Heavenly Father | Bon Iver | Choir

Posted on October 2, 2018November 22, 2018 by admin

Heavenly Father | Bon Iver | Choir

The Arrangement

Recently, I was asked to write an arrangement for choir of the fantastic track Heavenly Father by Bon Iver. The performance he gave at the Sydney Opera House in 2016 as part of Vivid Live, featuring The Staves, was so breathtaking that I immediately agreed to transcribe and arrange the song.

An earthy arrangement that features a soloist and some extra special choral effects, this tune is full of emotions and reaches an amazing climax that will wow your audience. Featured in the movie Wish I Was Here by acclaimed director Zach Braff and scored for SATB Choir and soloist.

The Purchase

The arrangement is available at Sheet Music Plus at the below link. If there’s one piece of music you purchase for choir this year, make it this one!

Live performance

The performance Bon Iver delivered at the Sydney Opera House really took this song to a new level, giving it such emotion and power that takes your breath away. Utilising subtle body percussion and some exquisite voices, this video is a must watch if you wish to recreate the song at the highest level.

Original recording

The original track that Bon Iver recorded on the Wish I Was Here soundtrack uses an electronic choir for the drone, but Justin Vernon’s earthy voice remains the same – such an emotive tone and inflections. The song was written immediately after Justin viewed the film, an immediate reaction to the visuals of director Zach Braff. The film premiered at Sundance Film Festival and received mixed reviews – but the soundtrack was critically acclaimed with songs from The Shins and Coldplay.

Printing tips

Beautifully laid out, the score and parts are easy to read and available NOW for digital download at www.sheetmusicplus.com, thanks to the Arrange Me program at SMP Press. We suggest you print on 80gsm paper, to ensure that the copies last longer in your choirs library. For more printing tips, visit here

This Is Me | The Greatest Showman

Posted on July 7, 2018March 5, 2019 by admin

THE SONG

When I saw The Greatest Showman at the cinemas, I knew it was a special movie that would pass the test of time due to its message and strong music. The Grammy award-winning song This Is Me speaks of self-acceptance and triumph under adversity, and also has a kick ass beat with stirring vocals. This makes it the perfect song to arrange for Brass Band!

THE PIECE

This arrangement features extended percussion techniques to capture the original orchestration on the original soundtrack and will be a sure fire hit in any program. Scored for full brass band at an intermediate level and available over at www.sheetmusicplus.com

AMAZING LIVE VIDEO

If you haven’t seen this live performance of This Is Me, check it out. It’s such a powerful video.

THE STORY

With music by the award winning Pasek and Paul, The Greatest Showman is a movie musical based on the life of P.T. Barnum. It is a story of overcoming adversity, rising above social classes and the establishment of an entertainment visionary. Brilliantly played by Keala Settle, the bearded lady gives us an emotional rendition of This Is Me, with lyrics such as “I won’t let them break me down to dust” and “I am who I’m meant to be”, speaking of the struggle to be accepted in society.

THE ARRANGEMENT

Featuring two solos by the flugelhorn, a cornet and trombone duet, extended percussion such as field drum and techniques for capturing the woosh sound in the original recording, this arrangement is a direct transcription of the track on the original soundtrack.

I’ve whipped up a sample so you can listen to my arrangement.

If you are after a simpler arrangement, I’ve scored a 10 piece Brass Ensemble version as well here:

The Tupou College Brass Band also recorded my version!

THE LOOK

Beautifully laid out, the score and parts are easy to read and available NOW for digital download at www.sheetmusicplus.com, thanks to the Arrange Me program at SMP Press. We suggest you print on 80gsm paper, to ensure that the copies last longer in your bands library.

Happy | Pharrell Williams | Brass Band

Posted on March 21, 2018October 2, 2018 by admin

Happy | Pharrell Williams | Brass Band

I’m happy to tell you that I’ve arranged Happy by Pharrell Williams, a smash hit from the movie Despicable Me 2. This exciting arrangement is the perfect addition to any concert. Featuring a trombone solo, cornet solo and a challenging counter melody by the solo cornets and euphonium, your audiences will have their feet tapping and hands clapping along to this great tune.

Don’t just ask me how it is, ask Matthew White (Solo Euphonium, Virtuosi GUS) “It’s literally the best brass band arrangement of anything… ever!!!”

Graded as advanced intermediate, this arrangement can be played at an easier difficulty by leaving the counter melody out. It is available to buy now, for full Brass Band

and a 10 piece Brass Ensemble.

THE ORIGINAL

If you’ve never heard this song before, what rock have you been living under? With a catchy beat, funky tune and awesome break down section, Happy has brought the soul genre back and topped the charts around the world, whilst winning numerous awards. Initially written for Cee-Lo Green, and following on Pharrell’s success with the Daft Punk album Random Access Memories as guest artist, Happy is the eighth highest selling single of all-time in the UK and was Billboard’s number 1 single for 2014.

THE PIECE

My Brass Band pieces are mostly aimed at advanced bands who would like to entertain their audiences with a more true-to-original arrangement that is also enjoyable for the musicians. Often the arrangements that are published are inaccurate transcriptions that are written very quickly, to capitalise on the success of the original song. But with my arrangements, you can be certain that the feel and detail of the song you love is captured, and put down on paper for you to perform.

PRINTING

You Are Good | I’ll Fight | Salvation Army Music Publishing

Posted on March 18, 2018November 22, 2018 by admin

You Are Good | I’ll Fight | Salvation Army Music Publishing

I’m proud of my Salvation Army heritage, having gained valuable experience as a trombonist and arranger with the Melbourne Staff Band, Ringwood Corps Band and Preston Corps Band. I created a number of arrangements from my time with those bands and was lucky enough to work with Silvie Paladino, The Idea Of North, Phil Smith and other amazing artists. A couple of the arrangements made their way into the Salvation Army Australian Southern Territory’s Music Publishing arm, and you can find the links below. Stay tuned for more of these arrangements as I update my site.

You Are Good

I’ll Fight

Just A Closer Walk With Thee | Brass Band

Posted on March 18, 2018November 22, 2018 by admin

Just A Closer Walk With Thee | Brass Band

The Creation

In 2006, I was part of the Melbourne Staff Band‘s tour of the USA & Canada, and was pleased to be asked to write a piece to commence the second half of their concert. Ken Waterworth, the conductor, wanted something that would bring the band onto the stage, and then have them leave to introduce our vocalist, Rebecca Raymond. I chose the spiritual Just A Closer Walk With Thee, and ended up using a 5 piece “dixieland” style ensemble to achieve this effect.

The Arrangement

It proved to be a popular piece, but because it was tailor made for that concert, no other bands played it…until now! I’ve rewritten the ending and brought the band back, so it is perfect for the band who would like to feature a small group in the middle of a piece.

The arrangement starts off with a lush, jazz harmony inspired chorale, and weaves its way through a slow swing section, into a brushes solo (a la “Cute”) and finally into the dixieland combo, who whirl and twirl through the tune until the full band comes back in with a big chorale ending. Scored for Salvation Army Festival band, this arrangement is geared towards 1st and 2nd section bands (UK) and features every section in the band at some stage. A great concert opener and feature tune.

The Video

Check out one of my first Youtube mockup videos!