The Great American Frontier: Bells
By Erik Morales
Grade: 2.5
Item: 98-PC-DB1230_B
$7.00
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Description
Experience the sounds of the American West like you've never heard them before! Inspired by music from the great cowboy movies of the late 1960s, this powerful composition uses a large battery of percussion to bring this important part of Americana right into your own concert hall. A lush middle section uses beautiful scoring and haunting melodies before the piece returns to a new treatment of the opening material, building toward a powerful conclusion. Great music for young bands!
Don't just read it, hear it, play along with it, and watch your students grow with it. In MakeMusic Cloud, The Great American Frontier: Bells 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 Young Band
Publisher:
The FJH Music Company, Inc.
SKU:
98-PC-DB1230_B
More about this title
About the Composer: Erik Morales
Erik Morales grew up in New York City and began composing during high school in south Florida, starting with arranging work for his former band director's marching band in 1985. He earned his bachelor's degree from the University of Louisiana, Lafayette (1989) and studied composition at Florida International University. His catalog now includes over 150 published works across wind, orchestral, jazz, chamber, and educational settings, with commissions regularly arriving from schools and organizations nationwide.
As a trumpeter, Morales has significantly shaped the trumpet repertoire; his ensemble works won first place at the 2006 and 2008 National Trumpet Competitions, and his Concerto for Trumpet in C and Piano premiered at the 2009 International Trumpet Guild conference. In 2016, he was inducted into the Louisiana Association for Jazz Education's Hall of Fame. Throughout his career, Morales has balanced artistic ambition with pedagogical responsibility, creating literature that challenges musicians while remaining accessible to the educational market.
Why we love this
Morales captures the cinematic sweep of Western Americana without resorting to clichéd treatments or oversimplification. The structural architecture (statement, lyrical middle, transformed return) provides young musicians with a clear roadmap while the percussion-forward orchestration keeps the sound fresh and contemporary, making this appropriate for festival programming where you want substance alongside accessibility.
What to expect
Dust, open sky, and movie heroics meet thoughtful composition. The opening pulses with Western vitality, the middle section whispers with something more introspective and genuinely moving, and the final push builds cumulative power through clear musical architecture rather than relentless bombast.
Who it's for
Young concert bands at the 2.5 grade level, particularly those looking for contest or festival repertoire that combines accessibility with genuine musical substance. Directors seeking pieces that introduce students to larger formal structures and sophisticated orchestration without overwhelming developing musicians will find strong material here.
How to get the most out of it
- Balance the large percussion section carefully during the opening material so it enhances rather than overpowers the melodic lines in the winds.
- Shape the middle section's haunting melodies with genuine legit tone; this section's impact depends on clear phrasing and consistent air support across all parts.
- Control the tempo during the build toward the conclusion to allow the new treatment of opening material to land with maximum effect.
- Mark important cross-cues between percussion and melodic sections in rehearsal so the band understands how the parts relate to the whole sound.
How to use it
Program this as the centerpiece of a Americana-themed concert, pairing it with folk arrangements or other Americana works to create a cohesive concert experience. It works equally well as a festival entry that demonstrates your band's musicianship across multiple styles and sectional balance challenges.
Skills your students will build
- Balance and blend in large percussion sections
- Sustained phrasing and legit tone production
- Melodic recall and thematic development across formal sections
- Dynamic control and cumulative building
- Reading and executing compound time signatures in a concert context