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In music, an arrangement is a musical adaptation of an existing composition. Differences from the original composition may include reharmonization, Musical phrasing, orchestration, or Musical form development. Arranging differs from orchestration in that the latter process is limited to the assignment of notes to instruments for performance by an orchestra, concert band, or other musical ensemble. Arranging "involves adding compositional techniques, such as new thematic material for introductions, transitions, or modulations, and endings. Arranging is the art of giving an existing melody musical variety".(Corozine 2002, p. 3) In jazz, a memorized (unwritten) arrangement of a new or pre-existing composition is known as a head arrangement.
Bach transformed this solo piece into an orchestral Sinfonia that introduces his Cantata BWV29. "The initial violin composition was in E major but both arranged versions are transposed down to D, the better to accommodate the wind instruments".Mincham, J. (2016) the Cantatas of Johan Sebastian Bach. http://www.jsbachcantatas.com/documents/chapter-85-bwv-29/ Retrieved 31 August 2020.
"The transformation of material conceived for a single string instrument into a fully orchestrated concerto-type movement is so successful that it is unlikely that anyone hearing the latter for the first time would suspect the existence of the former".Mincham, J. (2016), The Cantatas of Johann Sebastian Bach. http://www.jsbachcantatas.com/documents/chapter-85-bwv-29/ Retrieved 31 August 2020.
Erik Satie wrote his three Gymnopédies for solo piano in 1888.
Eight years later, Debussy arranged two of them, exploiting the range of instrumental timbres available in a late 19th-century orchestra. "It was Debussy whose 1896 orchestrations of the Gymnopédies put their composer on the map."Taruskin, R. (2010, p. 70) The Oxford History of Western Music, Music in the early Twentieth Century. Oxford University Press.
Pictures at an Exhibition, a suite of ten piano pieces by Modest Mussorgsky, has been arranged over twenty times, notably by Maurice Ravel.Partial list of orchestral arrangements to Pictures at an Exhibition Ravel's arrangement demonstrates an "ability to create unexpected, memorable orchestral sonorities".Orenstein, A. (2016, p. VIII. Preface to Mussorgsky-Ravel, Pictures at an Exhibition. Miniature score, London, Eulenburg. In the second movement, "Gnomus", Mussorgsky's original piano piece simply repeats the following passage: initially orchestrates it as follows:
Repeating the passage, Ravel provides a fresh orchestration "this time with the celesta (replacing the woodwinds) accompanied by string Glissando on the fingerboard".
The arrangement of this song by Hector Berlioz uses strings to convey faithfully the driving urgency and threatening atmosphere of the original.
Berlioz adds colour in bars 6–8 through the addition of woodwind, horns, and a timpani. With typical flamboyance, Berlioz adds spice to the harmony in bar 6 with an E flat in the horn part, creating a half-diminished seventh chord which is not in Schubert's original piano part.
There are subtle differences between this and the arrangement of the song by Franz Liszt. The upper string sound is thicker, with violins and Viola playing the fierce repeated Octave in unison and bassoons compensating for this by doubling the cellos and Bass guitar. There are no timpani, but trumpets and horns add a small jolt to the rhythm of the opening bar, reinforcing the bare octaves of the strings by playing on the second main beat.
Unlike Berlioz, Liszt does not alter the harmony, but changes the emphasis somewhat in bar 6, with the note A in the Oboe and Clarinet grating against rather than blending with the G in the strings.
"Schubert has come in for his fair share of transcriptions and arrangements. Most, like Liszt's transcriptions of the or Berlioz's orchestration for Erlkönig, tell us more about the arranger that about the original composer, but they can be diverting so long as they are in no way a replacement for the original".Newbould, B. (1997, p. 467) Schubert: the Music and the Man. London, Gollancz.
Gustav Mahler's Lieder eines fahrenden Gesellen ("Songs of a Wayfarer") were originally written for voice with piano accompaniment. The composer's later arrangement of the piano part shows a typical ear for clarity and transparency in rewriting for an ensemble. Below is the original piano version of the closing bars of the second song, "Gieng heit' Morgen über's Feld".
The orchestration shows Mahler's attention to detail in bringing out differentiated orchestral Timbre supplied by woodwind, strings and horn. He uses a harp to convey the original supplied by the left hand of the piano part. He also extracts a descending chromatic melodic line, implied by the left hand in bars 2–4 (above), and gives it to the horn.
