. Quite often Band A have to be played on 3rd valve instead of 1&2.
STUDY 13: The first chord is likely to sound fairly well in tune being the home chord for most. Try to make the rest of the chords as well in tune by adjusting slides, alternative fingering or lipping.
STUDY 14: The interval of a fifth is usually easy to hear when it is out of tune as it sounds quite sour and takes on a resonant ringing sound when in tune. This study gives an opportunity to play really good fifths.
STUDY 15: This study uses fifths again to help develop the sense of in tune notes. Players can choose to play either upper or lower note at each pause. Aim to play all notes as well in tune as the first.
FLEXIBILITY STUDIES Spending time practising flexibility is a badly ignored activity for many amateur brass players. It tends to be very repetitive and players find themselves easily bored. However, it is a form of practice that the best players have spent many many hours of intense activity. Developing the control required to play really well demands that time be spent on flexibility work. It equates to the kind of repetitive exercises that sportsmen and women do to develop strength and flexibility in their muscles.
STUDY 16: The object is to start slowly and gradually flex the lips to gain really good control. It is important to make the slurs as clean as possible, and the discipline of having to make the slurs at the same time as everyone else will prove beneficial. It is worth thinking about the use of the lower jaw in assisting movement to lower notes. IF you ask players to hold a pencil in their teeth by its end and then move the pencil so that it points up, that it the lower jaw movement required to help the embouchure move to lower pitches.
STUDY 17: This study is stretching the speed of the two note slur.
STUDY 18: This study now adds a third note to the slur. Always aim for clarity. Players should memorise these and practise on their own.
STUDY 19: There are now four notes stretching the range. Remember the lower jaw movement when moving to the lower pitches.
STUDY 20: A fifth note is now added. STUDY 21: The five note slur is now made to work faster.
STUDY 22: This study can be used to compare the fiexbility between sections of the band.
STUDY 23: Further advancing the speed of the slurs. STUDY 24: This is a really good exercise to add in to personal practice.
STUDY 25: This adds in the sixth note for the more advanced players. These studies can be adapted by adding in pedal notes and extending the range upwards. There are great books of Flexibility Studies like the one by Charles Cohn for those wishing to develop further.
SOUND BALANCE STUDIES One large task for the conductor is to balance the sound of the band or ensemble. Composers often write a general level of dynamic but this has to be balanced out so that the musical ideas within a piece can be easily heard. An important consideration is the tessitura of the instruments. This basically means that brass instruments are strongest in their middle register, weaker in bottom register and often overblown in the top register. This creates an imbalance in what we are listening to if not considered. Within a melody on a single instrument is the balance of the melody controlled so that it is even? Within a passage for full band are the instruments adapting so that all notes are heard evenly and that the balance is correct? The human ear would prefer to hear a pyramid shape generally with the bass sound strongest and the top notes clear but not overblown.
STUDY 26: This first study gives the opportunity to contrast the different sections within the ensemble and make them play a consistent level.
STUDY 27: Pay attention to the marked dynamics to achieve your pyramid sound.
STUDY 28: Make sure that the dynamics are consistent when moving around the sections. There is only one dynamic in this study.
STUDY 29: The challenge to is to make the sound consistent in volume as the different sections come in and out.
STUDY 30: Take care with the dotted 8th note pattern, so that it sounds clear. Is the melody consistently even especially in the lower register? There will be a temptation to make a crescendo up to the high G in the last measure. Take care!
STUDY 31: Here we have a melody which travels through the registers, so it important to make it sound even. If you say nothing, the players might well play the melody so that each measure starts quiet and get louder towards to high note. You must make them play evenly so that the listener can hear what is written.
UNISON STUDIES Playing in unison exposes so many different things like differing articulation, poor intonation on certain notes. These are really good team building exercises as the players find success in playing them consistently together.
STUDY 32: Concentrate on unanimity around the band with everyone agreeing on articulation and tuning. Difficult areas like when there are C#s and G#s together, which pose different problems to different instruments.
STUDY 33: Make sure that the dotted 8th note rhythm is consistent and take care with crescendo diminuendo in terms of keeping pitch steady. Is everyone playing the same length of 8th note?
