Accent on Performance Holiday Collection: Clarinet 2 Book

These arrangements solve a real scheduling problem: you get genuinely musical holiday pieces that fit your band's current ability level without requiring separate purchases of intermediate and advanced versions. The connection to Accent on Achievement means any student using that method recognizes these pieces as natural extensions of what they've learned, building confidence and ownership. Clarinet 2 parts are neither buried in unison nor stuck playing rhythmic padding, giving your second clarinets real voice in the arrangements.

Fresh and purposeful. These arrangements respect the holiday source material while treating it with genuine compositional care. You'll hear clear melodic voices, interesting harmonic textures, and the kind of musical integrity that makes students feel like musicians, not just young players working through holiday filler.

Band directors teaching Grades 2-4 who want substantial holiday programming without sacrificing musicianship or classroom time. Students working from Accent on Achievement will find these pieces reinforce their technical foundation while introducing them to thoughtful arranging. Any clarinet section looking to stay engaged during winter concerts will find these parts rewarding to play.

• Watch the articulation markings carefully; O'Reilly and Williams use them to shape phrasing, not just to mark attacks. Respect the distinction between legato tonguing and tongued single notes.
• Balance your Clarinet 2 line against Clarinet 1 in passages where you're in harmony. These parts are written to blend, so listen across the section rather than playing out front.
• Approach the holiday tunes as arrangements, not simplified versions. Commit fully to the musical character even in straightforward passages; that's where the arrangement's creativity often lives.
• Use the page correlations to Accent on Achievement if you're familiar with the method. Students can see exactly how the technique they drilled connects to the musical result they're performing.

Build an entire winter concert from this collection without repeating style or arranging approach. The variety of Christmas and Hanukkah selections lets you program thematically without relying on the same four overplayed standards. Alternatively, pull individual arrangements throughout December rehearsals to maintain focus and progress while staying seasonally relevant.

• Reading and executing varied articulation markings in musical context
• Balancing harmonic lines with Clarinet 1 while maintaining independence
• Connecting technical facility (from Accent on Achievement) to expressive performance
• Playing second clarinet parts with full musical ownership rather than as accompaniment