How High the Moon: Jazz Ensemble Conductor Score

Dave Wolpe's arrangement puts the trombone section exactly where they want to be: front and center. The flexible solo structure (ad lib or written parts) lets your bones shape their own voices while the chart maintains the infectious swing and harmonic richness that make this standard irresistible. It's a chart that respects both the ensemble and the soloists.

Bright, sophisticated, and swinging. The chart captures the breezy elegance of the original standard while giving the trombone section room to stretch into blues-tinged solos and shout figures that make audiences lean in and listen.

Jazz ensemble directors working with Grade 3 players who have solid section reading skills and at least one advanced trombonist in each chair. Ensembles looking to feature their bone section will find a vehicle that showcases their best players without overwhelming less experienced rhythm section players.

• Balance the written melody with the trombone voices during ensemble passages; the bones should never disappear behind the section even when they're not soloing.
• Settle into the groove early in rehearsal and let the rhythm section establish the pocket before polishing articulations and dynamic shaping.
• If your soloists choose the ad lib option, map out their solo space in advance and give them clear cues for entrances and exits so the ensemble can lock in around them.

Schedule this as a mid-set feature that builds energy and showcases your section strength. It works equally well as a winter concert anchor or spring jazz festival selection, and pairs naturally with other swing-era standards in a thematic program.

• Solo improvisation in a blues-based harmonic framework
• Trading and responding between solo and ensemble voices
• Swing articulation and rhythmic precision across the section
• Reading chord changes and navigating form changes with clarity
• Listening and blending as a trombone section during tutti passages