Details
- Ensembles:
- Jazz Ensemble
- Genres:
- 20th Century Swing Big Band
- Composers:
- Irving Mills Fletcher Henderson
- Publishers:
- Peter Stove
- Format:
- Score and Parts
- Item types:
- Digital
- Level:
- Late Intermediate
- Artist:
- Benny Goodman
- Usages:
- School and Community
- Number of Pages:
- 98
SKU: A0.1845200
By Benny Goodman. By Fletcher Henderson and Irving Mills. Arranged by Peter Stöve. This edition: pdf, streaming. 20th Century, Big Band, Jazz, Swing. 98 pages. Peter Stove #1404766. Published by Peter Stove (A0.1845200).Peter Stöve ‘What If Benny Goodman…’ series, Vol. 8! (A take-off on events that could have happened with the Benny Goodman Orchestra’s book of arrangements if things in jazz history had taken another turn).
What if Benny Goodman during live performances had followed the same approach to Fletcher Henderson's arrangements as Fletcher himself? In 1934, Benny Goodman bought a stack of arrangements from Fletcher Henderson, who had just disbanded his own orchestra. Fletcher had enjoyed years of success with these pieces in various ballrooms. However, according to people who had heard the orchestra live, the orchestra's recordings did not accurately reflect the band's musical qualities. Soloists could hardly build up a good solo within the 3-minute limit of the 78 rpm records, and sometimes the pieces themselves were too long, requiring cuts to be made.
Down South Camp Meeting is one such piece that makes you wonder how it must have sounded in a ballroom, played by Fletcher's orchestra. There, the solos could be longer, and there was more time for the soloist to build up to a climax. In Benny's orchestra, it was rare for a piece to be ‘stretched’ to give soloists more space. In addition, Henderson's recording, like Goodman's, lacks a strong ‘outchorus’. In this arrangement, the last part is a variation on the first chorus, giving the piece a stronger ending.
'Down South Camp Meeting' is presented here as a piece that could have been a cornerstone of the Goodman band book if Benny had also chosen to ‘break open’ this arrangement in certain places. It is written for the 1935 Goodman Orchestra lineup: solo clt/2 as/2 ts/3 tpt/2 trb/rhy. The solos for clarinet, tenor sax, and trumpet have a background ‘on cue’ during the last improvised chorus. The band leader (or someone else) can then give the ‘continue’ signal to move on to the next part of the arrangement.
The clarinet soloist must be a first-class ‘BG-wannabe’: fluent soloist, comfortable in the upper register. If your band has such a player: have fun!
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- More by this Composer:
- Benny Goodman Benny Goodman Choir Benny Goodman Piano Benny Goodman Voice
- ArrangeMe:
- Peter Stove
- Artists:
- Benny Goodman Irving Mills Fletcher Henderson
- Ensemble:
- Jazz Ensemble
- Publisher:
- Peter Stove