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RUSSIAN CHRISTMAS MUSIC - Wheaton College
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A STANDARD IN THE CONCERT BAND REPERTOIRE, ALSO ONE OF THE MOST BEAUTIFUL PIECES. COMPOSED BY ALFRED REED WHO WAS COMMISSIONED TO WRITE A PIECE OF RUSSIAN MUSIC TO IMPROVE SOVIET-AMERICAN RELATIONS. WRITTEN IN 1944, A MERE 16 DAYS BEFORE THE CONCERT.
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Contemporary band compositions, classical music arrangements, marches, jazz, symphonies, overtures. A collection from bands that I have played in throughout hi
Hello and welcome! "Symphonic Band Performances" is a compilation of recordings from several high school and college bands that I played in including the TMEA (Texas) All State Band, the TMEA Region X All Region Band, the Interlochen Arts Academy National Music Camp, the Cal Poly Tech Band, San Luis Obispo, the USAF Golden West Band, and recordings from my h.s. band, Beaumont H.S. and a few band recordings that were passed down to me. Also included are various All State groups and college and university bands. I participated and played in the large majority of these recordings. There are no professional recordings here and every recording is Public Domain. Most are available for free download. Each song has been converted from the original analog or digital source and edited with Audacity or Dak software. In the majority of these recordings, I play the tenor sax or alto sax, b flat or e flat clarinet, or directing. I was drum major for 2 years in high school, I have a BA from Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo, where I studied music ed, composition and theory. I had about 500 more recordings I was planning to digitize and upload, but this past Nov. 20th, my home was completely destroyed by fire, and all the contents, including all my music and instruments. So, this is it. Please feel free to post a comment here or on my member page. If you like, please become a fan by clicking "I'm a fan" below.
Song Info
Genre
Classical • Symphonic
Charts
Peak #65
Peak in subgenre #19
Author
Alfred Reed - 1944
Rights
public domain
Uploaded
August 13, 2009
Track Files
MP3
MP3 18.4 MB • 192 kbps • 13:22
Story behind the song
PERFORMED IN 1976 BY THE WHEATON COLLEGE CONCERT BAND. WHEATON COLLEGE IS A CHRISTIAN LIBERAL ARTS COLLEGE, WITH A BIBLICALLY-ORIENTED PROGRAM, IN WHEATON, ILLINOIS. Russian Christmas Music is a musical piece for symphonic band, written by Alfred Reed in 1944. It is one of the most popular and frequently-performed pieces of concert band literature. Reed was commissioned to write a piece of "Russian music" for a concert in Denver, Colorado. The concert's aim was to improve Soviet-American relations; as such, it was to include premieres of new Soviet and American works. Prokofiev's March, Op. 99 was supposed to be the Russian work, but it was discovered that the work had already been performed in the United States, and Reed was assigned to write a new piece a mere sixteen days before the concert. The piece was first performed on December 12, 1944, on nationally-broadcast NBC radio. Although Russian Christmas Music consists of only one movement, it can be readily divided into four sections: The opening section, Carol of the Little Russian Children (approx. 3 minutes), is based on a 16th century Russian christmas carol. It is slow throughout; after a quiet opening by the chimes, contrabass clarinet, and string bass, the clarinets carry the melody. The other voices join in, and the section ends with a series of chords. The Antiphonal Chant (about 2 minutes) is faster and louder, with the melody initially carried by the trombones, horns, trumpets, and cornets. The woodwinds join in, and the music becomes more and more frenzied until the section ends loudly. The Village Song (about 5 minutes) is much gentler by comparison; the english horn has two solos, with soli in the flutes and a solo in the horns at the end of each. The piece enters a time signature of 6/4; the band plays a series of cantabile two-bar phrases back and forth between the woodwinds and brass, with the string bass playing long strings of eighth-notes, which are passed along to the bells. The song becomes quieter again, and the section ends with another English horn solo. The Cathedral Chorus (about 5 minutes) starts quietly, as the end of Village Song, but a crescendo in the trombones and percussion brings the rest of the band in majestically. The music builds to a climax, but then backs down for a final chorale in the woodwinds; the sound builds once again, and the piece concludes with a thundering chorale marked by liberal use of the chimes and tam-tam as well as soaring horn counterpoint. A typical performance of Russian Christmas Music lasts 14a??16 minutes. As it was written to convey the sounds of Eastern Orthodox liturgical music, which uses the human voice exclusively, the entire piece must be played with some lyrical and singing quality. Slavonic Folk Suite is Reed's arrangement of Carol of the Little Russian Children (here called Children's Carol) and Cathedral Chorus for a younger, less experienced band. The song is also the official corps song of the Crossmen. The piece was performed for the 2005 "Christmas with the Mormon Tabernacle Choir and Orchestra at Temple Square" concert arranged for full orchestra and choir (last section only), set as the accompaniment of a story revolving around a widowed man and his 8-year-old daughter in 1917 Siberia. The story was narrated by British actress Claire Bloom.
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