NC-4 March
General Info
Year: 1919
Duration: c. 2:35
Difficulty: III (see Ratings for explanation)
Publisher: Jacobs
Cost: Score and Parts – Out of print.
For availability information, see Discussion tab, above.
Instrumentation
Full Score
D-flat Piccolo
Flute
Oboe (and Soprano Saxophone)
Bassoon (and Baritone Saxophone)
E-flat Soprano Clarinet
B-flat Soprano Clarinet I-II-III
E-flat Alto Saxophone (and Alto Clarinet)
E-flat Baritone Saxophone
E-flat Cornet (and Alto Saxophone)
B-flat Cornet Solo-I-II-III
B-flat Trumpet I-II-III
E-flat Horn or Alto I-II-III-IV
B-flat Tenor Horn I-II
Trombone I-II-III
Bass Trombone
Euphonium
Baritone TC (and Tenor Saxophone)
Tuba
Percussion (3 players), including:
- Bass Drum
- Crash Cymbals
- Snare Drum
Errata
None discovered thus far.
Program Notes
Mention the name F.E. Bigelow to most musicians and the Our Director March will probably pop into their minds. Yet another work from his pen is this march written in 1919. The NC-4 March is inspired by the first transatlantic flight earlier the same year and is dedicated to the crew’s commander, Navy Lt. Commander Albert Cushing Read.
The members of the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire University Band were surprised to learn that the melody to this march is the source of the UW-Eau Claire fight song, first adapted by James Curnow and later arranged by Dr. Dickerson himself, UWEC director of bands.
- Program Note from University of Wisconsin – Eau Claire University Band concert program, 1 May 2019
The NC-4 was a Curtiss NC flying boat that was the first aircraft to fly across the Atlantic Ocean, albeit not non-stop. The NC designation was derived from the collaborative efforts of the Navy (N) and Curtiss (C). The NC series flying boats were designed to meet wartime needs, and after the end of World War I they were sent overseas to validate the design concept.
In May 1919, a crew of United States Navy aviators flew the NC-4 from New York State to Lisbon, Portugal, over the course of 19 days.
- Program Note from Wikipedia
Media
State Ratings
None discovered thus far.
Performances
To submit a performance please join The Wind Repertory Project
- University of Wisconsin – Eau Claire Concert Band (Randal C. Dickerson, conductor) - 9 May 2022
- Riverside High School (Painesville, Ohio) Wind Ensemble (David A. Schwartz, conductor) - January 2019
Works for Winds by This Composer
- Battle Son of Liberty
- Our Director March (arr. Hildreth) (1892/1918/1929)
- Our Director March (arr. Swearingen) (1892/2003)
- NC-4 March (1919)
- Our Leader March
Resources
- Bigelow, F. (1919). NC-4: March [score]. Walter Jacobs: Boston.
- Girsberger, Russ. Percussion Assignments for Band & Wind Ensemble. Volume I: A-K. Galesburg, MD: Meredith Music Publications, 2004, 43. Print.
- Curtiss NC-4, Wikipedia Accessed 2 May 2019
- Encyclopedia of Band Music. "F.E. Bigelow." Accessed 2 May 2019