Accent on Performance Holiday Collection: Bassoon Book

These arrangements keep holiday concerts fresh by moving beyond the standard fare while staying accessible to developing musicians. The bassoon parts are genuinely musical, never relegated to background duty, and the collection's variety means you can program multiple selections without repetition across concerts or years.

Festive and straightforward. These arrangements honor the beloved melodies while adding contemporary harmonic and rhythmic interest that keeps performers engaged. The writing celebrates the bassoon's warm, resonant voice rather than hiding it.

This book serves bassoon players in young to intermediate concert bands who are working from or familiar with the Accent on Achievement method. It also fits ensembles looking for holiday repertoire that challenges developing players without overwhelming them.

• Balance your low-reed section carefully; these arrangements often feature the bassoons in prominent melodic roles alongside tubas and lower brasses, so ensure intonation is solid before adding upper voices.
• Use the optional flexibility within these pieces to accommodate your ensemble's strengths. Some arrangements work equally well with doubled parts or slight instrumentation adjustments, giving you options if players are absent.
• Shape phrase endings with attention to the harmonic rhythm. Many holiday tunes move quickly through changes, and clean releases help the listener track the familiar melody underneath the arrangement.

Build a full holiday concert by selecting three to four arrangements from this collection, pairing them with contrasting tempos and textures to hold audience interest. These pieces work equally well as November warm-ups for December performances or as standalone repertoire for winter recitals.

• Reading and performing within concert-band textures
• Balancing melody and harmony in ensemble settings
• Maintaining intonation across extended ranges required by holiday arrangements
• Coordinating phrase shapes with multiple reed voices
• Sight-reading arrangements of familiar melodies in varied harmonic contexts