Someone to Watch Over Me: Concert Band Conductor Score & Parts

Warren Barker's arrangement strips away nothing essential while building a genuine concert band texture around a Gershwin standard that has endured for nearly a century. The optional alto saxophone solo lets you choose whether to feature a vocalist, an instrumentalist, or both, giving your programming real flexibility without resorting to separate versions. A Grade 4 band playing this piece gets to inhabit legitimate American musical literature, not a simplified imitation of it.

The piece settles into the wistful, affectionate tone Gershwin built into this melody, a song about devotion that never becomes saccharine. Barker's arrangement wraps the tune in warm, conversational band textures that feel like accompaniment rather than orchestration, letting the lyrical content carry the weight.

Bands at the Grade 4 level that want to program a substantial vocal feature without abandoning their core instrumental identity, or directors seeking to expand beyond purely instrumental repertoire while keeping the band as the driving force. This works equally well for a strong vocalist who sings with a classical focus or one rooted in jazz and popular traditions.

• Balance the vocalist or saxophone soloist against the band by rehearsing the accompaniment first without the soloist present, then reintroduce the solo voice to find the natural blend point.
• Shape the phrasing through the band's harmonic movement rather than metronomic time; Gershwin's melodies breathe, and the accompaniment should respond to that breathing.
• If featuring the vocalist, mark clear cutoffs for the band in sections where the voice floats over sustained chords, allowing the lyrics to register without rhythmic interference.
• The optional alto saxophone line opens programming possibilities: rehearse it separately so you can perform either version, or layer both soloists if your personnel and musical vision support that choice.

Program this as a standalone vocal feature in a concert built around American songbook standards, or pair it with instrumental Gershwin arrangements to create a thematic arc through his work. The three-minute runtime makes it an ideal second or third piece on a program, positioned to reset audience attention without demanding the opening slot.

• Accompanying a soloist while maintaining ensemble cohesion
• Balancing dynamic contrast between foreground and background voices
• Responding to rubato and interpretive phrasing in a composed context
• Reading parts in concert band scoring that support rather than double the solo line