Spiccato Palooza!: String Orchestra Conductor Score

$9.00 USD

Spiccato Palooza!: String Orchestra Conductor Score

Name: Spiccato Palooza!: String Orchestra Conductor Score
Brand: Alfred Music
SKU: 00-49464S
Price: 9.00 USD
Availability: InStock

By Richard Meyer

Grade: 2

Item: 00-49464S

$9.00

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Written to help students develop their spiccato bow stroke, this energetic piece is a joyful celebration from the very first measure. The left hand challenges are minimal, allowing the players to focus on controlling their bow on and off the string. A contrasting call-and-response "B" section in minor mode briefly slows the pace down before the party resumes again. Over time, the overall tempo can be increased as the students become more and more proficient with this all important bow technique. Correlated to Sound Innovations, Book 2, Level 2. (2:30)

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Series: Sound Innovations for String Orchestra

Publisher: Alfred Music

ISBN10: 1-4706-5023-1

ISBN13: 978-1-4706-5023-0

UPC: 038081571010

SKU: 00-49464S

More about this title

About the Composer: Richard Meyer

Richard Meyer spent 35 years teaching strings across elementary, middle, and high school levels in California public schools. At Oak Avenue Intermediate School in Temple City, he grew the orchestra program from 29 students to 200 over 22 years while also directing the city's elementary string initiative. He led the Pasadena Youth Symphony Orchestra for 16 years, taking students on performance tours to New York, Washington D.C., Vienna, Australia, and Canada.

Beyond the classroom, Meyer has established himself as a nationally published composer with over 190 works and arrangements in print, and served 16 years as string editor for Alfred Publishing Company. He created the "Giving Bach" program in 2009, an innovative concert series that brings music to special needs and underserved students throughout Southern California. Meyer has clinicked at the A.S.T.A. National Conference, the Texas Orchestra Directors' Association Conference, and various university string workshops, while also guest-conducting All-State and Honor Orchestras in multiple states.

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Why we love this

Meyer writes with a conductor's understanding of what Grade 2 strings actually need to practice. Rather than burying spiccato technique in a piece that demands simultaneous attention to left-hand position shifts, fingering patterns, and rhythmic complexity, he isolates the bow challenge brilliantly. The energy here is genuine, not manufactured, which means students stay engaged enough to repeat it as many times as technique demands.

What to expect

Infectious and celebratory from the opening measure, with a propulsive rhythm that makes students want to move their bows. The B section briefly cools the energy, introducing minor tonality and a call-and-response texture that lets the orchestra breathe before the "party resumes" with renewed momentum.

Who it's for

Grade 2 string orchestras ready to focus intentionally on spiccato technique. This works especially well for students who have solid fundamentals in bow hold and basic stroke control but need targeted practice on the bounce and separation that make spiccato distinct.

How to get the most out of it

Start at a tempo where every student can execute clean, controlled spiccato strokes with consistent articulation. The beauty of this piece is that the same material works equally well at half-speed or performance tempo; let ear and consistency guide your acceleration, not a metronome deadline.
Use the B section's minor-mode call-and-response as a breath point to check in with bow control across sections. When the volume naturally decreases and tempo eases, you'll hear immediately whether balance and technique are holding.
Conduct the repetitions with clear, bouncy gestures that mirror the spiccato motion itself. Your baton work reinforces the on-off articulation better than any verbal correction.

How to use it

Program this on a festival or contest day when technique demonstration and student confidence matter as much as a polished final product. It's also ideal mid-rehearsal as a skill-building centerpiece that demands focus without the emotional weight of a ballad, so students leave the sectional having actually accomplished something tangible.