Moments from Wicked (Choral Medley) (arr. Roger Emerson): SAB Choral Octavo

Roger Emerson's arrangement captures the soaring theatricality of Wicked while making it accessible to SAB choirs of varied experience levels. The medley structure lets you program genuine Broadway without requiring vocal heroics, and the 23 pages give you substantial material that still fits neatly into a concert slot.

Moments from Wicked carries the emotional momentum of the show: hopeful, defiant, and unexpectedly tender. The music sweeps between grand ensemble passages and intimate moments, maintaining the wit and heart that made the original songs resonate with audiences worldwide.

Concert choirs and show choirs ready to program Broadway without a full orchestra or extensive rehearsal time. This works for upper middle school through community college ensembles with singers who have basic part-reading skills and an appetite for contemporary musical theater.

• Balance the melody across your soprano and alto lines, especially in moments where Emerson distributes the hook between sections. Unison singing shouldn't sound like one person shouting; shape it with phrase direction.
• The borrowed harmonies from Schwartz's originals need clean voice leading. Spend rehearsal time on transitions between key areas rather than speeding through them.
• Record a rehearsal mix with all three parts and send it to your singers. Wicked's melodic lines are so embedded in popular culture that students need to hear their specific voicing, not just the tune.
• Let dynamics breathe. SAB arrangements sometimes default to safe dynamics, but these songs demand peaks and valleys. Push into forte passages and pull back into intimate moments to honor Schwartz's harmonic storytelling.

Slot this into a pops or Broadway-themed concert where you want material with immediate audience recognition. It pairs well alongside other contemporary musical theater repertoire or stands alone as your centerpiece if you're building a show choir set.

• Singing syncopated rhythms over sustained harmonies
• Executing quick key modulations while maintaining pitch center
• Balancing melody and countermelody across a three-part texture
• Phrasing through harmonic changes typical of contemporary musical theater
• Ensemble cohesion across changing dramatic dynamics