Snowman, The
Howard Blake (arr. Littlemore)
General Info
Year: 1982 / 2013
Duration: c. 26:00
Difficulty: (see Ratings for explanation)
Publisher: Studio Music
Cost: Score and Parts (print) - £129.95 | Score Only (print) - £35.00
Instrumentation
Full Score
C Piccolo
Flute (min. 4)
Oboe (min. 2)
Bassoon (min. 2)
B-flat Soprano Clarinet (min. 6)
E-flat Alto Saxophone (min. 2)
B-flat Tenor Saxophone
E-flat Baritone Saxophone
B-flat Trumpet (min. 2)
Horn in F (min. 2)
Trombone (min. 2)
Euphonium
Tuba
String Bass
Piano
Harp
Timpani
Percussion I-II, including:
- Bell Tree
- Bells
- Cabasa
- Clashed Cymbals
- Claves
- Glockenspiel
- Sleigh Bells
- Snare Drum
- Suspended Cymbal
- Tambourine
- Tam-Tam
- Triangle
- Vibraphone
- Vibra-slap
- Xylophone
Errata
None discovered thus far.
Program Notes
The Snowman is a children's picture book without words by English author Raymond Briggs, first published in 1978 by Hamish Hamilton in the U.K. In the U.S. it was named to the Lewis Carroll Shelf Award list in 1979. The book was adapted into a 26-minute animated television special in 1982 which debuted in Britain on 26 December. It was nominated for an Academy Award. Its showings have since become an annual event.
A boy builds a snowman one winter's day. That night, at the stroke of twelve, the snowman comes to life. He and the boy play with appliances, toys and other bric-a-brac in the house, all while keeping quiet enough not to wake the boy's parents. The two go for a ride on a motorbike, disturbing many animals. Later they take flight over the boy's village, then the Royal Pavilion and Brighton Pier, and then out over the ocean. They continue through an arctic landscape and into the aurora. They land in a snow-covered forest and join a party of snowmen. They meet Father Christmas with his reindeer, who gives him a scarf with a snowman pattern. The morning after the return journey, the sun has come out and the boy wakes up to find the snowman has melted. The boy reaches into his pocket and finds the snowman scarf given to him by Father Christmas.
- Program Note from Wikipedia
Media
(Needed - please join the WRP if you can help.)
State Ratings
None discovered thus far.
Performances
To submit a performance please join The Wind Repertory Project
- Triangle Wind Ensemble (Cary, N.C.) (Evan Feldman, conductor) - 11 December 2022
- University of Minnesota Morris Symphonic Winds (Simon Tillier, conductor) - 30 November 2022
- Triangle Wind Ensemble (Cary, N.C.) (Evan Feldman, conductor; Gerry Cobley, narrator; Alex Brito-Vysotsky, soprano) - 12 December 2021
- Triangle Wind Ensemble (Cary, N.C.) (Evan Feldman, conductor) – 15 December 2019
- The Philharmonic Winds (Singapore) (Dianne Jackson, conductor) – 30 December 2017
- West Chester (Penn.) University Wind Ensemble and The Kennett Symphony Children's Choir (Andrew Yozviak, conductor) – 21 February 2016
Works for Winds by This Composer
- Concert Dances (1988)
- Sinfonietta for Brass (1981/2004)
- The Snowman (arr. Littlemore) (1982/2013)
- Theme from "The Snowman" (arr. Barnwell) (1982/1997)
- Walking in the Air from "The Snowman" (arr. Barnwell) (1982/1997)
Resources
- Heritage Encyclopedia of Band Music. "Howard Blake." Accessed 21 February 2016
- The Snowman, Wikipedia Accessed 21 February 2016