2009 Marching Band Update v.2.0

With marching season just around the corner (I know, school just let out, right?) the instrumental staff at Stanton’s would like to keep you up-to-date with what’s new for 2009!

First, audio for the NEW titles from the Arrangers’ Publishing Company and Jalen/Matrix has been added to the Stanton’s Listening Library!

Second, Stanton’s updated Show Planning Guide has been mailed – if you haven’t received your copy, contact us (instrumental@stantons.com; 1-800-42-MUSIC) and we’ll be happy to send one to you!

Lastly, the marching band categories on Stanton’s Listening Library and Stanton’s Website have been updated to include this year’s new titles!

Stay tuned to the Stanton’s Sheet Music blog for future marching band posts featuring Complete New Shows for 2009, New Percussion Cadences/Features, and New Stands Cheers!

The Musical Legacy of Michael Jackson

The music industry lost a giant last Thursday with the death of Michael Jackson, “The King of Pop.”  His unexpected passing came as a shock to his fans across the globe.  From his early years as part of the Jackson 5 to his domination of the music scene as a solo artist in the 1980’s, his imprint on the world of popular music is unparalleled.  Throughout his solo career, Jackson’s versatility allowed him to experiment with various themes and musical genres, including Motown, rock, funk, techno, and (of course) pop.  His influence on the development of the music video is also remarkable, turning it into not only a promotional tool for musicians but also an art form and means of artistic expression.  One of his most significant contributions is his unique blend of music and dance – his songs may have climbed the charts, but his dancing is what made him a superstar.  The Moonwalk completely rewrote the book on dance in pop music, and the choreography from his “Thriller” video is iconic. 

Early in his solo career, Jackson battled to receive coverage on MTV because he was African-American.  His victory in this struggle led to a lengthy partnership with the network, while simultaneously paving the way for other black artists to gain recognition.  Released in 1982, Thriller is the best-selling album of all time.  Seven of the album’s nine songs placed in the Billboard Top 10, including the huge hit songs “Billie Jean,” “Beat It,” and “Thriller.”  One of the few artists to have been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame twice (first in 1997 as a member of the Jackson 5, and again in 2001 as a solo artist), other career achievements include 13 Grammy Awards, 13 number one singles, and the sale of a staggering 750 million records worldwide. 

If you want to pay musical tribute to Michael, check out some of these arrangements:

The vocal folio from the blockbuster album Thriller contains the lyrics along with piano and chord arrangements for all of the songs on the record. 

Your marching band can honor the Jackson 5 with arrangements of I Want You Back, A B C and I’ll Be There.  Remembering Michael as a young boy will remind your audience of their own carefree youth.

MJ’s Man in the Mirror is a great feature for choral groups.  With its uplifting and hopeful lyrics, it’s perfect for encouraging young singers to contribute to the world around them. 

Jackson is mourned by fans worldwide, and will always be remembered for his passionate contributions to the world of music.  If we take nothing else from Jackson’s influential, high-profile and often controversial life, it should be this: “If you wanna make the world a better place, take a look at yourself, then make a change…”

Feedback Friday: Remembering the “King of Pop”

Jazz Workshop for Piano Teachers

Our good friends at the Jazz Arts Group Jazz Academy are always up to some great jazz education opportunities!

Don’t miss this great opportunity to participate in a three-day intensive, hands-on workshop with Bradley Sowash.  Designed specifically for traditional studio piano teachers, this course will demonstrate ways to integrate a teaching approach that involves personal expression, improvisation and the applied knowledge of music theory.

The course begins a week from today, Monday, June 29 and runs through Wednesday, July 1 from 9am – 3pm.  The class will be held in the new Jazz Academy in its state-of-the-art keyboard studio.  The Jazz Academy is located in the historic Lincoln Theatre complex on E. Long Street at I-71 in downtown Columbus.

Bradley Sowash’s materials may be purchased at Stanton’s Sheet Music.

Registration is available at:  http://www.jazzartsgroup.org/education/jazz_academy.php.

Focus On Jazz Piano pdf flyer

Plan Ahead!

Music teachers may be enjoying some “down time” during the summer months, but here in the choral department at Stanton’s, we’re kicking it into high gear!  Publishers from all over the country send us “new issues” (advance copies of new titles) for the next fall starting as early as January so we’re often listening to next year’s Christmas music around March and April.  We’ve been spending many hours listening to recordings, sitting at the piano reading, and evaluating new literature for choirs of all ages and all levels of difficulty.

