A La Claire Fontaine: Interchangeable Woodwind Ensemble Score & Parts

Warm and unpretentious. The French-Canadian folksong carries an easy lyricism that feels at home in concert settings, while the harmonic variations Coakley introduces prevent the piece from becoming predictable. There's a conversational quality to how voices pass the melody back and forth.

Woodwind ensembles at the elementary through middle school level, or any group working with flexible instrumentation needs. Conductors programming a mixed-ability ensemble will find genuine musical value here without needing to doctor the score for missing instruments.

• Balance the melodic material across different voices as it rotates. Mark your parts clearly when the tune shifts from flutes to clarinets to saxophones so transitions feel intentional rather than accidental.
• The variations that build throughout the piece work best when the ensemble commits to the rhythmic character of each section. Slight tempo adjustments between variations can highlight the developmental arc.
• Feature your strongest readers on Parts 1 and 2 early, then shift your best sonority players to the lower parts as the harmonic interest deepens in later sections.

This works beautifully as an opening number that establishes a lighter mood before more substantial repertoire, or as a standalone festival piece that showcases ensemble cohesion without demanding months of rehearsal. The accessible level makes it ideal for a young ensemble that needs a confidence builder early in the season.

• Trading melodic lines between different instrumental colors
• Accompanying with harmonic interest while maintaining textural clarity
• Reading parts written for instruments at different transpositions (B-flat, E-flat, F)
• Responding to variations in texture and harmonic accompaniment patterns