News & Views Friday, March 29, 2024

The Best New Marches for High School Band Thursday, November 21, 2013

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Besides being great march arrangements, there is plenty of programming variety.  The tune Marching Through Georgia dates to the Civil War; two are features (Basses on a Rampage – low brass; and Teddy Trombone – one of Fillmore’s trombone “smears”); two provide alternative programming options to salute members of our armed services (Navy Blue and The U.S. of A. Armed Forces); and if you’re looking for a title with a completely different flavor, check out Salute to the Sultan.

To find more march sheet music for your concert band, head over to the march categories at our website and Listening Library!

Basses on a Rampage March
G.F. Huffine/arr. Andrew Glover
Heritage of the March
Grade 3
Getty Huffine was working at an axe handle factory when his hometown of Bowling Green, Kentucky organized their first town band in 1907, and he was accepted to play valve trombone.  Over the years, he taught himself to play tuba, and held a special place for the low brasses when he began composing marches, including Them Basses, and this boisterous romp.

The Home Town Boy March
Karl L. King/arr. James Swearingen
Heritage of the March
Grade 2.5
Dedicated to long-time friend Meredith Willson of The Music Man fame, this was the last march King wrote. All of the classic elements are here and evidence that King maintained the quality and integrity of his writing, and James Swearingen’s arrangement ensures teachability.

March Jubilee
James Swearingen
Barnhouse Concert Band
Grade 3
This composer’s newest march is the fifth in a series that began with the ever-popular Silvercrest (composed for Stanton’s 25th Anniversary).   Its strong statement of happiness and joy is sure to delight audiences of all ages. A memorable trio theme, crafted around the traditional strains of a standard march, provides all the necessary ingredients for your ensemble to create a truly magical and uplifting performance.

Marching Through Georgia
John Philip Sousa/ed. Keith Brion
John Philip Sousa Legacy
Grade 4
A truly masterful arrangement by The March King himself of a Civil War era classic.  Sousa’s spirited instrumental setting is vibrant, inspiring and historically reflective.

Navy Blue
Charles Zimmerman/arr. Paul Whear
LudwigMasters Concert Band
Grade 3
The legendary commander of the United States Naval Academy Band (whose most famous work remains Anchors Aweigh), composed and dedicated a march for each year’s graduating class.  This spirited offering honored the class of 1902, and remains just as fresh and exuberant over a hundred years later.

Salute to the Sultan
Karl L. King/arr. Gene Milford
LudwigMasters Concert Band
Grade 3
Composed during King’s second year “trouping” with circus bands, the distinctive flair of “Persian” marches like this was often used with lion, tiger, elephant, or other wild animal acts, bringing the sound of exotic and distant lands to the circus audience.

Teddy Trombone
Henry Fillmore/arr. Robert Foster
Authentic Fillmore Edition
Grade 4
In between some of America’s greatest marches, Henry Fillmore composed a total of fifteen band pieces known as “trombone smears” from 1908 to 1929, the most famous of which would become Lassus TromboneTeddy Trombone was second in the series, composed in 1911 in the ragtime style so popular at the time.

The U. S. of A. Armed Forces
Henry Fillmore/arr. Robert Foster
Authentic Fillmore Edition
Grade 4
In 1942, Henry Fillmore, 60 years old and with a heart condition, tried to enlist as an army band leader.  The powers that be, however, suggested his contributions to the war effort would be better served continuing to compose marches, like this patriotic gem, to inspire the homefront.

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