A concert band, also called a wind band, wind ensemble, wind symphony, wind orchestra, symphonic band, the symphonic winds, or symphonic wind ensemble, is a performing ensemble consisting of members of the woodwind, brass instrument, and percussion families of instruments, and occasionally including the piano, double bass, and harp. On rare occasions, additional, non-traditional instruments may be added to such ensembles such as synthesizer, electric guitar, and bass guitar.
Concert band music generally includes original wind instrument compositions, , transcriptions of orchestral arrangements, light music, and pop music. Though the concert band does have similar instrumentation to the marching band, a marching band's main purpose is to perform while marching. In contrast, a concert band usually performs as a concert, though European ensembles often do both.
Origins
The origins of concert band can be traced back to the French Revolution, in which large bands would often gather for patriotic festivals and celebrations. These bands would play popular music that would immediately captivate the public's attention. Throughout the French Revolution, however, serious composers were often not interested in composing music for bands; this was due in large part to the instrumentation. Concert bands were (and still are) not standardized in their required type and number of instruments, making it nearly impossible to write the correct number of parts for the correct types of instruments. The quality of instruments also impacted composers' unwillingness to compose music for concert band. Wind instruments at that time were often difficult to play in tune and had difficulty in switching pitch and rhythm fast enough.
This in turn influenced bands to stick with pieces that were transposed from
movements and arrangements, something that has carried into modern day.
During the 19th century, large ensembles of wind and percussion instruments in the British and American traditions existed mainly in the form of the military band for ceremonial and festive occasions, and the works performed consisted mostly of marches. The only time wind bands were used in a concert setting comparable to that of a symphony orchestra was when transcriptions of orchestral or operatic pieces were arranged and performed, as there were comparatively few original concert works for a large wind ensemble.
It wasn't until the early 20th century that composers began writing works for concert band. Concert band composers of this time were frustrated at the lack of quality music for bands, and as such, began writing and performing pieces to remedy this. One of the first and most important original works for concert band, First Suite for Band by Gustav Holst, was written in 1909. Other composers of this time period include Ralph Vaughan Williams, Richard Wagner, and Aaron Copland.
Instrumentation
Before the 1950s, wind ensembles included various combinations of instruments. The modern "standard" instrumentation of the wind ensemble was more or less established by Frederick Fennell at Eastman School of Music as the Eastman Wind Ensemble in 1952 after the model of the
orchestra: a pool of players from which a composer can select in order to create different sonorities.
According to Fennell, the wind ensemble was not revolutionary, but developed naturally out of the music.
Bands today
Military bands
A
military band is a group of personnel that performs musical duties for military functions, usually for the
armed forces. A typical military band consists mostly of wind and percussion instruments. The
conducting of a band commonly bears the title of
Bandmaster or Director of Music. Ottoman military bands are thought to be the oldest variety of military marching band in the world, dating from the 13th century.
Military bands were originally used to control troops on the battlefield, by using instruments such as Military drums, , and fifes among others. As communication systems during war became more advanced, the use of instruments on the battlefield as signaling devices fell out of use. From then on, military bands would fulfill a ceremonial role, entertaining troops and playing for the community. As its role shifted so too did its instrumentation. A wider range of instruments was employed to play transcriptions of orchestral works, the bulk of the early wind band repertoire. These military bands evolved into the modern drum and bugle corps and helped to spread the idea of a concert band. A modern military will often have multiple types of bands (e.g. the United States Marine Corps has both a drum and bugle corps and wind ensemble).
Professional bands
Professional concert bands not associated with the military appear across the globe, particularly in developed countries. However, most do not offer full-time positions. The competition to make it into one of these concert bands is incredibly high and the ratio of performers to entrants is narrowly small. Examples of professional non-military concert bands include:
-
Dallas Wind Symphony, led by Jerry Junkin
-
Tokyo Kosei Wind Orchestra, led for many years by Frederick Fennell, and currently conducted by Takeshi Ooi
-
Osaka Shion Wind Orchestra
-
Royal Hawaiian Band, created by royal decree in 1836 by King Kamehameha III
Community bands
A community band is a concert band or brass band ensemble composed of volunteer (non-paid)
amateur in a particular geographic area. It may be sponsored by the local (municipal) government or self-supporting. These groups rehearse regularly and perform at least once a year. Some bands are also
, participating in parades and other outdoor events. Although they are volunteer musical organizations, community bands may employ an artistic director (
conducting) or various operational staff.
