Here Comes The Sun (arr. Craig McLeish): SATB Choral Octavo

Craig McLeish's arrangement captures the song's essential warmth while making it genuinely singable for mixed voices. The four-part writing sits comfortably across ranges without sacrificing the brightness that makes this tune so immediately recognizable to students of all musical backgrounds.

Optimistic and unhurried, this setting captures the song's gentle optimism without requiring heroic vocal effort. The arrangement lets singers focus on phrasing and ensemble blend rather than technical display, making space for the text's quiet hopefulness to land.

This arrangement works for choirs seeking accessible repertoire that connects with students' existing musical lives. It's ideal for concert openers, community performances, or units exploring how Beatles compositions reveal compositional craft worth studying seriously.

• Keep the accompaniment restrained and rhythmically tight. The song's appeal depends on clarity of line, not lush overdubbing.
• Shape the melody with gentle dynamic pushes into the phrase peaks rather than maintaining a flat, metronomic approach.
• Balance the vocal parts so altos and tenors aren't buried; this arrangement likely gives them meaningful material that supports rather than merely fills underneath.
• Attend to any divisi sections with particular care. Blend matters more than volume when voices split.

Program this early in a concert to establish warmth and approachability with your audience. It also functions as an excellent bridge piece in educational programs that examine how contemporary songwriting techniques compare to traditional choral writing.

• Balancing independent melodic lines in close harmony
• Shaping simple melodies with intentional phrasing rather than mechanical execution
• Blending voices across divisi sections
• Connecting emotional content to interpretive choices