Embraceable You (featuring Flugelhorn Solo with Strings): String Orchestra Conductor Score & Parts

Calvin Custer's arrangement lets you feature a strong flugelhorn or trumpet soloist while keeping string writing accessible at Grade 3.5. The addition of rhythm section (piano, bass, drums, guitar) gives the piece that sophisticated jazz-inflected sound Gershwin intended without requiring your orchestra to master complex contemporary idioms. It's a gorgeous tune that students recognize, conductors enjoy rehearsing, and audiences love hearing.

Romantic and urbane, this arrangement captures the sophisticated charm of the original song. The interplay between solo voice and string accompaniment feels conversational and intimate, even when played in a concert setting. It's a piece that opens with lyrical elegance and invites the audience into a moment of genuine musical connection.

String orchestras with a capable solo brass player who can carry a melody with warmth and control. Works equally well in schools where trumpet or flugelhorn students are at an intermediate level or better, and in youth orchestras looking to program accessible yet musically substantial material.

• Balance the solo instrument carefully against the strings. The melody should float over the ensemble, not compete with it. A light touch on dynamics in the accompaniment often serves better than a loud soloist.
• Work the rhythm section independently before full rehearsal. Their groove and flexibility (especially piano and guitar comping) will define whether this arrangement swings or sits flat.
• Shape the tune's natural rubato in phrase endings. Gershwin's melodies breathe, so allow small space before new phrases rather than cutting off cadences abruptly.
• Keep string vibrato consistent and warm through the sustained accompaniment passages. Vibrato control helps prevent the rhythm section from getting buried.

This works beautifully as a solo feature concert showcasing your best brass student, or as a bridge piece between more classical repertoire and contemporary pops selections. It also pairs naturally with other Great American Songbook material, making it ideal for themed concerts celebrating American musical theater.

• Playing in a jazz-influenced harmonic language and rhythm
• Responding to soloist flexibility while maintaining ensemble pulse
• Balancing sustained string accompaniment without overwhelming a solo voice
• Reading and executing a conductor's cues in a chamber-like solo-ensemble context