Scotland is a treasure trove of beautiful melodies. There are many wonderful folk songs that are also very popular in Japan. I chose the following five melodies from amongst those and created a medley suitable for concert.
1. Annie Laurie: melody created by Mrs. John Douglas Scott in the first half of the 19th century, but today it is sung as a folk song.This arrangement is repeated twice, changing the key, tempo, and orchestration.
2. Comin' Thro' the Rye: famous for various parody songs. Here, I used the original melodic rhythm (long + short, short + long combination) as is.
3. The Water is Wide: An old song passed down since the 16th century. It is also known by the title "O Waly, Waly". Repeated twice, solo and tutti, solo allows you to choose from several instruments.
4. Scotland the Brave: An inspirational march considered the second Scottish national anthem. I arranged it to imitate bagpipes.
5. Auld Lang Syne: The most popular and enduring Scottish folk song in Japan. The melody gradually evolves to overlap "Scotland the Brave", leading to climax. Ideal for closing concerts or sending off graduates.
The entire band is divided into 6 parts including percussion, and each part can freely select specified instruments and play in combinations.
It's not always necessary to perform with all instruments, and it's also interesting to change the sound by varying population, instrument types, or creating a solo features.
(Yo Goto)