The rise of the community band can partially be attributed to industrialization. As the instruments became easier to manufacture, their availability greatly increased. This meant that many amateurs could now form a town band, their arrangements typically consisting of patriotic tunes, marches, and popular music. The American Civil War marked a turning point in the American community band where many military musicians, either stemming from amateur or professional backgrounds, sought to create their own community band after the war's conclusion. The large number of bands created during this era led to a "Golden Age of Bands", spearheaded by conductors such as John Philip Sousa and Patrick Gilmore. The new forms of twentieth-century entertainment, namely the radio and phonograph, led to decline in community bands. This led to instrument manufacturers, who previously had marketed to the community bands, to focus on schools. The expansion of school music programs would eventually help restore interest in the community band as graduates sought to play in a band together again.
Notable community bands include:
U.S.A.
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The American Band, Providence, Rhode Island, conducted by Brian Cardany
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Allentown Band, the oldest American civilian band, Allentown, Pennsylvania, conducted by Ronald Demkee
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Brooklyn Wind Symphony, Brooklyn, NY, conducted by Jeff W. Ball
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Lesbian & Gay Big Apple Corps, New York, New York, conducted by Kelly Watkins
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Northshore Concert Band, Evanston, Illinois, conducted by Mallory Thompson
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Salt Lake Symphonic Winds, Salt Lake City, Utah, conducted by Thomas P. Rohrer
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The TriBattery Pops, New York, NY, conducted by Tom Goodkind
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East Winds Symphonic Band, Pittsburgh, PA, conducted by Susan Sands
United Kingdom
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Birmingham Symphonic Winds, conducted by Keith Allen
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Newark and Sherwood Concert Band, Newark, Nottinghamshire, conducted by Colum J O'Shea
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North Cheshire Wind Orchestra, Warrington, Cheshire, conducted by Catherine Tackley
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Nottingham Concert Band, conducted by Robert Parker
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National Youth Wind Orchestra of Great Britain, various conductors
Canada
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Pacific Symphonic Wind Ensemble, Vancouver. David Branter, Resident Conductor and Acting Music Director
Australia
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North West Wind Ensemble, Sydney, James Brice, Musical Director
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Sydney Wind Symphony, Mark Brown, Musical Director
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Queensland Wind Orchestra, conducted by David Law
Norway
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Dragefjellets Musikkorps (Bergen Symphonic Band)
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Sandvikens Ungdomskorps, Bergen, conducted by Tormod Flaten and Bjørn Breistein
Portugal
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União Filarmónica do Troviscal, Troviscal—Aveiro, conducted by André Granjo
Finland
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Tikkurilan Soittokunta, Vantaa, conducted by Kimmo Nurmi
School bands
A school band is a group of
student musicians who rehearse and perform
instrumental music together. A school band is usually under the direction of one or more
conducting (band directors). A school band consists of woodwind instruments, brass instruments and percussion instruments, although upper level bands may also have
string basses or
bass guitar.
In many traditional U.S. high schools, there are multiple band levels, distinguished by skill level or other factors. In such schools, an audition may be required to advance to further band levels, while the common level would be open to anyone. For example, in many U.S. high schools, "Concert Band" refers to the introductory level band, "Symphonic Band" is the title for the intermediate level band, and "Wind Ensemble" is the title for the advanced level band.
Instrumentation
Instrumentation for the wind band is not completely standardized; composers will frequently add or omit parts. Instruments and parts in parentheses in the list below are less common but still often used; due to the fact that some bands are missing these instruments, important lines for these instruments are often cued into other parts.
Instrumentation differs depending on the type of ensemble. Middle school and high school bands frequently have more limited instrumentation and fewer parts (for example, no , or only two horn parts instead of four). This is both to limit the difficulty for inexperienced players and because schools frequently do not have access to the less common instruments.
The standard concert band will have several players on each part depending on available personnel and the preference of conducting A concert band can theoretically have as many as 200 members from a set of only 35 parts. The wind ensemble, on the other hand, will have very little doubling, if any; commonly, or flutes may be doubled, especially to handle any Divisi, and others will have one player per part, as dictated by the requirements of a specific composition. It is also common to see two and two or Baritone horn playing the same part in a wind ensemble.
