But I'm really excited for this 2nd piece dedicated to my wonderful group of middle school brass players. This piece is technically a little more difficult than the first one, but I believe the kids will work at it and nail it down well. That's how it was with the first one; they had a really rough time with it at first. But, eventually, they worked it up, took it to Junior Solo & Ensemble, and got a superior rating. So there.
Adding this piece to the program, the Harbor Brass has one heck of a program for their summer concert. I'm also working on a little arrangement of Dvorak's "New World" Symphony in the original key, which has been quite challenging. They're also doing this nice, simple little Bruckner Chorale, then combining with the Penn Cove Brass to play a simpler arrangement of The Earl of Oxfords March.
Speaking of the Penn Cove Brass, I'm even more proud of them. After our 3rd rehearsal ever, they're already sounding quite amazing, and they're a great group of personalities that really enjoy working with each other. That group is handling Gabrieli's Canzona Per Sonare No. 2 without a whole lot of trouble, as well as the first "Promenade" from Pictures at an Exhibition. Although we joke around a lot, these kids are very serious about the music and do a very good job to play it well. I love hearing them play, and I love even more sitting and playing with them which I have one of my student conductors on the podium.
In addition, my horn ensemble is quite busy this July. I mean, very busy. After I finish this blog post, I'm going to jump onto the Whidbey Island Horn Club's website and Facebook page to do some updates. So go check them out! Those of you who are local can hear us at a couple Farmer's Markets in the coming weeks!
Take care and value music.