So that flyer you’ll get in your school mailbox this fall has a lot of time and thought behind it!  We look for new music the way YOU do, searching for teaching opportunities, age-appropriate texts, music for a variety of performance occasions, and pieces that will be enjoyed and appreciated by your singers and audience alike.

For those of you who like to plan ahead (like we do!), here are a few BRAND-NEW octavos (that perhaps you wouldn’t find otherwise) that are sure to be successful on your fall choral concerts:

HIGH SCHOOL CHOIRS
Black is the Color of My True Love’s Hair
Cantate Domino
Where Your Bare Foot Walks
MIDDLE SCHOOL CHOIRS
Come Again, Sweet Love
Red Geraniums
Walk Together, Children!
MEN’S CHOIRS
Laudate Dominum
Skye Boat Song
WOMEN’S CHOIRS
Letter from a Girl to the World
The Saint Train

Give us a call at 1-800-42-MUSIC for more great recommendations – everything new is fresh in our minds!

New and Great for Summer Programs!

Are you wondering what to do with your group of wiggly little ones at your summer camp? Do you need a warm-up activity for vacation bible school? Want to “blow off some steam” during your summer musical program?

Check out Whole Lotta Hullabaloo by Greg Gilpin!

With songs like “Hoot and Holler,” “Hop, Jump and Bounce,” and “Twist It,” your kids will be wiggling, twisting, jumping, stretching, and more. Just pop in the included CD and you’re ready to go!

This collection can also be used for vocal/physical warm-ups, to reward students at the end of class, or even as novelty pieces for performance so Whole Lotta Hullabaloo can go with you from the summer right into the school year.

Everybody’s popular music for guitar, Books 1 and 2

Have you ever had trouble finding easy pop music for guitar for yourself or a student?  The FJH Music Company has produced 2 new books of pop songs for guitar that fill that niche.   Book 1 of Everybody’s Popular Music for Guitar has a blend of pop, folk,  and classical songs on an early level.  You or your student can play the melody, or strum along with the chords.  This book will fit in nicely with any  level one method book  for guitar.  It includes This Land is Your Land, The House of the Rising Sun, Can You Feel the Love, Tonight, and more. 

Book 2 of Everybody’s Popular Music for Guitar includes pop, rock, classical,  and blues songs.  There are duets for teacher and student, or 2 students. Chords are fuller and a little more complicated that in Book 1. New strumming patterns are introduced.  Songs include Nights in White Satin, Misty, What a Wonderful World, Saint Louis Blues, and She Loves You.

 For more information about this product or others from Stanton’s Sheet Music, please contact us.

It’s a bird! It’s a plane! …No, it’s a bird.

For the last two days, Stanton’s employees and customers have had a special visitor…a little starling bird that flew into the store early Friday morning.  He’s been spending his days quickly checking out what we’re doing on the sales floor and then disappearing back into the ceiling (right now Stanton’s is having a brand new lighting system installed, and several ceiling tiles have been removed so he is finding plenty of places to hide up in the rafters!).

So of course, being a music store and all, we started thinking about songs about birds…Blackbird…Birdland…and of course…Bye Bye Birdie!!

Any suggestions on how to help our feathered friend get back outside???

Feedback Friday: The Sounds of Summer

Resources for Developing Singers

Not a new series, but one that you may have overlooked is “A Young Singer’s Journey.” This three part series from Hinshaw Music is an excellent tool for classroom use or private instruction.

Each workbook guides students through basic theory and sight-reading activities, as well as direction for healthy sound production, all specifically pertaining to the needs of a singer. The accompanying audio CD, laminated keyboard and booklet of warm-up exercises give students the tools to have productive and focused practice time, even without the teacher.

Because the workbooks are of graduated difficulty (Book I, Book II, & Book III), they would be especially useful for working with students of different skill levels in the same class or lesson. A good comparison to what this series has to offer would be to liken it to the lesson method books that are readily available for piano and other instruments.

If your concentration is the young choral ensemble rather than individual singers, Stanton’s very strongly recommends “Inside the Elementary School Chorus” by Patricia Bourne. This inspiring and practical text will guide you step-by-step if you are planning to start a beginning choir, or give you new ways to build and strengthen your current elementary group. The book also includes a DVD that provides sight and sound to the strategies shared in the text.

If you would like additional information on these or other products, please email us or call 1-800-42-MUSIC.