STUDY 34: Lots to keep the ears busy in this study. The problems arise mainly in the chromatic notes in adjusting tuning.
STUDY 35: Percussion essential in this one. All players have to pay careful attention to articulations.
STUDY 36: Because of the sharp key, there are likely to be some intonation problems to listen for. STUDY 37: There is a lot to take care of in this study, as every note has some articulation mark. Also the crescendo/diminuendo in measures 8 & 9 needs attention. The aim is to make sure that every player in the band is exact in the interepretation of note values and articulation. Although quite short, this will be a challenging study to achieve total accuracy.
STUDIES IN DYNAMICS The term DYNAMICS relates to the relative differences in volume within an ensemble. It has long been the style to write one dynamic for the entire group and it is then left up to the conductor to balance the ensemble. Nowadays, it is still a bit of a mixed picture with some composers writing a mix of dynamics at any one point and others being a bit more traditional. Regardless, the conductor has to look at the dynamics within a score and decide how they should be played according to his/her musical reading of the score.
STUDY 38: This study focuses on sudden changes of dynamic, so that the players are firstly intent on making these changes as well as the articulation markings. A common mistake is to play the single forte dynamic too loud, so that fortissimo is not effective. Another factor is that the pitch of notes will probably be affected during the long note crescendi and diminuendi, either going sharp or flat, so this is another control for the player. Finally, using your skills from the SOUND BALANCE section, you can make sure that your ensemble is properly balanced to your ears.
STUDY 39: This study requires careful preparation. You have to judge the relative volumes of mp, mf, f, and pp making sure that you are consistent throughout the study. Is the mp at the beginning the same as measure 13 for example?
STUDY 40: Keep in mind the relative levels and your players will need to be particularly careful in the subito drop to piano. All players must do it confidently and it would be worth isolating the two notes of forte then piano subito in Comets, Horns and Euphonium to make sure that all are playing the same way.
STUDY 41: This study poses the problem of sudden dynamic changes and the challenge of crescendo and diminuendo while keeping the pitch steady. Players tend to tighten embouchure during a crescendo making the note go sharp, and the opposite in diminuendo. Long note practice using crescendo and diminuendo concentrating on keeping pitch steady is required. Unfortunately, this is not exciting practice for players, but is an essential skill.
STUDY 42: This study looks at extreme contrast from fortissimo to pianissimo. Players will happily “blast” a fortissimo with poor sound and play far too loud for pianissimo as it is out of their comfort zone. Do not let the players play too loud, keeping sound quality in mind and force them to work harder to achieve a proper pianissimo. It makes such a difference if a band can achieve the really quiet levels of dynamic, giving that large contrast that is obvious in the best bands.
STUDY 43: It would be sensible to rehearse this study at a steady tempo to begin, and to give time for each player to be ready to make the dramatic changes in volume. Breathing is important at the end of measures 4/12 which are part of the crescendo towards to the fortissimo — there should NOT be a gap between measure 4 and 5/12 and 13, so players will have to stagger their breathing to achieve this. Make sure that crescendo/ diminuendo is even throughout the band, and then gradually increase tempo to one in the bar.
ARTICULATION STUDIES Articulation is the process of combining the airstream with the tongue movement and the embouchure. Often the tongue does too much in the production of the sound and these studies can be used to improve the quality of the articulation. Airstream — direct the players to breathe rapidly like a dog panting and feel the movement of their stomach muscles. Use this effect to blow a silent “hoo”. Next, try to produce a “buzz” on the lips without using the tongue. The result will often be just air followed eventually by a buzz. Persevere so that the lips respond quickly to the airstream to produce the buzz. Then do this with mouthpiece only and then into the instrument.
Playing all of these studies without using the tongue should demonstrate to the players that they are generally using too much tongue, and the result should be that, when the tongue is reintroduced, the articulation is cleaner and clearer. It is also an opportunity for players to discover the placing of the tongue for different attacks. “du” (soft tongue) places the tongue about the join of the gum and the teeth. “tu” (hard tongue) places the tongue directly on the teeth.
