Grandmother Song
From Wind Repertory Project
Contents |
General Info
Year: 2002
Duration: c. 3:00
Difficulty: II (see Ratings for explanation)
Publisher: BandQuest-distributed by Hal Leonard.
Cost: Score and Parts - $60.00 | Score Only - $5.00
Instrumentation
Full Score
Voice
Flute
Oboes
Bassoon
Bb Soprano Clarinet I-II
Bb Bass Clarinet
Alto Saxophone I-II
Tenor Saxophone
Baritone Saxophone
Horns in F
Trumpet in Bb I-II
Horns in F I-II
Trombone
Euphonium
Tuba
Timpani
Percussion I-II-III-IV, including:
- Bass Drum
- Cymbals (suspended)
- Glockenspiel
- Triangle
- Vibraphone
Errata
None discovered thus far.
Program Notes
Grandmother Song is an introduction to the Mohican tradition of “sung syllables” or what Native Americans call “vocables.” Combining them with traditional wood flute songs, composer Brent Michael Davids offers a fresh look at the sound of Native American songs. Band instruments are performed less as musical instruments and more as talking sticks, singing reeds, rustling winds and shooting thunder. Through this ballad, performers are given the materials to understand how Native Americans celebrate the world around them through the blending of words and song.
The most striking feature of Grandmother Song is the important role for the singing voice. Flute and vocal songs share an ancient and related history in Native American culture. The music introduces young performers to the customs of Native American singing style and traditional wood flute playing. The performers sing syllables called vocables throughout the music. Davids describes vocables as an inter-tribal form of communicating feeling in song. Singing these vocables within the written band music introduces student performers to the "sound" of Native American song, while challenging them with a good, contemporary band composition.
Program Note from Printed Score
Commercial Discography
None discovered thus far.
Audio Link
State Ratings
None discovered thus far.
Recent Performances
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Additional Works for Winds by this Composer
None discovered thus far.
Additional Resources
