Fantasia on We Three Kings: Trombone 1
By Brian Balmages
Grade: 5
Item: 98-PC-DOR5001_TN1
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Description
This feature-length work is the perfect way to integrate serious concert music with the rest of your winter program. A significant amount of original material is woven around the familiar carol We Three Kings. From the impressionistic sounds of the opening to the powerful and dramatic conclusion, this work covers the full gamut of textures and emotions. Amazing!
Don't just read it, hear it, play along with it, and watch your students grow with it. In MakeMusic Cloud, Fantasia on We Three Kings: Trombone 1 comes alive with professional accompaniment, adjustable tempo, and built-in practice tools that turn solo practice into real progress.
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Additional Details
Series:
FJH Symphony Orchestra
Publisher:
The FJH Music Company, Inc.
SKU:
98-PC-DOR5001_TN1
More about this title
About the Composer: Brian Balmages
Brian Balmages has established himself as a composer and conductor working across orchestral, band, and chamber idioms with equal facility. His works have been commissioned and performed worldwide, from professional ensembles at Carnegie Hall and the Kennedy Center to school orchestras at every level, earning him recognition including the A. Austin Harding Award from the American School Band Directors Association and the 2020 NBA William D. Revelli Composition Contest.
Balmages has served as a guest conductor at the Midwest Clinic, Western International Band Clinic, College Band Directors Conference, and numerous state conferences, and has been recognized with the James Madison University Distinguished Alumni Award. His music was performed at the 2013 Presidential Inaugural Prayer Service, and he was commissioned by the University of Miami to compose for the inauguration of the university's 6th president. He currently directs MakeMusic Publications and Digital Education for Alfred and MakeMusic.
Why we love this
Balmages has crafted a work that lets you program serious orchestral literature without abandoning the holiday concert expectations your audience wants. The integration of original material around a beloved carol gives you structural substance while maintaining accessibility, and the breadth of textures (impressionistic to dramatic) gives your ensemble genuine interpretive and technical challenges across all sections.
What to expect
The opening unfolds with shimmering, impressionistic textures that wash over the familiar tune, creating an introspective and colorful soundscape. By the work's conclusion, all that delicate architecture builds into something powerful and declarative, allowing the orchestra to show both refinement and dramatic force.
Who it's for
Intermediate to advanced high school orchestras (Grade 5) that want substantive concert repertoire with holiday appeal. This work suits orchestras with secure fundamentals across strings, woodwinds, and brass who are ready to navigate complex orchestration and interpretive nuance.
How to get the most out of it
- Balance the familiar melody against the original countermelody and accompaniment material throughout; the carol should anchor the texture without dominating it.
- Attend carefully to the dynamic architecture in the opening impressionistic sections where subtle shifts between sections create the atmospheric quality rather than bold contrasts.
- Bring out the full power of the orchestration in the conclusion by ensuring all sections understand how their individual lines contribute to the cumulative dramatic effect.
How to use it
Feature this as your anchor work for a winter concert built around a carol theme, or use it to open a program that transitions from holiday music to other serious repertoire. The balance of accessibility and artistry makes it ideal for showcasing your orchestra's capabilities to a broad audience while maintaining programming integrity.
Skills your students will build
- Balancing multiple layers of melodic and accompaniment material simultaneously
- Navigating dynamic and textural contrast within a single work
- Sustaining long-lined phrasing through impressionistic harmonic movement
- Building dramatic momentum across extended sections with contrasting material
- Reading and responding to detailed orchestral articulation and scoring