44: This study focuses on the different articulations of tenuto and staccato. If we look at the quavers/8th notes in bar/measure 1, the style of articulation should have a very slight gap between notes. The staccato notes should be short (half the value of the written note) and with a good quality sound. The tenuto notes should be very full value but articulated so that the rhythm can be heard. Compare the contrast in the echoes between top and lower part of band and try to get a consistent length of note.
STUDY 45: This study requires a light touch. The staccato notes could well sound unfocussed if made too short — make a good quality sound. Take care with the groups of 4 slurred notes that the 4er note is not played short.
STUDY 46: Players often make a very poor quality sound when attempting staccato. This is due to trying to play notes too short and without enough airstream. Try playing this study without tongue attack — each note has to be produced by the airstream and embouchure with a “hoo” kind of attack..
STUDY 47: A common error in slurring is to shorten the note at the end of a slur group. Sometimes this is required as in bar/measure 1. Ask players to copy the style of the melody when it is passed from one section of the band to another.
STUDY 48: The tempo of this must begin slowly and build to the marked speed. The aim is to hear all the notes. It is common for players to make these notes sound blurred and unclear. Players should be as careful as possible in gradually being able to play the notes faster — when it becomes unclear, take it slower again.
STUDY 49: Once players have become confident with the notes they should listen to the articulation from other sections of the band to try to make a consistent style. Look for consistency in note values, whether staccato or not.
TECHNIQUE STUDIES We are always impressed by those fantastic players who can play so fast and would like to be able to play like that. The most common possibly in amateur ensembles is that of rushing through groups of 16th notes so that they sound blurred. When you listen to top players, they make it sound so easy because you can hear all the notes. Take the trouble in these studies to make the running 16th notes sound really clear.
STUDY 50: Do start working on this one at a steady pace and all should listen for really clear even 16th notes. As you increase the tempo, do not lose the clarity.
STUDY 51: This study requires a light touch and it is important to be consistent in note lengths in all sections.
STUDY 52: The first main challenge is to achieve the octave leaps without hitting anything in between. Begin slowly and gradually increase the tempo. Make sure that the dynamic is even between the octaves.
STUDY 53: This study tests single tonguing of triplets. Begin slowly and build the tempo always listening for clarity. This could also be used for triple tonguing (du-du-gu)
STUDY 54: This study challenges players to make the slurred and tongued notes as even as possible. Again, begin slowly and gradually build the tempo.
STUDY 55: Use alternative fingering to help the flow of the triplet slurs eg Horns play A on 3rd in measure 1. Begin slowly, always listening for clarity.
STUDY 56: Although this study is notated to be tongued, it would also be useful as a slurring exercise. Remember that clarity is essential.
RHYTHM STUDIES Rhythm is at the heart of all our music. There are two basic tasks — firstly to play the pattern of notes and secondly, to play them with style. STUDY 57: In this study, firstly practise to master the rhythm patterns and secondly, find the style through the use of marked accents on off beat and syncopated notes. STUDY 58: The challenge in this study is to keep the feeling of the 16th notes constant. There will be a temptation to make the rest at the beginning of the groups of four 16th notes too long. Take the tempo slowly to begin and make sure that everyone is counting carefully and accurately. You could try playing sections against each other competitively to improve confidence.
STUDY 59: A light touch is required. This is the rhythm of the “Golliwog’s Cakewalk’ by Debussy. It requires a bouncy style to be effective.
STUDY 60: There are lots of opportunities for players to play in the wrong place in this study. Confidence in the rests and syncopation will come with repetitive playing. Singing through the study, as in many of the studies in this book, can bring confidence when the actual blowing of the notes is removed.
STUDY 61: The trickiest rhythm is the dotted 8th note followed by the 16th note. A common error is to play the dotted note so long that the 16th note cannot be heard. Be careful not to make the dotted note too short, but just long enough so that the rhythm can be heard clearly.
STUDY 62: This is an example of TANGO. The feature is a military sounding beat, with an accent usually on the last 8th note or last 4er note in the measure. The ensemble has, of course, to be very tight and precise.
