Classic Duke: Concert Band Conductor Score & Parts

Paul Murtha's arrangement strips away nothing essential while making these three standards practical for a concert band. The orchestration sits comfortably across your woodwinds and brass, allowing soloists to shine without leaving section players idle. Programming Ellington at grade 4 gives your band access to American songwriting that carries real compositional weight, not just novelty appeal.

These arrangements capture the elegance and rhythmic drive that made Ellington's music timeless. "Cotton Tail" bounces with infectious energy, "Sophisticated Lady" breathes with lyrical grace, and "It Don't Mean a Thing" swings hard with a melody that sticks immediately. The band becomes a single instrument capable of both subtle harmonic color and celebratory ensemble drive.

Concert bands at the intermediate level who are ready to tackle jazz standards with compositional substance. Directors seeking to broaden their students' musical vocabulary beyond traditional wind band literature will find these three pieces work equally well in a jazz-focused program or a mixed concert.

• Establish the swing feel in sectional rehearsals before running full band. Lock the rhythm section (snare, bass, piano) into the pocket first, then layer the horn lines over that foundation.
• Bring out the blues inflections in the melody voices, especially in "Sophisticated Lady." Ellington's melodies demand slight bends and expressive playing that sit between classical purity and full jazz articulation.
• Allow soloists breathing room during improvised passages or featured moments. These charts give space for individual voices to emerge, which is where the Ellington sound truly lives.
• Balance the swing section and comping voices so they support rather than compete with your brass and reeds. The band's harmonic color depends on hearing both layers clearly.

Consider pairing these three pieces as a mini-suite on a spring concert, creating a standalone segment that shifts your band's sound from classical to distinctly American. Alternatively, slot one piece into each of your concert programs throughout the year to expose students to Ellington's compositional range without overloading a single event.

• Swing eighth-note articulation and feel
• Reading and executing jazz chord symbols and comping rhythms
• Solo improvisation over jazz changes
• Blues harmony and dominant chord resolution
• Balancing sectional roles in a rhythm section
• Expressive phrasing in standards-based melodies