Irish Suite: The Irish Washerwoman

Leroy Anderson

Subtitle: From the Irish Suite

This work is the first movement of the composer's Irish Suite.

General Info

Year: 1953
Duration: c. 3:04
Difficulty: III (see Ratings for explanation)
Publisher: Alfred Music
Cost: Score and Parts - $75.00 | Score Only - $10.00

Instrumentation

Full Score
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
Horn in F I-II-III-IV
Trombone I-II-III
Euphonium
Tuba
String Bass
Timpani
Percussion I-II-III, including:

Bass Drum
Snare Drum
Crash Cymbals
Bells
Triangle

Errata

None discovered thus far.

Program Notes

The Irish Washerwoman, the first movement of Leroy Anderson’s Irish Suite, combines folk material with the composer’s own whimsicality. The score was commissioned by the Eire Society of Boston and carries a dedication to Arthur Fiedler, who conducted its first performance on June 6, 1947, at Symphony Hall in Boston. The complete suite includes six melodies which range from the nostalgic to the humorous, from the plainly sentimental to the purely exuberant. Although the melodies come from overseas, the brilliant Irish Suite is typical of Anderson’s nimble orchestration, ingenious charm, and happy inventiveness. This opening movement is a jig; brisk in tempo and gay in mood.

- Program Note from publisher

Media

Audio: Reference recording. Ensemble and conductor unknown

State Ratings

Louisiana: IV
Texas: IV. Complete

Performances

To submit a performance please join The Wind Repertory Project

Golden Gate Park Band (San Francisco, Calif.) (German Gonzalez, conductor) - 17 September 2023
Foothill Symphonic Winds (Palo Alto, Calif.) David Bruce Adams, conductor) - 12 March 2023
Bluewater Wind Ensemble (Sarnia, Ont., Can.) (Charles Dalmas, conductor) 20 October 2022
Tri-State Wind Symphony (Dubuque, Iowa) (Nolan Hauta, conductor) - 28 July 2022
Golden Gate Park Band (San Francisco, Calif.) (German Gonzalez, conductor) - 3 July 2022
Triton College (River Grove, Ill.) Community Band (Dana Legg, conductor) – 9 March 2020
Raleigh (N.C.) Concert Band (Lem Hardy, conductor) – 15 June 2019
Gold Coast Wind Ensemble (Thousand Oaks, Calif.) (Michael Doty, conductor) – 9 June 2019
Foothill Symphonic Winds (Palo Alto, Calif.) (David Bruce Adams, conductor) – 17 March 2019
Cascadia Wind Ensemble (Abbotsford, B.C.) (Shannon Goldsmith, conductor) – 10 March 2019
Central Michigan University (Mount Pleasant) Wind Symphony (James Batcheller, conductor) – 19 April 2018
United States Coast Guard Band (New London, Conn.) (Richard Wyman, conductor) – 18 March 2018
Peninsula Symphonic Band (Palo Alto, Calif.) (Ted Henderson, conductor) – 19 November 2017
University of Kansas (Lawrence) University Band (Sharon Toulouse, conductor) – 25 April 2017
Foothill Symphonic Band (Palo Alto, Calif.) (David Bruce Adams, conductor) – 12 March 2017
Atascadero (Calif.) Community Band (Garson Olivieri, conductor) – 5 March 2017
Lone Star Wind Orchestra (Dallas, Tex.) (Eugene Migliaro Corporon, conductor) – 6 March 2016
Amador County (Sutter Creek, Calif.) Concert Band (Irv Gidding, conductor) - 8 June 2013
Sacramento Symphonic Winds (Lester E. Lehr, conductor) - 6 April 2013 (ACB’s 35th Annual Convention (San Ramon, Calif.))
Rocky Mountain Wind Symphony (Colorado Springs, Co.) (Kenneth P. Soper, conductor) - 2013

Works for Winds by This Composer

Adaptable Music

Sleigh Ride (Flex instrumentation) (arr. Fernie) (1948/)
Sleigh Ride (Flex instrumentation) (arr. Torskangerpoll) (1948/2020)