STUDY 63: This is an example of RUMBA. The feature is in the rhythm of the Claves and a rocking rhythm between Bass and accompaniment under a flowing melody.
STUDY 64: We now make an approach to SWING rhythms. Traditionally Swing 8th notes were written as straight 8th notes, but also as dotted 8th followed by 16th. This causes a confusion in the reading and you can still find examples which have a mixture of both of these. The study is set out in three measure section which can be repeated at will. Play the contrast between measures 1-3 with measures 4-6. Measure 7-9 look like 1-3 but have been marked as SWING, so should be player like 4-6. Measure 10-12 look different but should sound the same as 4-6 and 7-9. Measures 13-15 show how a mixture is sometimes used so that measure 14 and 15 should sound the same. Measures 16-18 should sound the same as 19-21. Qnce you get over the mixof notation used it is very IMPORTANT to listen to good performances of swing music to really get the “Feel” of the style.
METER STUDIES These studies reflect the many changes of meter which have appeared throughout the twentieth century. An important point to bear in mind that the changing time signatures have a common pulse running through them, usually 8th notes. For example, a work might change from 3/4 to 5/8 to 4/4 to 7/8. The constant facto will be that the 8th notes are running 1&2&3& 112345 I 1&2&3&4& 11234567 I When conducting the 5/8 and 7/8 measures, first establish if they are grouped 2+3 or 3+2 for the 5/8 and 3+2+2 or 2+2+3 for the 7/8 (unusually it might be 2+3+2). Your beat which has the three grouping will be longer than that of the two grouping.
STUDY 65: Firstly you have to manage the changing quarter note time signatures. As you move through measures 7 & 8, you must feel the 8th note movement and continue that into the 5/8 bar. The triangle above the score is conductor short hand for the beat which contains the three 8th notes, and the arrow is for the beat which contains the two 8th notes.
STUDY 66: As you beat through the 3/4 measures feel the 8th note movement to prepare for the 5/8 measures. Make sure that you are familiar with the music before conducting it.
STUDY 67: Take care with the change from 6/8 to 3/4 so that the 4er notes are worth two 8th notes. This is the famous “Huapango” rhythm from Bernstein’s “America” from West Side Story. STUDY 68: The beat pattern is down, right, up with the third beat being the extended beat. It is important for players and conductor that the 8th note movement is felt during the sustained notes. Listen to Percussion if being used. STUDY 69: It is now time to attempt faster tempi. Keep the beat small so that the pulse does not drag. Remember to count out the 8th notes in the 3/8 measures. STUDY 70: Lots of changes in this study. Make sure that you are comfortable with the study in private before attempting to conduct it. Remember that the 8th note movement must be constant throughout.
DISSONANCE STUDIES Dissonance is where the combinations of pitches creates a sound which is “unpleasant” to the ear. Historically, there are combinations of pitches which we find more attractive and are called “consonant”, like major and minor chords. The dissonant sounds come from combining notes which do not belong to the basic chords. Listeners enjoy dissonance when it is resolved to consonance generally and we call that resolution. Players often shy away from dissonance because it sounds out of tune and it often is. Therefore, good intonation is important and is covered in the TUNING STUDIES. STUDY 71: This study focuses on the semitone and major 7th. It is vital that you achieve a good balance between notes that are a semitone apart, and that they are really in tune. STUDY 72: This study features the major 7th and the augmented 4th/flattened 5th. Again, tuning and balance is essential to achieve the correct result. STUDY 73: This study introduce a common technique used by composers of polychords — chords placed on top of each other eg in measure 4 where the chord of F sustains above the Eb chord. Balance is essential so that no note is more dominant than others. STUDY 74: This study shows how chords can be extended into 7ths, 9th, liths and l3ths, by adding notes moving up in thirds. Make sure that the balance is good with no note too dominant. STUDY 75: Note clusters are where adjacent notes are played together. The opening bars are concerned with notes of the diatonic scale next to each other, moving on to notes of the chromatic scale. Balancing all notes, particularly in the chromatic section is quite tricky as every note is as important as the next.
CANON STUDIES A Canon is where a melody is repeated by other voices after a number of beats to create a polyphonic effect. The effect can be very dissonant or consonant depending on the gap between the repetitions of the melody.
