Companions on the Journey: Concert Band Conductor Score & Parts

$52.00 USD

Companions on the Journey: Concert Band Conductor Score & Parts

Name: Companions on the Journey: Concert Band Conductor Score & Parts
Brand: Alfred Music
SKU: 00-29473
Price: 52.00 USD
Availability: InStock

By Brant Karrick

Grade: 2.5 (Medium Easy)

Item: 00-29473

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Imagine the exciting sensation and thrill of traveling with friends to a foreign country in another hemisphere for the first time! Companions on the Journey is a song of joy, camaraderie and celebration. It was composed for the Xavier College Wind Ensemble from Melbourne, Australia, in conjunction with the group's 2006 tour of the United States. (3:20)

Don't just read it, hear it, play along with it, and watch your students grow with it. In MakeMusic Cloud, Companions on the Journey: Concert Band Conductor Score & Parts comes alive with professional accompaniment, adjustable tempo, and built-in practice tools that turn solo practice into real progress.

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Series: Young Symphonic

Publisher: Alfred Music

Page Count: 276

UPC: 038081318844

SKU: 00-29473

More about this title

About the Composer: Brant Karrick

Brant Karrick has shaped band programs across three decades as a teacher, conductor, and composer. He joined Northern Kentucky University in 2003 as Director of Bands, overseeing the full ensemble curriculum while teaching conducting, orchestration, and music theory. Before that, he spent nine years at the University of Toledo and seven years directing public school bands in Kentucky.

Karrick earned his Ph.D. in music education from Louisiana State University (1994), his M.A. from Western Kentucky University (1984), and his B.M.E. from the University of Louisville (1982). His compositions have traveled globally, performed across North America, Europe, South Africa, South America, Japan, and Australia. He remains active as a guest conductor, clinician, and adjudicator, and holds memberships in NAFME, ASCAP, and the College Band Directors National Association.

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Why we love this

Karrick composed this piece specifically for a university ensemble's international tour, capturing the genuine energy of shared adventure without resorting to bombast or complexity. At Grade 2.5, it gives young players a chance to perform something written for a real occasion and a real ensemble, not a generic educational product. The orchestration sits comfortably across concert band voices while maintaining musical substance that feels rewarding to conduct.

What to expect

Companions on the Journey radiates the genuine excitement of stepping into a new place with people you trust. The music swells with brightness and forward momentum, capturing both the thrill of anticipation and the warmth of shared experience. It moves with buoyancy and joy, inviting your ensemble to celebrate together.

Who it's for

Bands at the middle school or early high school level seeking substantial programming that sounds and feels celebratory without excessive technical demands. Directors looking for a concert work that connects to real musical storytelling (a commission for an actual international tour) rather than generic school band fare will find this piece offers genuine compositional intention.

How to get the most out of it

Emphasize the rhythmic vitality in the sections where the ensemble locks together; this camaraderie theme shows up in unison lines and parallel passages that need rhythmic precision to sparkle.
Balance the melodic voices carefully when the tune passes between sections. Players often want to overplay their featured line, so highlight who holds the melody at each moment during rehearsal.
Let the accompaniment figures breathe. The supporting voices give the piece texture and forward motion, so they need clarity rather than volume to sit properly in the band mix.

How to use it

Program this at the opening of a concert to set an upbeat, celebratory tone for the audience from the start. It works well alongside other light concert fare and provides a natural contrast to more serious or dramatic selections later in the program. Consider pairing it with other travel-themed or adventure-inspired works to create a thematic concert or assembly program.

Skills your students will build

Executing rhythmic precision in ensemble sections with sustained notes and punctuated figures
Balancing melody and accompaniment across band voices
Maintaining consistent pulse and forward motion in lyrical, flowing passages
Reading concert band texture and adjusting dynamic response based on orchestration role