The Lightning Spirit: Score
By Roland Barrett
Grade: 2
Item: 98-DB1261S
$13.00
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Description
The Lightning Spirit is based on the Aboriginal legend of Namarrkon, who sat in the clouds and hurled lightning bolts at the earth below. It makes use of a thunder sheet, a large sheet of aluminum available at most building supply stores. A contrasting lyrical section lets you focus on musicality with sweeping lines and soaring countermelodies. Incredible writing and effects bring the power of lightning right into your concert hall!
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Additional Details
Series:
FJH Young Band
Publisher:
The FJH Music Company, Inc.
SKU:
98-DB1261S
More about this title
About the Composer: Roland Barrett
Roland Barrett has shaped musicians as both an educator and composer since joining the University of Oklahoma's faculty in 2001. Before that fifteen-year period as the school's Assistant Director of Bands, he developed deep expertise in band repertoire and the specific demands of student ensembles. Today he teaches music theory and composition at the graduate and undergraduate levels, with a focus on twentieth-century techniques.
Barrett's catalog includes over two hundred published works for symphonic band, chamber groups, and marching ensembles. His music has reached audiences through performances by the Dallas Wind Symphony, All-State and All-Region honor bands, and broadcasts on NPR and international music conventions. He continues to arrange for the Pride of Oklahoma marching band and has received multiple ASCAPlus awards for his contributions to American music.
Why we love this
Barrett captures the raw energy of an Indigenous Australian legend without resorting to cheap effects or hollow spectacle. The thunder sheet becomes an instrument in the composer's hands rather than a gimmick, and the lyrical middle section gives your ensemble real musicmaking moments between moments of sheer power. This is Grade 2 writing that respects both your students' abilities and your audience's attention.
What to expect
Electricity crackles through the ensemble from the opening moments. The thunder sheet cracks with authority while the band drives forward with rhythmic urgency, then the music suddenly parts to reveal soaring melodic lines that sweep across the ensemble in counterpoint. You feel the storm building, breaking, and dissipating.
Who it's for
Grade 2 concert bands seeking repertoire that combines approachable technical demands with genuine dramatic interest. Directors programming festival or contest events will find a piece that stands out through its use of found percussion and cultural content while remaining solidly in the middle school or young high school range.
How to get the most out of it
- Coordinate closely with your percussion section on the thunder sheet entries. The effect lands hardest when the attack is clean and unified; mark these cues clearly in their parts and rehearse them separately if needed.
- Shape the lyrical section with long phrase lines and dynamic control. After the intense opening, your band will be ready to listen and respond to your conducting; use this to teach sweep and musicality.
- Balance the contrasting material so neither overpowers the other. The lightning passages need impact, but if they obscure the melodic writing underneath, you lose the legend's full story.
How to use it
Open a concert with this piece to capture immediate attention, or place it after a gentler selection to showcase your ensemble's range and flexibility. Its multicultural content pairs naturally with programming that celebrates diverse musical traditions, and its contest-friendly length and scoring make it a strong choice for festival seasons.
Skills your students will build
- Reading and executing coordinated dynamic and rhythmic changes between contrasting sections
- Balancing individual melodic lines within the ensemble texture
- Responding to theatrical elements and effects as part of musical interpretation
- Sustaining focus and energy across contrasting tempos and moods within a single work