Starsplitter Fanfare: Score
By Brian Balmages
Level:.5
Item: 98-DB1390S
$11.00
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Description
This explosive fanfare will start your concert off with a bang while using only six notes in all wind instruments! Written to harness the full sound potential of your youngest musicians, the powerful themes will make a dramatic impact on your audience while the soaring countermelodies will exude nothing but confidence from your ensemble. Easy music with an enormous sound! (1:15)
Don't just read it, hear it, play along with it, and watch your students grow with it. In MakeMusic Cloud, Starsplitter Fanfare: Score comes alive with professional accompaniment, adjustable tempo, and built-in practice tools that turn solo practice into real progress.
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Additional Details
Series:
FJH Starter Series
Publisher:
The FJH Music Company, Inc.
SKU:
98-DB1390S
More about this title
About the Composer: Brian Balmages
Brian Balmages builds his reputation across orchestral, band, and chamber music with works performed from elementary school gyms to Carnegie Hall, the Kennedy Center, and the Sydney Opera House. His accolades include the A. Austin Harding Award from the American School Band Directors Association, the 2020 NBA William D. Revelli Composition Contest for Love and Light, and membership in the American Bandmasters Association.
As a guest conductor, Balmages appears regularly at all-state ensembles, university groups, and professional orchestras worldwide, with notable engagements at the Midwest Clinic, Western International Band Clinic, and international venues. He currently serves as Director of MakeMusic Publications and Digital Education for Alfred and MakeMusic.
Why we love this
Balmages understands the exact challenge of opening a concert with a young ensemble: you need impact without technical complexity. This fanfare delivers a genuinely dramatic entrance using only six pitches across all winds, letting your musicians focus on ensemble unity, dynamic control, and confidence rather than navigating a chromatic jungle. The countermelodies keep players engaged and give the piece textural sophistication that makes audiences hear a much larger ensemble than what's actually on stage.
What to expect
Bold and celebratory, like a royal announcement played by eager young musicians who sound twice their age. The limited pitch palette creates harmonic clarity and brightness, while the countermelodies add sophistication and forward momentum that keeps the piece feeling expansive despite its brevity.
Who it's for
Beginning concert bands looking for an opening piece that sounds polished and confident without demanding advanced technique. This fanfare serves groups in their first or second year of study who need a contest or festival-ready opener that showcases ensemble togetherness rather than individual virtuosity.
How to get the most out of it
- Balance the full band sound by bringing out the sustained voices in the lower reeds and brass while keeping the upper woodwinds punchy but not piercing.
- Establish a clear pulse early in rehearsal; the directness of this piece demands rhythmic cohesion from the opening note.
- Emphasize dynamic contrast between sections to maximize the theatrical effect. The soaring moments need genuine lift, not just louder playing.
How to use it
Open your concert or festival appearance with this fanfare to set an energetic, confident tone immediately. At 1:15, it's an ideal warm-up piece that positions your group well without consuming rehearsal time, and its dramatic effect makes a perfect lead-in to a longer work.
Skills your students will build
- Ensemble balance and blend within a limited pitch set
- Dynamic control and contrast (building from foundation to climax)
- Confident articulation and tonguing in fast passage work
- Listening across parts to maintain rhythmic precision
- Understanding harmonic support through sustained voices