Sound Innovations for Concert Band: Ensemble Development for Young Concert Band: Piano (Instrumental) Book

This resource addresses a genuine teaching need: the piano part in an ensemble development book must balance accompaniment duties with genuine musical content. Boonshaft and Bernotas have crafted a part that supports ensemble intonation and musicianship without demanding advanced pianists, making it accessible for the band director or capable student pianist who covers rehearsal accompaniments. The 167 exercises grouped by pedagogical concept mean you're not searching through a scrambled book to find what you need.

Methodical and musical at once. The exercises move logically from foundational elements like long tones and pitch matching into more sophisticated harmonic work, always with the keyboard grounding the sound. The 13 contributing composers bring variety to the chorale sections, preventing the accompaniment work from feeling mechanical.

Band directors at the elementary and early middle school levels who need a reliable, comprehensive accompaniment source for their ensemble development work. Piano students serving as student accompanists will find the part straightforward enough to learn quickly while building their ensemble skills.

• Anchor the longer tones exercises by playing with a steady, clear tone; your rhythm section work here directly influences whether the winds lock in on pitch or waver.
• In the scale canons, keep your part rhythmically precise so the winds can hear their own entrances cleanly against the keyboard foundation.
• Use the chorale sections as moments to encourage students to listen across the room; play with gentle accompaniment that supports without overwhelming the band's blend.
• Match dynamics carefully with the band; pianissimo exercises demand a touch that recedes into the texture rather than disappears entirely.

Integrate these exercises into the first 10 minutes of rehearsal three to four times weekly, rotating through different concept families so students experience cumulative growth. The structured progression allows you to introduce new harmonic concepts without overwhelming the ensemble, and the abundance of material means you'll always have fresh content as the year progresses.

• Matching pitch with keyboard reference tones
• Reading and executing intervals accurately in context
• Building secure chord understanding through harmonic exploration
• Responding to subtle dynamic and balance shifts initiated by the accompanist
• Developing rhythmic precision within ensemble settings
• Recognizing diatonic harmonic movement by ear and sight