Midnight on Main Street: Concert Band Conductor Score

$11.00 USD

Midnight on Main Street: Concert Band Conductor Score

Name: Midnight on Main Street: Concert Band Conductor Score
Brand: Alfred Music
SKU: 98-B1392S
Price: 11.00 USD
Availability: InStock

By Brian Balmages

Grade: 5

Item: 98-B1392S

$11.00

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One moment…

This imaginative work was conceived as the underscore to a fictional fireworks show. The opening section suggests the massive fireworks bursting in grand fashion as the music thrives on each explosion, feeding on energy in a frenzy of excitement. As one final firework explodes to blanket the sky in lights, the second section begins. This section is very impressionistic, depicting a stunning laser show with an array of colors and images. The final section is based on an infectious dance in 7/8 time. This musical celebration is both driving and playful, signifying the return of the fireworks. A coda section includes huge fanfares, forceful rhythms, and metallic sounds that welcome the grand finale while building to a dramatic conclusion. Absolutely amazing!

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Series: FJH Symphonic Band

Publisher: The FJH Music Company, Inc.

UPC: 241444489246

SKU: 98-B1392S

More about this title

About the Composer: Brian Balmages

Brian Balmages has built a career moving fluidly across orchestral, band, and chamber idioms, earning commissions and performances at major venues including Carnegie Hall, the Kennedy Center, and the Sydney Opera House. His accolades include the A. Austin Harding Award from the American School Band Directors Association, the 2020 NBA William D. Revelli Composition Contest, and membership in the American Bandmasters Association. He also received the inaugural James Madison University Distinguished Alumni Award and was commissioned by the University of Miami to compose for the inauguration of its sixth president.

As a conductor, Balmages maintains regular engagements with all-state ensembles, university groups, and professional orchestras worldwide. His guest conducting appearances span the Midwest Clinic, Western International Band Clinic, and international conferences. He currently serves as Director of MakeMusic Publications and Digital Education for Alfred and MakeMusic.

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Why we love this

This work delivers the visceral excitement your band craves without sacrificing musical substance. The shift from pyrotechnic chaos to impressionistic restraint to infectious 7/8 groove gives your ensemble genuine contrasts to shape, and the Grade 5 scoring stays playable while maintaining the cinematic ambition that makes programming feel special.

What to expect

Midnight on Main Street captures the sensory rush of a night sky transformed by light and sound. The opening crackles with raw excitement, the middle floats in impressionistic wonder, and the close locks into a propulsive, foot-tapping joy that feels inevitable and celebratory.

Who it's for

Grade 5 concert bands seeking a crowd-pleasing finale that challenges musicianship without requiring a massive instrumentation. This works equally well for festival competition or a spring concert showcase where you want to send the audience home energized.

How to get the most out of it

Build the first section's energy through incremental crescendos rather than one sustained blast; treat each firework as its own arc with attack and decay.
In the impressionistic middle section, tune your ensemble up slightly and ask for truly sustained, floating tone quality to let the color changes register without thinning the sound.
Subdivide the 7/8 section in groups of 3+2+2 to lock the rhythmic groove; get your rhythm section feeling this pattern before full ensemble rehearsals.
The coda fanfares need precision and weight; drill the tutti hits as coordinated moments where every voice arrives together, then let the metallic percussion shimmer in the spaces between.

How to use it

Position this as your closer or penultimate selection on a concert; its dramatic arc and infectious energy make it ideal for leaving a lasting impression. It pairs well with earlier repertoire that is more subdued or introspective, offering a tonal contrast that feels earned rather than arbitrary.

Skills your students will build

Reading and executing 7/8 meter with confidence and swing
Shaping crescendos and decrescendos with intentional phrasing rather than mechanical volume changes
Sustained tone production with focused intonation across dynamic transitions
Ensemble precision in rhythmically complex tutti sections
Distinguishing timbral colors and ensemble balance across contrasting musical textures