Three Georgian Vignettes

From Wind Repertory Project
Robert Sheldon

Robert Sheldon


General Info

Year: 2008
Duration: c. 5:10
Difficulty: III (see Ratings for explanation)
Publisher: Alfred Publishing
Cost: Score and Parts (print) - $75.00; (digital) - $75.00   |   Score Only (print) - $10.00


Movements

1. Heron and the Hummingbird - 1:50
2. The Crows Are in the Corn - 1:45
3. Brer Rabbit Falls Down the Well - 1:35


Instrumentation

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

  • Bass Drum
  • Bells
  • Crash Cymbals
  • Snare Drum
  • Suspended Cymbal
  • Tambourine
  • Triangle
  • Xylophone


Errata

None discovered thus far.


Program Notes

Treat your students and audiences to colorful tales and delightful musical imagery. This charming suite gives a musical depiction of fables drawn from southern folklore. You'll hear the stories of The Heron and the Hummingbird, The Crows are in the Corn and Brer Rabbit Falls Down the Well.

- Program Note from publisher


Three Georgian Vignettes was commissioned by the University of Georgia Band, Athens, Georgia, F. David Romines, Associate Director, for the 2006 MidFest Middle School Honor Band. The composition is a three‐movement suite in which each movement provides a musical depiction of a fable drawn from Georgian folklore.

The first movement, The Heron and the Hummingbird, is a tale in which the two birds argue over who shall have the fish in the river to eat, and decide to have a race in which the winner gets all the fish. The hummingbird gets so far ahead that he stops to rest and enjoy the nectar of the flowers along the way, while the heron never stops his ponderous flight and eventually reaches the finish of the race first – explaining why to this day the herons eat the fish and the hummingbirds drink the nectar.

Crows in the Corn is a typical way that folks in Georgia say that it is time to wake up. The fable tells of a farmer and his wife who decided to sleep late, ignoring the warnings of the creatures in the barnyard that the crows are in the corn! By the time they eventually rolled out of bed all the corn was gone...

The final movement depicts the story of Brer Rabbit Falls Down the Well. Brer Rabbit and some of his other friends were working in the garden when he decided to fake getting a thorn in his paw so the others would suggest he go wash it in the well, but instead of washing his paw, he crawled into the bucket to take a nap and leave the others to do the work. But the bucket suddenly plunged to the bottom of the well and the bucket of water in the bottom just as quickly flew to the top! Brer Fox was suspicious of Brer Rabbit and followed him to the well, watching him disappear. When the rabbit didn’t return he called down the well to see what the rascal was up to. The rabbit decided to play a trick on the fox by telling him of the huge quantities of fish at the bottom of the well, and asked him to come down to help him carry them out. When the fox plummeted to the bottom of the well in the bucket, the rabbit just as quickly rose to the top and ran off laughing, leaving the fox to wait for the hunter to stop by for a drink in order to escape, providing he was fast enough to get away before the hunter could reach his gun!

- Program Note from score


Media


State Ratings

  • Georgia: IV
  • Mississippi: V-A
  • Oregon: III-A


Performances

To submit a performance please join The Wind Repertory Project

  • University of Minnesota (Minneapolis) Gold Campus Band (Shaun Evans, conductor) – 24 October 2019
  • Whitewater High School (Fayetteville, Ga.) Symphonic Band (John Roberts, conductor) – 2 May 2019
  • University of South Alabama (Mobile) Symphony Band (Jason Rinehart, conductor) – 19 November 2018
  • Daytona Beach College summer music workshop (Robert Sheldon, conductor) – 20 June 2008


Works for Winds by This Composer

Adaptable Music


All Wind Works


Resources