STUDY 76: The comets lead with the first statement of the melody. Aim for clarity, so that each line can be heard.
STUDY 77: The low end of the band begin and, as with the previous study, it is important to try to keep each melodic line clear.
STUDY 78: This is more complicated as there is a bass line and off beat accompaniment as well as the melody and the task is to keep the clarity.
STUDY 79: The time signature will possibly distract the players from listening to the clarity of the lines, so it is important for them to feel relaxed and comfortable with the rhythms.
STUDY 80: The question of balance comes into this study as there is an accompaniment, which is important to be heard but it must be behind the melody lines of the canon.
FANFARE STUDIES Fanfares are traditionally played at ceremonial occasions, often connected with royalty and played by military musicians on outdoor instruments like trumpets and trombones.
STUDY 81: This study looks at a standard fanfare rhythm with blocks of sound being passed around the band. There is a quiet reflective section in the middle leading back to the opening statement. 16th notes should be crisp and very clear. All accented notes should be given their full value without gaps between them.
STUDY 82: This study features triplets and again has blocks of sound being passed around. The triplets should sound rhythmical with a slight lean on the first of each group of three.
STUDY 83: AS with the other fanfares, this does rely on percussion to give the full effect. Keep the 16th notes crisp and unrushed..
STUDY 84: Players must feel confident in this tfrne signature, as must the conductor. The beat grouping is 3 and 2, so beat as follows as along an imaginary table top in front of you. Beat one in middle, two slightly to left, three more to the left, four to the right and five then is your upbeat. Do try to keep your beat within quite a small space so that players can see it easily. Practise this beating away from the band so that you can be relaxed doing it in front of them. If you are unsure, it transmits to the players and makes them tentative.
STUDY 85: It will be easy to lose a sense of where the pulse is in this study, so it is important to establish the sense of syncopation in Horns and Baritones. You can achieve this by making sure that Comets are pulsing their groups of 4 by slight accenting the first of each. The same applies when the 16th notes are played by the lower end of the band.
STUDY 86: This is a complex study and it is important to build up the various rhythms separately to build individual confidence. Rehearse the top of the band to achieve consistency in 16th note articulations and that all notes can be heard. Do not allow players to be lazy with fingering — clarity is important. Separately rehearse the triplet figures. Make sure that the notes are full value and no gaps between notes. Also, listen to check that the triplets are even. In measure 6 and others, make sure that the 16th note in the low instruments match the 16th notes in the upper sections. Make sure that the bass end play the 16th notes crisply and even in measure 13 onwards.
SCALES - All of our music is based on scales and most top players will tell you how valuable it is to practise scales. !
Category: Beginner/Youth Band Composer / arranger: Salvation Army
A very popular series with young bands. The music is written by leading composers; and arranged in a progressively graded format. The parts correspond to standard vocal music :
CONTENTS
Brass Music For Young Bands
1. Hymn Tune Arrangement – “ ST. PETER” - Stanleyl Ditmer 2. Hymn Tune Arrangement – “ WITH JOY” - Thomas Mack 3. Song Arrangenent - “HAPPY PEOPLE” - Thomas Mack 4. Carol Arrangement — "IN A MANGER" - Thomas Mack 5. Chorus Feature - "THREE FRIENDS" - James Curnow 6. Hymn Tune Arrangement - "MONKLAND" - Stanley Ditmer 7. Hymn Tune Arrangement - "LAUDES DOMINI" - Stanley Ditmer 8. Selection - "THE CROWNED SAVIOR" - Stephen Buila 9. March - "KEARNY YOUTH" - Stephen Bulla 10. Song Arrangement "HAND ME MY TRUMPET" - Ivor Bosanko 11. March — "CHEERFUL COURAGE2 Ronald Holz 12. Suite - "PLAY, PRAY, AND PRAISE" - William Himes 13. Spiritual — "JUST A CLOSER WALK" - Eiliv Herikstad 14. Concert March — "POWERFUL AND FREE" - Bruce Broughton 15. Selection — "HEAVENLY SOUL-SHINE" Terry Camsey
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