All Wind Works

Belle of the Ball (1951)
Blue Tango (1951)
Blue Tango (arr. Ployhar) (1951/1980)
The Bluebells of Scotland (1954/1962)
Bugler's Holiday (arr. Edwards) (1954)
The Captains and Kings (1962)
China Doll (1951/1953)
A Christmas Festival (1950)
A Christmas Festival (arr. Smith) (1950/2007)
Clarinet Candy (1962)
Concerto in C for Piano and Symphonic Wind Orchestra (arr. Murschinski) (1953/2008)
Fiddle-Faddle (arr. Lang) (1947)
Forgotten Dreams (1954)
The Girl I Left Behind Me. See: Irish Suite: The Girl I Left Behind Me
The Girl in Satin (1953)
The Golden Years (1962)
Home Stretch (1962)
Horse and Buggy (1951)
Irish Suite: The Girl I Left Behind Me (1949)
Irish Suite: The Irish Washerwoman (1947)
Irish Suite: The Last Rose of Summer (arr. Wagner) (1950/2010)
Irish Suite: The Minstrel Boy (as arranger) (1947/1952/2009)
Irish Suite: The Rakes of Mallow (1947)
Irish Suite: The Wearing of the Green (arr. Wagner) (1947/2009)
Jazz Pizzicato (arr. Lang) (1938)
The Last Rose of Summer. See: Irish Suite: The Last Rose of Summer
Leroy Anderson, a Legacy in Sound (arr. Smith) (1991/2008)
A Leroy Anderson Portrait (arr. Barnes) (1982/2006)
Lullaby of the Drums (1970)
March of the Two Left Feet (orch. Boyd) (1969/2008)
The Penny Whistle Song (1951)
The Phantom Regiment (1951)
Pirate Dance (1962)
Promenade (arr. Lang) (1945/1948)
Promenade (arr. Wagner) (1945/2017)
Pyramid Dance (1960)
The Rakes of Mallow. See: Irish Suite: The Rakes of Mallow
Sandpaper Ballet (1954)
Selections from Leroy Anderson's "Irish Suite" (arr. Wagner) (1947/2011)
Serenata (1947)
Serenata (rev/ed. Rogers) (1947/2023)
Sleigh Ride (1948)
Sleigh Ride (Brass Ensemble) (arr. Fernie) (1948/2010)
Sleigh Ride (Flex instrumentation) (arr. Fernie) (1948/)
Sleigh Ride (arr. Mellema) (1948/)
Sleigh Ride (arr. Ployhar) (1948/1980)
Sleigh Ride (arr. Schwalgin) (1948/)
Sleigh Ride (Flex instrumentation) (arr. Torskangerpoll) (1948/2020)
Sleigh Ride (arr. Warner) (1948/2006)
Sleigh Ride (ed. Woodfield) (1948/)
Song of Jupiter (as arranger) (1952)
Song of the Bells (1953)
Suite of Carols for Brass (1955)
Suite of Carols for Woodwinds (1955)
Summer Skies (1953)
The Syncopated Clock (1945)
The Syncopated Clock (arr. Lang) (1946/1948)
The Syncopated Clock (arr. Schubert) (1946/1997)
Ticonderoga March (ed. Boyd) (1939)
A Trumpeter's Lullaby (arr. Lang) (1950/1978)
The Typewriter (arr. Heide) (1950/)
The Typewriter (arr. Werle) (1950)
The Waltzing Cat (arr. Lang) (1950)
The Wearing of the Green. See: Irish Suite: The Wearing of the Green

Resources

Anderson, L. (1953). The Irish Washerwoman: From The Irish Suite [score]. Mills Music: New York.
Coleman, Ronald O. "Irish Suite." In Teaching Music through Performance in Band. Volume 9, edit. & comp. by Richard Miles, 568-581. Chicago: GIA Publications, 2013.
Leroy Anderson website Accessed 14 May 2021