While largely made up of wind and percussion instruments, string instruments such as the Double bass and Pedal harp are often scored for. The use of a harp dates back to its inclusion in the professional and military bands of John Philip Sousa and Edwin Franko Goldman. Such bands would often contain the top harpists of the country, such as Winifred Bambrick, who was one of the first female instrumentalists to tour with the Sousa Band, and Victor Salvi, who played with the United States Navy Band. Notably, the United States Air Force Band scores for , a practice unique to the ensemble that dates back to the tenure of director George S. Howard.
Complicated percussion parts are common in concert band pieces, often requiring many percussionists. Many believe this is a major difference between the orchestra (which usually lacks a large battery of percussion) and the concert band. While in older transcriptions and concert works, Timpani were treated as their own section as in an orchestra, today in bands the timpani are considered a part of the percussion section. Consequently, the timpani player often will double on other percussion instruments.
Contemporary compositions often call on players to use unusual instruments or effects. For example, several pieces call on the use of a siren while others will ask players to play recorders, , or to Singing, Humming, Finger snapping, Clapping or even crinkle Paper. The wind band's diverse instrumentation and large number of players makes it a very flexible ensemble, capable of producing a variety of sonic effects.
Instrumentation has developed throughout time to become more efficient for the conditions that marching bands need to play in. For example, were found to be more suitable than the older and became more widely used in the 18th century. More heavy and bulky instruments were replaced by and . In the 19th century, band instruments became highly developed as they started to add keys and valves that made certain ranges and notes on instruments easier to navigate and perform, which became a huge game changer for all musicians.
- Woodwinds
- 1 ( , 2)
- Flutes 1, 2 ( , 3)
- (Alto flute)
[If called for, sometimes doubled by flute 2 or 3.]
- (Bass flute)
[If called for, sometimes doubled by flute 2 or 3.]
- 1, 2
- (Cor anglais)
[If called for, sometimes doubled by oboe 2.]
- 1, 2
- (Contrabassoon)
[If called for, sometimes doubled by bassoon 2.]
- ( E-flat clarinet)
- Clarinet in soprano clarinet 1, 2, 3 ( , 4, 5)
[Clarinets in A are sometimes used in professional concert bands, generally with a similar intent as symphonic orchestras for which B♭ or A clarinets are substituted to simplify a part's key signature.]
- ( Alto clarinet)
- 1 ( , 2)
- ( Contra-alto clarinet/Contrabass clarinet) ( often one of either, rarely both
[The contrabass clarinet part is usually provided in both B♭ and E♭ (contra-alto).])
- ( Soprano saxophone)
[In most cases, if a soprano saxophone is called for, it will replace the first alto saxophone part.]
- 1, 2
[In very rare cases, only a single alto saxophone will be called for (e.g., Holst Band Suites). However, this practice has generally been discontinued with two alto saxophones almost always called for.]
- Tenor saxophone
- Baritone saxophone
- ( Bass saxophone)
- Brass
- or in B♭ 1, 2, 3 ( , 4, 5, 6
[Trumpet and cornet parts have often been considered interchangeable and are sometimes separated into 3 or 4 cornet parts and two trumpet parts; however, this practice is no longer used and is usually only seen in older (e.g. pre-1950) works and transcriptions. Trumpets are almost always in B♭ though models in E♭, D, and C were used commonly in the heyday of professional concert bands.])
- ( Piccolo trumpet
[If called for, sometimes doubled by trumpet 1.])
- ( in B♭ 1 (, 2))
- ( tenor horn in E♭ 1, 2 (, 3, 4)
[In older works, there was often a middle brass part that could be played on either alto/tenor horn in E♭, French horn, or Mellophone. There were usually copies of the parts in both F and E♭, for players to read off of based on the key of their instrument. Some modern publishers still include E♭ horn parts, which are merely duplicates of the F horn parts transposed to E♭. Alto/tenor horns are especially common in Britain, where they are often referred to as tenor horns.])
- French horn 1, 2, 3, 4
- 1, 2 ( , 3)
[Trombone parts will usually be divided into three parts with the first two parts (trombones 1, 2) played by tenor trombones and the third played by a bass trombone. However, in rare cases where a fourth part is required, either trombone 3 is a tenor and trombone 4 is a bass, or trombones 3 and 4 are both Bass. Scores will typically notate which one is preferred.]
- Bass trombone
- ( Contrabass trombone)
- ( Alto trombone)
[If called for, sometimes doubled by trombone 1.]
