Instrumental Pieces for Concert Band

In 1866, Strauss was commissioned to write a work for the Wiener Männergesangverein. He wrote the waltz ‘An der schönen blauen Donau’, but at its premiere on 13 February 1867, this waltz had little su...

Anton Bruckner composed his 'Kleine Orchesterstücke' in 1862 as a first attempt in that field which later he was to make his very own: orchestral music. These four pieces are melodious little 'moments...

This magnificent Andante con moto is ideal for creating a moment of quiet in a concert programme. It is a pearl of Schubertian melody development and harmonic twists. (Concert Band)

La Traviata' tells the story of the young and beautiful courtesan Violetta who falls in love with Alfredo, an ordinary and poor young man. The aria 'sempre libera' is the very end of the first act: Vi...

Le Nozze di Figaro' is one of the three opera's which Mozart composed on libretto's of Lorenzo da Ponte (1749-1838) the famous Viennese theaterdirector and courtpoet. The aria 'Voi che sapete' is sung...

The Gypsy Chorus (Coro di Zingari) 'Vedi! Le fosche notturne spoglie' is the opening of the second act of he opera Il Trovatore. It is dawn at a gypsy encampment in Biscay, the gypsies prepare for the...

Although Franz Lehár became most known for his contribution to the operetta repertoire, he also composed a lot of marches. One of these is 'Piave induló' (Piave Marsch, Marche form the 106th Regiment)...

Moscow, Cheryomushki is an operetta in three acts by Dmitri Shostakovich. It is sometimes referred to as simply "Cheryomushki" which is a district in Moscow full of cheap subsidized housing built in 1...

The 'Hungarian Dances' (Ungarische Tänze), evoking directly the warm blood of Hungarian gypsy music, consist of 21 dances, originally composed for piano four hands. Perhaps less familiar than the famo...

The Toy Symphony, (Kinder-Sinfonie) was also published as Sinfonia Berchtolsgadensis because it was written for instruments that were manufactured in the toy industry of Berchtensgaden that flourished...

'Ecce sacerdos magnus' (Behold a great priest), WAB 13, is an 1885 sacred motet by the Austrian composer Anton Bruckner. It is a musical setting of the antiphon of the same title. The work is a six-pa...

As a composer, Johann Strauss Sr. is probably less well known than his son Johann Strauss Jr., but his 'Radeztky March' is still one of the most popular pieces in classical music. Besides this march h...

In 1869 Johann Strauss composed the polka francaise 'Im Krapfenwald'l' ('In Krapfen's Woods'). It was originally titled 'Im Pawlowsk Walde' when first performed in Pavlovsk (Russia). Reportedly, sever...

Kurt Weill (1900-1950) was best-known work is "Die Dreigroschenoper" ("Threepenny Opera") (1928), a reworking of John Gay's "The Beggar's Opera", written in collaboration with Bertolt Brecht. Weill's...

Geronimo Gimeniz (1854 - 1923) was born in Sevilla and by the age of twelve he was a violinist in a theatre orchestra in Cadiz. The intermezzo from 'La Baile de Luis Alonso' is in the repertoire of ev...

The 'Seufzer Galopp' (Sigh Galop), opus 9, is a galop composed by Johann Strauss Sr. In 1828. Dutch arranger Jos van de Braak transcribed this galop for Symphonic Band including the 'Seufzer'.

Rimsky-Korsakov wrote concerto's for Oboe, Clarinet and Trombone and Military Band. The Concerto for Trombone is now edited by Marco Tamanini for the instrumentation of a modern Symphonic Windorchestr...

Danzon no. 2 by the Mexican composer Arturo Marquez was included on the program of the Simon Bolivar Youth Orchestra of Venuzuela conducted by Gustavo Dudamel on their 2007 tour of Europe and the Unit...

Danzón no. 2 by the Mexican composer Arturo Márquez was included on the program of the Simón Bolívar Youth Orchestra of Venuzuela conducted by Gustavo Dudamel on their 2007 tour of Europe and the Unit...

In 1933 Revueltas composed his brief symphonic poem "Janitzio" named after an island in Lake Patzcuaro, in the state of Michoacán, west of Mexico City, whose population had derived its income largely...

Johann Strauss wrote the 'Russische Marsch-Fantasie' (Russian March Fantasy) for a tour to Russia in 1872. Because the tour was cancelled, the successful first performance of the march was held in Vie...

Although Arturo Marquez was already an accomplished composer in Mexico, his music started to reach the international stage with the introduction of his series of Danzones in the early 1990s. This vene...

Flight of the Bumblebee is an orchestral interlude written by Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov for his opera "The Tale of Tsar Saltan". The piece closes the 3rd act, during which the magic Swan-Bird changes Pr...

Saint-Saëns also contributed voluminously to the French concertante literature. He wrote five piano concertos, three violin concertos, two cello concertos, and about twenty smaller concertante works f...

Nowadays, Carmen is probably the most famous opera in the whole opera-repertoire, although its premiere in 1875 was a great disappointment because of the misunderstanding of the very realistic plot. C...