AMAZING GRACE for concert band Amazing Grace by Frank Ticheli. Hear streaming audio on this page. Suitable for middle school through college bands, and community bands, 6 minutes duration, Grade 3. To Place an Order Click Here Hear a complete performance in stereo streaming audio using (& requiring) QuickTime 3 or newer: Hear a complete performance of Amazing Grace Download the MP3 Recording Read our primer on QuickTime, streaming audio, & MP3

Blue Shades: The Music of Frank Ticheli (CD) Contains a recording of AMAZING GRACE and other works by Frank Ticheli Click the CD for a complete list of works

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DEDICATION

I would like to dedicate this setting of AMAZING GRACE to my mother, Annie Lee Whitwell, in loving memory of my father, John Harvey Whitwell (1920-1993), in recognition of their deep religious faith and their lives of selfless service to others.

I am deeply indebted to Frank Ticheli for accepting this commission and for this wonderful contribution to the band literature.

John Whitwell

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PROGRAM NOTE

I wanted my setting of AMAZING GRACE to reflect the powerful simplicity

of the words and melody - to be sincere, to be direct, to be honest - and not through the use of novel harmonies and clever tricks, but by traveling traditional paths in search of truth and authenticity.

 

I believe that music has the power to take us to a place that words alone cannot. And so my own feelings about "Amazing Grace" reside in this setting itself. The harmony, texture, orchestration, and form are inseparable, intertwined so as to be perceived as a single expressive entity.

 

The spiritual, "Amazing Grace," was written by John Newton (1725-1807), a slaveship captain who, after years of transporting slaves across the Atlantic Ocean to the New World, suddenly saw through divine grace the evilness of his acts. First published in 1835 by William Walker in The Southern Harmony, "Amazing Grace" has since grown to become one of the most beloved of all American spirituals.

 

The Manhattan Beach Music recording of AMAZING GRACE is performed by the California State University at Fullerton Wind Ensemble, Mitchell Fennell, conductor, Frank Ticheli, guest conductor. AMAZING GRACE was commissioned by John Whitwell in loving memory of his father, John Harvey Whitwell. It was first performed on February 10, 1994 by the Michigan State University Wind Symphony, John Whitwell conductor.

 

Frank Ticheli

Pasadena, California

May 11, 1994

 

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PERFORMANCE NOTES

 

The form is as follows:


MEASURES	SECTION	KEY
1-8	introduction	Eb
9-24	first statement (chamber)	Eb
25-38	second statement (tutti)	Eb
39-46	episode	modulating to Bb
47-69	development	Bb...Db...F...
70-82	transition	Bb (pedal)
83-98	final statement (climax)	Eb
99-106	coda	Eb


All parts are indicated as "one only" in measures 9 through 24 for a more chamber-like effect. The melody, played by solo alto saxophone, should always be heard in the foreground.

 

The "breath mark" indicated just before measure 43 should not be interpreted as a musical pause, but rather as a slight phrase separation.

 

In the development section, each independent entrance must be heard, and the many lines comprising the texture should be carefully balanced.

 

The final statement of the melody is accompanied by a countermelody given to the flutes, oboes, first alto saxophone, and first trumpet. This countermelody should be heard in the foreground, but it should not overpower the melody. The crescendo and ritardando molto indications in measures 89-90 may be interpreted very dramatically, and the climax beginning in measure 91 should be played with full force. Make sure that the quarter-note triplets come through at measure 92, and that the horns come through in measure 93.

 

Frank Ticheli

Instrumentation

 

1 Full Score

4 Flute 1

4 Flute 2

2 Oboe 1

2 Oboe 2

4 Bb Clarinet 1

4 Bb Clarinet 2

4 Bb Clarinet 3

3 Bb Bass Clarinet

1 Bb Contrabass Clarinet

2 Bassoon 1

2 Bassoon 2

3 Eb Alto Saxophone 1

3 Eb Alto Saxophone 2

2 Bb Tenor Saxophone

2 Eb Baritone Saxophone

3 Bb Trumpet 1

3 Bb Trumpet 2

3 Bb Trumpet 3

2 F Horn 1

2 F Horn 2

2 Trombone 1

2 Trombone 2

2 Trombone 3

3 Euphonium B.C.

2 Euphonium T.C.

5 Tuba

2 Timpani

5 Percussion

 

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Copyright © 1998 Manhattan Beach Music. All Rights Reserved.

Performance by the California State University Fullerton Wind Ensemble, Mitchell Fennell, conductor, Frank Ticheli, guest conductor.

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