- Euphoniums
[The baritone/euphonium part is usually provided in both bass clef (concert pitch) and treble clef (in B, sounding a Major ninth below written).] or [Baritones and euphoniums are often used interchangeably, though some works have distinct parts for the two instruments. Most of the time when a composer writes for "baritone", they are actually thinking of the larger-bore euphonium.] 1 ( , 2)
- Keyboards
- Piano
- Celesta
- Organ
-
- Percussion
[Percussion ensembles in concert bands can range from 2 to over 14 players. The type of percussion instruments used varies with the piece of music being played. Many percussion instruments from different cultures are used in a lot of contemporary concert band literature, especially in high school and college bands.]
- * Examples of non-pitched choices
- *:
- *:
- *:
- *: Clash cymbal
- *:
- *: Triangles
- *:
- *: Güiros
- *: Timbales
- *:
- *:
- *: Wood blocks or temple blocks
- *: Tom-tom drum
- *: Bongo drum
- *:
- *: Claves
- *:
- *: Wind chimes
- *: Rainstick
- *: Whips
- *: Maracas
- *: Finger cymbals
- *: Mark tree
- *: Bell tree
- *: Drum set
- * Examples of pitched percussion instruments
- *: Timpani
[Timpani are always included in percussion parts; they have their own stave, notated in bass clef.]
- *:
- *:
- *: Marimba
- *: Crotales
- *: Vibraphone
- *: Tubular bells
- Strings
- String bass
[String bass parts are typically included in more advanced band pieces and larger ensemble instrumentation. The string bass part is sometimes replaced with Bass guitar in certain contemporary band pieces. Some high schools and most college and professional bands will have a bassist in the ensemble.]
- Pedal harp (1, 2)
- Cello
- Electric guitar
- Bass guitar
Repertoire
Development of a repertoire
Until early in the 20th century, there was little music written specifically for the wind band, which led to an extensive repertoire of pieces transcribed from orchestral works, or arranged from other sources. However, as the wind band moved out of the sole domain of the military marching ensemble and into the concert hall, it has gained favor with composers, and now many works are being written specifically for the concert band and the wind ensemble. While today there are composers who write exclusively for band, many composers famous for their work in other genres have given their talents to composition for wind bands as well. This is especially true in Japan, where an enormous market can be found for wind band compositions, which is largely due to commissions by the All-Japan Band Association and leading professional ensembles such as the Tokyo Kosei Wind Orchestra and Osaka Municipal Symphonic Band, as well as the Kappa Kappa Psi and Tau Beta Sigma Commissioning Program, the longest-running commissioning series for wind band in the United States.
Prominent composers for concert band
Early to middle 20th century
Some of the most important people in establishing literature written specifically for concert band in the early and middle 20th century were:
Late 20th century to the present
Over the last fifty years, many composers have written major works for wind ensemble. Some rose to prominence for helping to develop the concert band.
Important concert band literature
Wind-band research
Research on wind-band topics began in earnest in 1964 through the
Journal of Band Research,
affiliated with the American Bandmasters Association.
During the early 21st century, organizations that promote band research began publishing more research on wind band-related topics: Germany-based IGEB (founded 1974),[Initiatives expanded in recent decades include a research award, digital books, biography series, and monograph series. IGEB: International Society for Research and Promotion of Wind Music] the World Association of Symphonic Bands and Ensembles (WASBE, founded 1983),[WASBE Journal became peer-reviewed from 2006. WASBE Journal] and US-based organizations Historic Brass Society (founded 1988), National Band Association (NBA, founded 1960), and College Band Directors National Association (CBDNA, founded 1941).[CBDNA Journal established in 2010. CBDNA Journal]
Internationally notable wind-band researchers include Vincent Dubois on French bands, Paul Niemisto on Finnish bands, Frederick Harris on wind-band conductors, Jill M. Sullivan on US women's bands, Frank Battisti on US bands, David Hebert on Japanese and Polynesian bands, Patrick M. Jones on US military bands, and David Whitwell on European bands and repertoire.
Band associations
Some notable band associations include:
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American Bandmasters Association
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British Association of Symphonic Bands and Wind Ensembles
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All Japan Band Association
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Association of Concert Bands
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Lesbian and Gay Band Association
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National Band Council of Australia
See also
-
Ottoman military band
-
United States military bands
External links