Companions on the Journey: Concert Band Conductor Score

$8.00 USD

Companions on the Journey: Concert Band Conductor Score

Name: Companions on the Journey: Concert Band Conductor Score
Brand: Alfred Music
SKU: 00-29473S
Price: 8.00 USD
Availability: InStock

By Brant Karrick

Grade: 2.5 (Medium Easy)

Item: 00-29473S

$8.00

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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)

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Series: Young Symphonic

Publisher: Alfred Music

Page Count: 24

UPC: 038081318851

SKU: 00-29473S

More about this title

About the Composer: Brant Karrick

Brant Karrick has directed the band program at Northern Kentucky University since 2003, overseeing the Symphonic Winds, Concert Band, and Chamber Winds while teaching conducting, instrumental methods, and music theory. Before joining the NKU faculty, he spent nine years at the University of Toledo and seven years teaching in Kentucky public schools. His doctoral work in music education (Louisiana State University, 1994) built on earlier degrees from the University of Louisville and Western Kentucky University.

Karrick's compositions and arrangements have been performed across the United States, Canada, Europe, South Africa, South America, Japan, and Australia. He remains active as a guest conductor, adjudicator, and clinician, and holds memberships in NAFME, ASCAP, and the College Band Directors National Association. His study of trumpet, conducting, and composition with mentors including Frank Wickes and David Livingston shaped both his teaching and creative voice.

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Why we love this

Karrick captures something genuine here: the exhilaration of shared travel and discovery without resorting to bombast. The piece works brilliantly at 2.5 because it balances accessibility with real musical substance, giving your ensemble an immediate sense of accomplishment while still respecting their developing musicianship. Programming this score alongside works with similar emotional warmth creates a concert that feels coherent rather than scattered.

What to expect

The music radiates optimism without saccharine sentimentality. There's a buoyant quality to the harmony and orchestration that suggests excitement and friendship, the kind of genuine joy you hear when musicians discover they can create something beautiful together. The three-minute-twenty-second arc moves with purpose, never dragging, capturing that snapshot of anticipation before an adventure begins.

Who it's for

Concert bands at the middle school or early high school level will find this work perfectly suited to their technical and musical development. Directors programming a concert that celebrates ensemble spirit or international themes will recognize immediately how well this score fits the occasion.

How to get the most out of it

Shape the melodic lines with careful attention to phrase length; even in a celebratory context, avoid letting rhythmic energy flatten the contours of the main themes.
Balance the inner voices and counter-melodies so that the texture feels layered rather than muddled. Middle school and early high school bands often need reminders about dynamic hierarchy.
Pay attention to the harmonic rhythm. A piece about camaraderie succeeds when listeners hear the chords change with intention, not just feel a constant forward motion.

How to use it

Open a concert with this piece to set a warm, inclusive tone, or place it in the second half as a palate-cleanser between weightier works. Its story of travel and connection makes it especially valuable for programs celebrating cultural exchange, international partnerships, or simply the life of your ensemble as a community.