Folk Dances

From Wind Repertory Project
This work has been identified for inclusion in the Small Band Repertoire Initiative. You may find discussion of the work's challenges and merits under the Discussion tab above. You may also contribute your own thoughts and recommendations by joining the WRP.


Dmitri Shostakovich

Dmitri Shostakovich (arr. Vakhutinskii, trans. H Robert Reynolds)


General Info

Year: 1942 / 1979
Duration: c. 4:15
Difficulty: V (see Ratings for explanation)
Publisher: Carl Fischer Music
Cost: Score and Parts - Out of print.


Instrumentation

Full Score
C Piccolo (optional)
Flute
Oboe I-II
Bassoon
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
B-flat Trumpet I-II
Horn in F I-II-III-IV
Trombone I-II-III
Euphonium
Tuba
Percussion I-II, including:

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


Errata

None discovered thus far.


Program Notes

Composed in Shostakovich's light-hearted style, this single-movement work is filled with the joy and exuberance of the Russian people. The many folk melodies are combined in a string so that musical energy abounds and the spirit of folk dances can easily be imagined.

- Program Note from publisher


This popular wind band work by the Soviet-era composer Dmitri Shostakovich was originally composed in 1943 as the third movement, Dance of Youth, of My Beloved Country, Op. 63. It was first arranged for Russian bands by Mark Vakhutinskii in 1970 and edited for American bands by H. Robert Reynolds nine years later.

- Program Note from California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, Wind Orchestra concert program, 23 November 2013


Shostakovich wrote the suite Op. 63, Native Leningrad, in 1942 as a tribute to the courage of the citizens of Leningrad. This suite was culled from the incidental music for a "concert play spectacle" entitled Native Country or Motherland. It was scored for tenor and bass soloists, choir and orchestra, and was premiered on November 7, 1942, at the Dzerzhinsky Central Club.

The suite has four movements: Overture – October 1917, Song of the Victorious October (Song of the River Neva), Youth Dance (Song of the Sailors), and Song of Leningrad. The Youth Dance is the movement transcribed as Folk Dances. It first received this name when transcribed for piano by Lev Solin. The name stuck when retranscribed for military band by M. Vakhutinsky. H. Robert Reynolds rescored Vakhutinsky's transcription, making it suitable for American wind bands.

While the melodies used in Youth Dance are reminiscent of folk tunes, Shostakovich's work is original. Considering the programmatic nature of the work, it is justifiable to assume Shostakovich wished to evoke an overt Russian sentiment in the same way that Gustav Holst's First Suite in E-flat and Gordon Jacob's An Original Suite sound and feel distinctly British.

- Program Note from State University of New York, Potsdam, Symphonic Band concert program, 13 April 2017


Media


State Ratings

  • Alabama: Class A
  • Arkansas: IV
  • Georgia: V
  • Iowa: V
  • Massachusetts: IV
  • Michigan: Class AA
  • Oklahoma: Class AA
  • South Carolina: V
  • Texas: IV


Performances

To submit a performance please join The Wind Repertory Project

  • Southern Illinois University (Edwardsville) Wind Symphony (Ruben Dario Gomez, conductor) - 1 March 2023
  • Wheaton College (Ill.) Symphonic Band (Brady McNeil, conductor) - 11 February 2023
  • University of South Florida (Tampa) Symphonic Band (Tina DiMeglio, conductor) - 22 September 2022
  • World Adult Wind Orchestra Project (WAWOP) (Schladming, Aus.) (Dana Pradervand, conductor) - 17 July 2022
  • Baylor University (Waco, Texas) Symphonic Band (Isaiah Odajima, conductor) - 29 April 2022
  • Syracuse University (NY.) Wind Ensemble (Bradley Ethington, conductor) - 16 November 2021
  • University of Cincinnati (Ohio) College-Conservatory of Music Wind Ensemble (Laura Reyes, conductor) - 15 November 2021
  • Benedictine College (Atchison, Kan.) Wind Symphony (Brian Casey, conductor) - 2 May 2021
  • Dallas (Tx.) Winds (Jerry Junkin, conductor) - 24 April 2021
  • University of British Columbia (Vancouver) Symphonic Wind Ensemble (Adrian To, conductor) - 15 April 2021
  • Luther College (Decorah, Iowa) Wind and Percussion Ensemble (Cory Near, conductor) - 27 February 2021
  • Central College (Pella, Iowa) Honor Band (Eileen McGonigal, conductor) - 25 February 2021
  • University of Oregon (Eugene) Wind Ensemble (Ryan McCue, conductor) – 11 March 2020
  • University of Maryland (College Park) Wind Symphony (H. Robert Reynolds, conductor) – 29 February 2020
  • Kent State University (Ohio) Symphony Band (Kate Ferguson, conductor) – 28 February 2020
  • Austin (Tx.) Symphonic Band (Richard Floyd, conductor) – 1 February 2020
  • Penn State University (University Park) Campus Band (Margaret Pedlow Smith, conductor) – 9 December 2019
  • Michigan State University (East Lansing) Campus Band (Arris Golden, conductor) – 19 November 2019
  • Louisiana State University (Baton Rouge) Symphonic Winds (Weston Lewis, conductor) – 15 October 2019
  • U.S. Fleet Forces Band (Gregory Fritz, conductor)– 13 June 2019 (Hampton, Va.)
  • Virginia Tech (Blacksburg) Wind Ensemble (Jonathan Caldwell, conductor) – 5 May 2019


Works for Winds by This Composer

Adaptable Music

  • Waltz No. 2 (Flex instrumentation) (arr. Brown) (post 1956/2021)


All Wind Works


Resources

  • Miles, Richard B., and Larry Blocher. 2002. Teaching Music Through Performance in Band. Volume 4. Chicago: GIA Publications. pp. 482-486.
  • Shostakovich, D.; Reynolds, H. (1979). Folk Dances for Concert Band [score]. Carl Fischer: New York.
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