Stawamus Chief: Concert Band Conductor Score & Parts

$82.00 USD

Stawamus Chief: Concert Band Conductor Score & Parts

Name: Stawamus Chief: Concert Band Conductor Score & Parts
Brand: Alfred Music
SKU: 00-29630
Price: 82.00 USD
Availability: InStock

Mvt. III from the Sea to Sky

By Ralph Ford

Grade: 5 (Difficult)

Item: 00-29630

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The third installment of Ralph Ford's four-movement Sea to Sky Suite, the melodic and harmonic material for "Stawamus Chief" was crafted from the name Stawamus Chief itself. "Stawamus" inspired a beautiful and reflective theme that captures the grandeur and beauty of the monolith. Combine this bold, reverent third movement with "March: The Lion's Gate" (26772), then "Shannon Falls" (26773) and closing with "Beyond Whistler" (29631) to experience the complete set. An epic work! (6:43)

Don't just read it, hear it, play along with it, and watch your students grow with it. In MakeMusic Cloud, Stawamus Chief: Concert Band Conductor Score & Parts comes alive with professional accompaniment, adjustable tempo, and built-in practice tools that turn solo practice into real progress.

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Series: Belwin Symphonic Band

Publisher: Alfred Music

Page Count: 272

UPC: 038081318004

SKU: 00-29630

More about this title

About the Composer: Ralph Ford

Ralph Ford has spent nearly three decades in university teaching while maintaining an prolific output as a composer and arranger. His career began in Panama City, Florida, where he started arranging at fifteen, then flourished during his years at Troy State University as director of Jazz Ensemble I and staff arranger for the band program. He earned his Master of Science degree in 1988 and later became an exclusive composer and arranger for the Belwin division of Alfred Music.

Beyond the concert hall, Ford has worked extensively in media production, broadcast, and advertising, creating jingles, animation scores, television commercials, and news packages for national networks. His catalog exceeds 250 published titles across orchestra, concert band, jazz ensemble, and marching band, with performances by university, military, professional, community, and school ensembles internationally. His work has earned international and regional advertising awards, reflecting the versatility that defines his compositional voice.

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Why we love this

This is the movement that justifies programming the entire Sea to Sky Suite. Ford's harmonic and melodic invention here is genuinely sophisticated, drawing the listener into a reflective landscape that never feels predictable or thin. The writing sits gracefully in the concert band medium without showy effects, letting sincere musical ideas carry the weight.

What to expect

Stawamus Chief opens a landscape of quiet grandeur. The writing is contemplative and reverent, never bombastic, with harmonies that shift in color and depth like light moving across stone. There's a sense of scope and permanence in the musical architecture, matched by Ford's skillful use of concert band sonority to evoke space and stillness.

Who it's for

Concert bands at the Grade 5 level looking for substantial, artistically rewarding literature that challenges both ensemble and conductor. Directors programming the full Sea to Sky Suite will find this third movement an essential anchor, but it also stands alone as a complete musical statement for musicians ready to engage with thoughtful harmonic language and structural sophistication.

How to get the most out of it

Balance the principal line carefully across sections; the theme moves between instruments and needs seamless hand-offs to maintain the reverent character.
Shape phrases with long breath lines rather than punctuating at every natural break. The harmonic motion rewards patient, sustained phrasing.
Listen closely to inner voices during the reflective passages. Ford's orchestration often hides important harmonic color in the middle of the voicing.
Give yourself time in rehearsal to let students hear the relationship between the piece's title and the musical material. Understanding the inspiration deepens the performance.

How to use it

This works beautifully as a centerpiece in a concert exploring programmatic or landscape-inspired music. If you are not programming the complete Sea to Sky Suite, pair it with other Grade 5 concert band work that values melodic depth over virtuosic display. At 6:43, it anchors a program without overwhelming rehearsal schedules, making it ideal for mid-year performances when technical demands elsewhere are high.