Jargon

From Wind Repertory Project
Fisher Tull

Fisher Tull


Subtitle: After William Billings: For Percussion Ensemble and Symphonic Band

This work bears the designation QMB 410.


General Info

Year:1976 / 1980
Duration: c. 7:15
Difficulty: (see Ratings for explanation)
Publisher: Boosey & Hawkes
Cost: Score and Parts (print) - $76.53   |   Score Only (print) - $11.73

For further availability information, see Discussion tab, above.


Instrumentation

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

  • Bass Drum (small)
  • Bell Plate
  • Chimes
  • Crash Cymbal (medium and large)
  • Crotales
  • Marimba
  • Sleigh Bells
  • Suspended Cymbals (light and heavy)
  • Tambourine
  • Tam-tam
  • Temple Blocks
  • Timbales
  • Triangle
  • Whip
  • Wood Block


Errata

None discovered thus far.


Program Notes

Jargon is based on a hymn tune by the eighteenth-century American composer William Billings:

Let horrid Jargon split the air,
And rive the Nerves asunder,
Let hateful Discord greet the ear,
As terrible as Thunder.

One of the most striking things about this piece is its extra-large percussion section. Percussion instruments often dominate the texture of the music and provide important thematic material. The score even features a drawing of how to position the percussion instruments around the back of the ensemble, anchored on opposing front edges by a set of chimes on each side.

This piece was commissioned by Bob Rober, who played bass in one of the lab bands at North Texas with my father. They both contributed numerous arrangements to those bands. Bob later taught for years at a high school in Arlington, Texas – coincidentally named Sam Houston – and premiered Jargon with his band at a music festival in 1976. Rober’s band happened to have a robust and capable percussion section, inspiring my father to highlight their talents.

- Program Note by Tim Tull from liner notes from Klavier CD Fisher Tull


Media


State Ratings

None discovered thus far.


Performances

To submit a performance please join The Wind Repertory Project

  • University of Georgia (Athens) Honor Wind Symphony (Ricky Fleming, conductor) - 22 January 2023


Works for Winds by This Composer


Resources

  • Fisher Tull website Accessed 22 January 2023
  • Tull, F. (1976). Jargon: After William Billings: For Percussion Ensemble and Symphonic Band [score]. Boosey & Hawkes: New York.