| Listen | Score | Title | Scoring | Dur. | Year |
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Glockenspiel March | concert band | 2’30 | 1968/97 |
| Order This» | Sprightly, simple, honest, fun, old-fashioned gazebo novelty march. Big start, contrasts of choirs, soft-shoe sandpaper break, reprise given to the 3 glockenspiels (or bell lyras). Playfully pompous “I Love Lucy/Til Eulenspiegel” ending. | Notes» | |||
| LIFE’S A DREAMBOAT | concert band, opt. narrator | 34′ | 1970-79 | ||
| Order Full Work» | “Every Person’s Guide to the Band”, solo variations and wacky cosmic finale. Good for community or school audiences. | ||||
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I. Lifeboat Variations | concert band, opt. narrator | 22′ | 1970-80 |
| (MIDI-no narration) | Introduction and series of accompanied show-off variations, one for each different instrument or section, on a popular round (Row Your Boat). Wide range of styles and moods, quiet end (or use opt. loud/fast coda from the finale). Optional terse narration between movements; narrator or conductor may also lead an audience sing of the theme round before the piece starts. 3 (opt.) quick sound-making demos in intro. | Narration» | |||
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II. Cornucopia of Rounds | concert band | 12′ | 1976-80 |
| Order this Mvt.» | (studio) | Wild extreme-variation finale, making a chopped salad out of 7 different rounds presented in different keys, through every kind of distortion, manipulation, and agglomeration. Huge cosmic ending. (No narration) | |||
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Prime Time (Toccata Brillante) | concert band | 11′ | 2000 |
| Order This» | Bright, brash showpiece in 11/8 built on a fast down-leaping ostinato tattoo, with soaring melodies, crazed-canon variations, sleep cycle, big band jazz breakdown, full reprise, and prankster ending. | ||||
| Full score | |
PRINCIPLES (mixed chorus) | Chorus (SSAATTBB), baritone voice solo, concert band | 32′ | rev 2010 |
| Order This» | Secular oratorio, tuneful, populist, rousing, on themes of liberty, social justice, and religious freedom from Founding Father Thomas Jefferson. Accessible, thinking-person’s patriotic music. Texts: His creed, Statute of Virginia for Religious Freedom, Declaration of Independence, epitaph, letters. Mixed chorus version. SEE CHORAL for piano/vocal score and sound samples | Notes» | |||
| Full score | |
PRINCIPLES (men’s chorus) | chorus (men’s TTTTBBBB), baritone voice solo, concert band (symphonic wind ensemble), or piano w/opt. percussion (6) | 32′ | 1993-4 |
| Order This» | Secular oratorio. Male chorus version written for the Singing Sgts. of the USAF band, DC. SEE CHORAL for piano/vocal score | Notes» Lyrics» |
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(MIDI) | 1. I Have Sworn | 4′ | ||
| Brilliant ringing opening, hortatory middle in polymeters on the evils of forced false religions; big unresolved cadence. | |||||
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(MIDI) | 2. Our Civil Rights | 3′ | ||
| Bitter, dignified solo elaboration of the relationship between religious choice and civil rights. Choral echos. Grim ending. | |||||
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(MIDI) | 3. The Opinions of Men | 2′ | ||
| Serious, energetic repudiation of government control of opinion. | |||||
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(MIDI) | 4. We Do Enact | 4′ | ||
| Pure choral, gentle psalm/prayer-style statement of the Statute. | |||||
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(MIDI) | 5. The Truth is Great (fugue) | 2′ | ||
| Tight, lively, chromatic rhetorical fugue on Truth. (Possible a cappella.) | |||||
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(MIDI) | 6. Rebellion to Tyrants | 2′ | ||
| Shay’s Rebellion letter, solo recitative. | |||||
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(MIDI) | 7. We Hold These Truths | 6′ | ||
| Taut, dramatic setting of the salient parts of the Declaration of Independence with brave, strong, inspiring conclusion, bright joyous brass tattoo outburst after “sacred honor”. | |||||
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(MIDI) | 8. Here Was Buried | 1′ | ||
| Solemn unison recitative over pedal tone, on his self-penned epitaph. | |||||
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(MIDI) | 9. All Eyes Are Opened | 8′ | ||
| Populist, revival-style exhortation to remember and honor the Principles of the Declaration. Several band interludes, drum section break. Big peroration on the refrain, “All Eyes are Opened to the Rights of Man,” skyrocket ending. | |||||
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Siege | concert band | 8’30 | 1969 |
| Order This» | Lyrical, dark, moody, dramatic tone poem, modern-tonal, two themes, using the full resources of the band. Episodes suggesting the night siege of a medieval fortress–today this would be videogame battle music! Form builds from slow rising contrapuntal tension in full band through energetic challenge in the brass, night watch, stealthy undermining and breach, sudden attack and glorious victory, and tragic quiet lament with a slow bitter ending. (Transcription of orchestral version.) | ||||
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Spring Rondo | concert band | 8′ | 1971 |
| Order This» | Lively, colorful, euphonious, fast-dancing, rhythmic, varied rondo form with changing polymeters and a hot ending. (Band scoring of the Brass Rondo) | Notes» | |||
| BAND TRANSCRIPTIONS | |||||
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Bach, Sinfonia, Cantata 29 | Clarinet 1, 2 section soli/band. Key of Eb | 3’30 | |
| Order This» | Bach himself transcribed the brilliant perpetual motion Preludio (in E) to his Third Partia for solo violin as an organ solo (in D), fleshing out an accompaniment for his standard festive orchestra (strings, oboes, trumpets, timpani) to create this wonderful Sinfonia. This transcription gives the solo organ part to the clarinet and flute/piccolo sections, the organ pedals and orchestra parts to the band. It is based on the original manuscripts. Key of Eb. | ||||
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Bach, Sinfonia, Cantata 29 | Marimba (or xylophone) solo/band. | 3’30 | |
| Order This» | Band transcription with marimba (or xylophone, or duet) on the solo part. Key of D. | ||||
| (Full Band Score) | |
Beatles, SERGEANT PEPPER Medley | TTBB chorus, var. soli, band (ALSO WITH COMBO, SEE CHORUS PAGE FOR P/V SCORE) | 16′ | 1971 |
| Request This» | Fun transcription medley from the Beatle’s amazing first concept album. Created for and premiered by the USAF Band and Singing Sergeants, Col. Arnald D. Gabriel, Commander/Conductor | ||||
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1. Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts’ Club Band | ||||
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2. With a Little Help From my Friends | ||||
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3. Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds | ||||
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4. It’s Getting Better All the Time | ||||
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5. She’s Leaving Home | ‘ | |||
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6. When I’m 64 | ||||
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7. Lovely Rita Meter Maid | ||||
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8. Sgt. Pepper Reprise | ||||
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9. A Day in the Life | ||||
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Contemporary classical music for Concert Band – a collection of band works by composer David Avshalomov (including an oratorio with band and some transcriptions), with sound files and scores.