Run Toward the Sky: Score
Run Toward the Sky: Score
Run Toward the Sky: Score
Run Toward the Sky: Score
Run Toward the Sky: Score
Run Toward the Sky: Score
Run Toward the Sky: Score
Run Toward the Sky: Score
Run Toward the Sky: Score
Run Toward the Sky: Score
Run Toward the Sky: Score
Run Toward the Sky: Score
Run Toward the Sky: Score
Run Toward the Sky: Score
Run Toward the Sky: Score
Run Toward the Sky: Score
Run Toward the Sky: Score
Run Toward the Sky: Score
Run Toward the Sky: Score
Run Toward the Sky: Score
Run Toward the Sky: Score Sheet Music Preview

Run Toward the Sky: Score

By Jorge L. Vargas

Grade: 2

Item: 00-PR-0007216
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Description
Run Toward the Sky is a fast-paced, vibrant work that evokes images of wide-open spaces, vast wheat-covered fields, and endless stretches of prairie grasslands. With its Western-inspired themes, intricate rhythms, and driving percussion, your students will enjoy performing this piece. (2:25)

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Additional Details
Series: Young Symphonic
Publisher: Alfred Music
SKU: 00-PR-0007216

More about this title

About the Composer: Jorge L. Vargas

Jorge L. Vargas

Jorge L. Vargas brings decades of classroom experience and compositional voice to the concert band repertoire. Born in Piedras Negras, Coahuila, Mexico, he holds degrees in Music Education from the University of Texas-San Antonio and in Education from Lamar University. His teaching work at Memorial Junior High in Eagle Pass, Texas spans concert band, mariachi, and beginner instruction, grounding his compositions in the realities of school music programs.

Vargas has established himself as a prolific voice in band literature, with works appearing on state and festival lists across the country. His compositions have earned recognition on the J.W. Pepper Editor's Choice list and Bandworld Magazine's Top 100, and several pieces have been showcased at the Midwest Clinic in Chicago. His arrangements span concert band, marching band, string orchestra, and mariachi ensemble, reflecting the breadth of his musical engagement.

Why we love this

Vargas writes music that Grade 2 bands can actually execute with confidence and joy. The Western imagery and rhythmic drive give students a clear musical story to tell, while the contest/festival designation means this piece has real stakes and appeal beyond a single rehearsal. The intricate rhythms demand focused ensemble work without requiring advanced technical facility.

What to expect

Wide open and propulsive, like watching landscape roll past at speed. The Western themes and expansive harmonic language evoke endless horizons and grassland vistas, while the driving rhythm section keeps everything moving forward with infectious energy.

Who it's for

Grade 2 concert bands preparing for festival performance or wanting accessible literature with real musical substance. The piece suits ensembles with developing players who benefit from clear, singable melodic writing and consistent rhythmic momentum.

How to get the most out of it

  • Shape the driving percussion figures as the heartbeat of the piece; they anchor the prairie imagery and give the ensemble a steady reference point through the fast sections.
  • Encourage your band to listen across sections during the rhythmic passages to lock the ensemble texture. Vargas layers rhythms that only cohere when players hear each other.
  • Balance the Western-inspired melodic themes so they sing above the accompaniment without forcing; this is an underdeveloped ensemble's chance to hear what lyrical playing sounds like at a comfortable dynamic.
  • Use the programmatic title as a rehearsal tool: ask students to describe what they hear at different moments, then refine tone and phrasing to match those images.

How to use it

Program this as a concert opener or mid-set energizer where it will grab listener attention and showcase your band's rhythmic precision. The 2:25 duration and festival designation make it ideal for adjudicated events, and the programmatic character gives you natural programming partners in other landscape or regional-inspired works.

Skills your students will build

  • Maintaining steady rhythmic accuracy in fast tempos
  • Balancing melodic lines against layered accompaniment patterns
  • Responding to programmatic imagery to shape musical character
  • Executing intricate rhythmic figures with ensemble clarity

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