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Nice but easy-ish pieces for wood/string ensemble?

Author: stevensfo
Date: 2008-06-16 14:19

We have an amateur string ensemble of about 14 people who started life wanting to form an amateur orchestra, but keep saying they're not ready to 'mix' yet.

Then we have quite a few frustrated wind and brass players some of whom enjoy playing in wind bands, but who secretly dream of playing in a proper orchestra.

Both groups contain a mixture of 'extremely good' and 'mediocre' levels of playing.

So can you suggest some suitable pieces which may be appropriate for getting them together? Preferably not too difficult to start with, and preferably some that are quite easy. Any Vivaldi, Telemann, Corelli, Mozart etc?

Steve

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Re: Nice but easy-ish pieces for wood/string ensemble?

Author: Jameslyons
Date: 2008-06-16 15:53

I'm in the same boat, my friend! Although my amateur orchestra has a whopping six people. I think a great piece of music to play is scales. I'm serious, just have different players playing different scales in the same tempo as everyone else, some going backwards, some going forwards.

I guess we do that because it's easy, and it helps us stay in time with the others. But as to real music have you tried:

Bach Air on G string (the song's simple even when transposing it to Bb instruments.)

Vivaldi's Four seasons is easy. On one of those free music sheets.com sites they have a transposed movement for Bb instruments.

Mozart's masonic march is simple for the woodwinds

Bartok's Romanian Folk Dances are pretty and really simple.

Pop music/game music is pretty simplistic melodies and there are tons of fans to transcribe for various size groups. I know there's a site dedicated to Nobuo Uematsu's Final Fantasy string and woodwind groups.

Good Luck!

(too bad school is out, you could talk to band teachers).

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Re: Nice but easy-ish pieces for wood/string ensemble?

Author: stevensfo
Date: 2008-06-16 19:50

Thanks for the info, James. Yes, there are a lot of sites with free sheet music, but there's so much to wade through!

I was just looking at some Mozart sites here:

http://www.bh2000.net/score/orchmoza/

http://dme.mozarteum.at/DME/nma/start.php?l=2

But I couldn't see the masonic march. The first site has some interesting 'serenades for strings and winds' and I also realised that some movements from his symphonies would be ideal - with the clarinets playing the horn parts.

Steve

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