That's What Friends Are For Cover Image

That's What Friends Are For: 3-Part Mixed Choral Octavo

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That's What Friends Are For Cover Image
That's What Friends Are For: 3-Part Mixed Choral Octavo

That's What Friends Are For: 3-Part Mixed Choral Octavo

Words and music by Carole Bayer Sager and Burt Bacharach / arr. Alan Billingsley

Level: Moderate

Item: 00-CHM05061

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Description
Dionne Warwick, Stevie Wonder, Elton John, and Gladys Knight combined their talents to bring us this extraordinary song created by Burt Bacharach and Carole Bayer Sager. This new choral setting from Alan Billingsley captures all the sounds of the original hit recording.

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Additional Details
Series: Alfred Pop Choral Series
Publisher: Alfred Music
Page Count: 16
UPC: 654979098188
SKU: 00-CHM05061

More about this title

About the Composer: Carole Bayer Sager

Carole Bayer Sager is a Grammy Award-winning composer and lyricist whose career spans decades of pop, film, and musical theater. She has collaborated with some of music's greatest minds, including Burt Bacharach, with whom she co-wrote "That's What Friends Are For" and numerous other standards that defined the sound of 1970s and 1980s popular music.

Bayer Sager's gift for crafting emotionally resonant melodies and lyrics has made her work accessible to singers of all levels. Her compositions are frequently adapted for educational choirs precisely because they balance sophistication with singability, allowing young musicians to engage with professional-quality material.

Why we love this

Alan Billingsley's arrangement preserves the warmth and harmonic richness of the original hit while scaling it perfectly for three-part choirs. The piece lands solidly at Grade 3, making it achievable for intermediate choirs without sacrificing the emotional impact that makes this song so enduring. Programming it signals to audiences that your choir can tackle beloved popular standards with musicianship and polish.

What to expect

Warm, conversational, and genuinely uplifting. The piece captures the original's conversational intimacy while maintaining the harmonic sophistication that made this song a classic. Singers often find themselves emotionally invested in the text almost immediately, which makes rehearsals feel purposeful rather than dutiful.

Who it's for

Intermediate choirs looking to perform accessible pop standards with genuine musical substance. This arrangement works for high school choirs, community choirs, and upper-level middle school ensembles with solid fundamental skills and balanced voicing.

How to get the most out of it

  • Balance the melody prominently in the soprano line while keeping middle and lower voices clear and supported; this is a song about friendship, and the text deserves to be heard.
  • Use the recorded accompaniment to lock in the groove and tempo, which will feel more natural to singers who know the original recording.
  • Shape phrases musically rather than mechanically; let the lyrics about loyalty and devotion guide your dynamic choices and phrasing decisions.
  • Layer in dynamics gradually across rehearsals rather than drilling them from the start; focus first on secure part-singing and diction, then refine expression.

How to use it

This pairs naturally with other contemporary pop standards in a concert celebrating friendship, unity, or gratitude themes. It also works as a strong closer for programs mixing classics and newer material, since audiences recognize it immediately and the piece leaves a warm, memorable impression. The 16-page octavo length makes it substantial enough to anchor a set without overwhelming rehearsal schedules.

Skills your students will build

  • Balancing three-part harmony with a dominant melody line
  • Singing popular music styles with diction and phrasing that serves the text
  • Ensemble blend across different voice ranges
  • Following a recorded accompaniment while maintaining independent part integrity
  • Shaping longer phrases to support lyrical content and emotional arc

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