Guadalcanal March (arr Leidzen)

Richard Rodgers

Subtitle: From Victory at Sea

General Info

Year: 1952
Duration: c. 2:45
Difficulty: (see Ratings for explanation)
Original Medium: Piano
Publisher: Williamson
Cost: Score and Parts – Out of print.

For availability information, see Discussion tab, above.

Instrumentation

Full Score
D-flat Piccolo
C Piccolo
Flute I-II
Oboe I-II
Bassoon I-II
E-flat Soprano Clarinet
B-flat Soprano Clarinet I-II-III
E-flat Alto Clarinet
B-flat Bass Clarinet
E-flat Alto Saxophone I-II
B-flat Tenor Saxophone
E-flat Baritone Saxophone
B-flat Cornet I-II-III
B-flat Trumpet I-II
E-flat Horn or Alto I-II-III-IV
Horn in F I-II-III-IV
Trombone I-II-III
Euphonium
Tuba
String Bass
Timpani
Percussion, including:

Bass Drum
Crash Cymbals
Snare Drum

Errata

None discovered thus far.

Program Notes

This march was taken from the score of Victory at Sea, a 1952 television series which was based on naval battles during World War II. The volcanic island of Guadalcanal, in the South Pacific, was the scene of the first large-scale U.S. invasion of a Japanese-held island.

The music was originally published for piano in 1952 by Williamson Music, Inc. (co-owned by Rodgers) and was arranged for band by Eric Leidzén in 1955. Rodgers's score for Victory at Sea was the first instrumental score conceived for television; having won the U.S. Naval Distinguished Public Service Award and a 1953 Emmy Award, it is still considered one of the best. With a performance time of 13 hours required for the entire series, it is also the longest, as noted in the Guinness 1984 Book of World Records. A nine-movement orchestral suite, arranged by Robert Russell Bennett, demonstrated that the score had both artistic and commercial merit -- record albums of the suite have produced over one million dollars in sales.

- Program Note from Program Notes for Band

Media

Audio CD: United States Marine Band (John R. Bourgeois, conductor) - 1992

State Ratings

None discovered thus far.

Performances

To submit a performance please join The Wind Repertory Project

Ventura County (Calif.) Concert Band (Julie Judd, conductor) – 12 November 2017
Gold Coast Wind Ensemble (Thousand Oaks, Calif.) – (Clint H. Hawley, conductor) – 10 April 2016
Fairfax (Va.) Wind Symphony (Stanley R. Schoonover, conductor) – 1 April 2016 (ACB 2016 Annual Convention (Pittsburgh, Penn.))
Nevada County (Nev.) Concert Band (Cheryl Woldseth, conductor) – 22 July 2007

Works for Winds by This Composer

Adaptable Music

My Favorite Things (Flex instrumentation) (arr. Buckley) (1959/2014)

All Wind Works

Bali Hai (arr. Yoder) (1949/1953)
Blue Moon (arr. Barker) (1937/1962)
Carousel: Highlights (arr. Yoder) (1945/1964)
Carousel: Selections (arr. Leidzen) (1945/1948)
Carousel Waltz (arr. Bennett) (1945/1957)
Cinderella Waltz (arr. Bennett) (1958)
Circus on Parade, The (arr. Warrington) (1935)
Do-Re-Mi (arr. Hoshide) (1959/1991)
Flower Drum Song (arr. Lang) (1958/1959)
Golden Age of Broadway, The (arr. Moss) (2009)
Guadalcanal March (arr. Bennett) (1952/1978)
Guadalcanal March (arr. Curnow) (1952/1989)
Guadalcanal March (arr. Leidzen) (1952)
If I Loved You from "Carousel"(arr. Werle) (1945/)
It's a Grand Night for Singing (arr. Brown) (1945)
Highlights from "Oklahoma!" (arr. Moss) (1943/1994)
Highlights from "Oklahoma!" (arr. Yoder) (1943/1954)
Highlights from "South Pacific" (arr. Lang) (1949/1958)
Highlights from "The King and I" (arr. Herfurth) (1951/1957)
Highlights from "The Sound of Music" (arr. Cable) (1959)
King and I, The, Selections (tr. Bennett) (1951)
Lady is a Tramp (arr. Hastreiter)
Manhattan (arr. Morrissey) (1925/1953/1959)
March of the Siamese Children (arr. Bennett) (1951)
My Favorite Things (arr. Jennings) (1959/1992)
My Favorite Things (Flex instrumentation) (arr. Buckley) (1959/2014)
Oklahoma! (arr. Bennett, adapt. Rodgers) (1943/1997)
Oklahoma!: Selections (arr. Leidzen) (1943)
Richard Rodgers in Concert (arr. Huff)
Richard Rodgers in Concert (arr Lowden)
Rodgers & Hammerstein's "Oklahoma" (arr. Edmondson) (1943/1982)
Salute to Richard Rodgers (arr. Ricketts)
Selections from "Carousel" (arr. Bennett) (1945)
Selections from "Carousel" (arr. Custer) (1945/1995)
Selections from "The Sound of Music" (arr. Christensen) (1959/1989)
Slaughter on 10th Avenue (arr. Lang) (1936/1954)
Slaughter on 10th Avenue (arr. Moss)
The Sound of Music -- Selections (arr. Bennett) (1959/1960)
The Sound of Music Medley (arr. Iwai)
South Pacific -- Highlights
South Pacific: Selection (tr. Leidzen) (1949)
South Pacific Symphonic Scenario (arr. Bennett; adapt. Rogers) (1949/1999)
Symphonic Highlights from "The King and I" (arr. Bulla) (1951/2016)
Themes from "Victory at Sea" (arr. Maltby) (1953/1975)
Tribute to Rodgers and Hammerstein (arr. Custer)
Victory at Sea Symphonic Scenario (tr. Bennett) (1954/1955)
Victory at Sea (arr Moss)
You'll Never Walk Alone (arr. Rhea) (1945/2018)
You'll Never Walk Alone (arr. Walden and VanDoren) (1945/2017)

Resources

Heritage Encyclopedia of Band Music. "Richard Rodgers." Accessed 11 April 2016
Rodgers, R.; Leidzen, E. (1952). Guadalcanal March : From Victory at Sea [score]. Williamson: New York.
Smith, Norman E. (2002). Program Notes for Band. Chicago: GIA Publications, pp. 512.
Victory at Sea. Wikipedia. Accessed 6 August 2023