Well known examples include Joe Cocker's version of the Beatles' "With a Little Help from My Friends", Cream's "Crossroads", and Ike Turner's version of Creedence Clearwater Revival's "Proud Mary". The American group Vanilla Fudge and the British group Yes based their early careers on radical rearrangements of Hit single. Vanilla Fudge covers (classic bands website) Close To the Edge – The Story of Yes, Chris Welch, Omnibus Press, 1999/2003/2008 pages 33-34 Bonnie Pointer performed disco and Motown sound-styled versions of "Heaven Must Have Sent You". Bonnie Pointer bio (IMDb website) , such as in dance music, can also be considered arrangements. The Remix Manual: The Art and Science of Dance Music Remixing with Logic, Simon Langford (Elsevier, 2011, ) page 47
Don Redman made innovations in jazz arranging as a part of Fletcher Henderson's orchestra in the 1920s. Redman's arrangements introduced a more intricate melodic presentation and soli performances for various sections of the big band. Benny Carter became Henderson's primary arranger in the early 1930s, becoming known for his arranging abilities in addition to his previous recognition as a performer. Beginning in 1938, Billy Strayhorn became an arranger of great renown for the Duke Ellington orchestra. Jelly Roll Morton is sometimes considered the earliest jazz arranger. While he toured around the years 1912 to 1915, he wrote down parts to enable "Pickup group" to perform his compositions.
Big-band arrangements are informally called charts. In the swing era they were usually either arrangements of popular songs or they were entirely new compositions.Giddins, Gary & Scott DeVeaux (2009). Jazz. New York: W.W. Norton & Co, Duke Ellington's and Billy Strayhorn's arrangements for the Duke Ellington big band were usually new compositions, and some of Eddie Sauter's arrangements for the Benny Goodman band and Artie Shaw's arrangements for his own band were new compositions as well. It became more common to arrange sketchy jazz combo compositions for big band after the bop era.
After 1950, the big bands declined in number. However, several bands continued and arrangers provided renowned arrangements. Gil Evans wrote a number of large-ensemble arrangements in the late 1950s and early 1960s intended for recording sessions only. Other arrangers of note include Vic Schoen, Pete Rugolo, Oliver Nelson, Johnny Richards, Billy May, Thad Jones, Maria Schneider, Bob Brookmeyer, Lou Marini, Nelson Riddle, Ralph Burns, Billy Byers, Gordon Jenkins, Ray Conniff, Henry Mancini, Ray Reach, Vince Mendoza, and Claus Ogerman.
In the 21st century, the big-band arrangement has made a modest comeback. Gordon Goodwin, Roy Hargrove, and Christian McBride have all rolled out new big bands with both original compositions and new arrangements of standard tunes." Carrington and Correa Among Jazz Winners" – LATimes Blog, Feb. 2012
The harp is also a stringed instrument, but is not a member of nor homogeneous with the violin family, and is not considered part of the string choir. Samuel Adler classifies the harp as a plucked string instrument in the same category as the guitar (Acoustic guitar or Electric guitar), mandolin, banjo, or zither. Like the harp, these instruments do not belong to the violin family and are not homogeneous with the string choir. In modern arranging these instruments are considered part of the rhythm section. The electric bass and upright string bass—depending on the circumstance—can be treated by the arranger as either string section or rhythm section instruments.
A group of instruments in which each member plays a unique part—rather than playing in unison with other like instruments—is referred to as a Chamber music. A chamber ensemble made up entirely of strings of the violin family is referred to by its size. A string trio consists of three players, a string quartet four, a string quintet five, and so on.
In most circumstances the string section is treated by the arranger as one homogeneous unit and its members are required to play preconceived material rather than improvise.
A string section can be utilized on its own (this is referred to as a string orchestra) or in conjunction with any of the other instrumental sections. More than one string orchestra can be utilized.
A standard string section (vln., vln 2., vla., vcl, cb.) with each section playing unison allows the arranger to create a five-part texture. Often an arranger will divide each violin section in half or thirds to achieve a denser texture. It is possible to carry this division to its logical extreme in which each member of the string section plays his or her own unique part.
George Martin, producer and arranger for the Beatles, warns arrangers about the intonation problems when only two like instruments play in unison: "After a string quartet, I do not think there is a satisfactory sound for strings until one has at least three players on each line . . . as a rule two stringed instruments together create a slight 'beat' which does not give a smooth sound." Different music directors may use different numbers of string players and different balances between the sections to create different musical effects.
While any combination and number of string instruments is possible in a section, a traditional string section sound is achieved with a violin-heavy balance of instruments.
| Inside the score: A detailed analysis of 8 classic jazz ensemble charts by Sammy Nestico, Thad Jones and Bob Brookmeyer | Rayburn Wright |
| Sounds and Scores: A Practical Guide to Professional Orchestration | Henry Mancini |
| The Contemporary Arranger | Don Sebesky |
| The Study of Orchestration | Samuel Adler |
| Arranged by Nelson Riddle | Nelson Riddle |
| Instrumental Jazz Arranging: A Comprehensive and Practical Guide | Mike Tomaro |
| Modern Jazz Voicings: Arranging for Small and Medium Ensemble | Ted Pease, Ken Pullig |
| Arranging for Large Jazz Ensemble | Ted Pease, Dick Lowell |
| Arranging concepts complete: the ultimate arranging course for today's music | Dick Grove |
| The complete arranger | Sammy Nestico |
| Arranging Songs: How to Put the Parts Together | Rikky Rooksby |
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