America, The Beautiful: Choral Instrumental Pak
By Samuel A. Ward / By Katherine Lee Bates / As performed by Katharine Lee Bates / Arranged by Benjamin Harlan / Arranged by Jason Waggoner
Item: 35-PK00138413
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Description
This grand setting by Benjamin Harlan and Jason Waggoner is full of passion, energy and patriotic sparkle. Use the optional brass, percussion and handbells for a tour de force patriotic presentation. Handbell part included. Duration: ca. 5:00.
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Additional Details
Publisher:
Hal Leonard
SKU:
35-PK00138413
More about this title
About the Composer: Samuel A. Ward
Samuel A. Ward (1848-1903) composed the melody to "America, The Beautiful" in 1882, creating one of the most singable and emotionally resonant hymn tunes in American music. His gift for crafting memorable melodic lines that sit naturally in voices made this setting endure for over a century, becoming a cornerstone of American musical identity.
Ward's background as both organist and composer gave him deep understanding of how melodies function in congregational and choral settings. His work remains essential to music education because it models how a strong melodic idea can transcend its original context and speak powerfully across generations.
Why we love this
Harlan and Waggoner's arrangement respects the hymn's stately character while unlocking its full celebratory potential through layered instrumental scoring. The optional brass, percussion, and handbells give you flexibility to build from intimate choral performance to full patriotic spectacle, making this one setting work across multiple concert contexts without compromising musical integrity.
What to expect
Stately and soaring, this setting combines the hymn's inherent dignity with moments of genuine brilliance and sparkle. The handbells and percussion catch light and lift the familiar melody into something celebratory while the choral writing remains grounded and accessible.
Who it's for
This arrangement serves directors who need a substantial, flexible patriotic opener or closer for patriotic concerts, memorial services, or community events. It works equally well for mixed choirs of intermediate to advanced ability and gives ensembles with modest instrumental resources clean options for scaling the performance.
How to get the most out of it
- Balance the harmonic foundation between voices and instruments during full sections; the handbells and brass can easily overshadow careful choral blend if not mixed thoughtfully during rehearsal.
- Shape the phrases with consistent breath points across all sections, particularly where the optional instruments double the melody; unified phrasing creates architecture even in grandly orchestrated moments.
- Tune the chord changes deliberately, especially where brass enters; patriotic arrangements sometimes sacrifice intonation for volume, but this piece rewards precise vertical alignment.
- Establish the tempo early and keep it steady; at five minutes, a slight drag can make the piece feel labored rather than triumphant.
How to use it
Position this as a powerful concert closer or the anchor of a patriotic-themed program where it can command full attention and resources. Its duration and musical weight also suit it well as the finale of a longer choral concert where you want to send audiences out with something stirring and memorable.
Skills your students will build
- Singing familiar melody in fresh harmonic contexts
- Balancing choral sound with optional instrumental doublings
- Shaping long-lined patriotic phrases with architectural control
- Reading parts that may include optional instrumentation cues
- Executing sustained dynamic control in hymn-based repertoire