Jig Fugue: Brass Quintet Score & Parts

Marlatt's scoring respects Bach's counterpoint while giving every brass player genuine melodic work; the jig meter and energetic figuration prevent this from feeling like academic exercise. Audiences consistently respond to the piece's forward momentum and clarity, and the medium-difficult level makes it accessible to advancing ensembles without sacrificing musical sophistication.

Rollicking and conversational, with the quick triple meter giving it a dance-like quality that carries through the entire piece. The familiar Bach idiom of overlapping melodic lines creates textures that feel both intellectually tight and genuinely buoyant, never ponderous or overly scholarly.

Brass quintets working at the medium-difficult level who want to program a recognized masterwork without retreating into purely nineteenth-century brass band arrangements. This suits ensembles ready to tackle counterpoint and independent voice-leading while still playing on their home instruments.

• Emphasize the lilting quality of triple meter by keeping the pulse light and bouncy rather than ponderous; the piece lives in its rhythmic buoyancy.
• Balance the competing melodic lines carefully across the quintet; since Bach distributes thematic material throughout, each voice needs presence without overshadowing others.
• Shape phrases through gentle dynamic swells rather than sudden changes, which suits the Baroque idiom and maintains forward momentum through longer passages.
• Lock articulation among the ensemble on running sixteenth-note passages; consistency here clarifies the intricate counterpoint and keeps rhythmic alignment tight.

Program this as the centerpiece of a Baroque ensemble set, or pair it with a contemporary brass work to show the range of writing available to the quintet. Its moderate length and high energy make it an excellent opener that immediately establishes ensemble cohesion and musical focus.

• Independent melodic line execution in fugal texture
• Maintaining rhythmic clarity in triple meter
• Balancing four independent voices across a five-part ensemble
• Phrasing and shaping within a Baroque harmonic language
• Ensemble intonation under the demands of rapid counterpoint