The Shapeshifters: String Orchestra Conductor Score & Parts

$65.00 USD

The Shapeshifters: String Orchestra Conductor Score & Parts

Name: The Shapeshifters: String Orchestra Conductor Score & Parts
Brand: Alfred Music
SKU: 00-50838
Price: 65.00 USD
Availability: InStock

By Anthony Granata

Grade: 3

Item: 00-50838

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The Shapeshifters, by Anthony Granata, is a challenging and engaging programmatic work for advancing orchestras. A shapeshifter, or a mythological being able to change physical form, is a perfect analogy for what is required from your student musicians. If you're teaching a unit on shifting, then ALL your sections (yes, 2nd violins, too!) can practice shifting into third position. This programmatic work tells the story of the misunderstood but frightening shapeshifters who, at first, seem both beautiful and harmless (the "Largo" section) but suddenly transform into frightening creatures (the "Allegro" section). Inspired by the beautiful and harmonically dissonant works of Ives, Bartók, and Stravinsky, take your students on an epic journey in this fantasy-inspired work. Set in the key of G minor, students will be exposed to the piece's demanding technical requirements while encountering beautiful harmonic suspensions and frighteningly dissonant and abrupt chords. Concluding with an overlay of both the "Largo" and "Allegro" themes, this piece is sure to engage orchestras and please audiences! (3:45)

Don't just read it, hear it, play along with it, and watch your students grow with it. In MakeMusic Cloud, The Shapeshifters: String Orchestra 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: Highland/Etling String Orchestra

Publisher: Alfred Music

ISBN10: 1-4706-6945-5

ISBN13: 978-1-4706-6945-4

UPC: 038081588261

SKU: 00-50838

More about this title

About the Composer: Anthony Granata

Anthony Granata teaches middle school orchestra in Westport, Connecticut, and composes music specifically designed to develop technical skills in young string players. He studied at Western Connecticut State University and has taught across elementary, middle, and high school levels, bringing classroom experience directly into his compositional work. A violist who performs regularly, Granata began composing at age twelve and returned to writing music after focusing on his teaching career, driven by a desire to help students master demanding concepts through engaging repertoire.

As someone who built his own string foundation through the Norwalk public school music program, Granata remains a vocal advocate for public school music education. He is currently pursuing a degree in school administration while continuing to compose and teach.

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Why we love this

Granata writes with genuine understanding of what advancing string players need to practice and where they struggle. The programmatic framework transforms a technical challenge (shifting into third position across all sections) into a compelling narrative rather than drill work, and the harmonic language draws from composers like Ives and Bartók without overwhelming the orchestra. The dual-theme finale rewards preparation with a satisfying musical payoff that audiences find striking.

What to expect

The Largo opens with cool, suspended harmonies that feel ethereal and strangely beautiful, as if witnessing something otherworldly and unthreatening. The sudden shift to Allegro jolts the listener with angular rhythms, dissonant clusters, and driving energy that suggests danger and transformation. The finale weaves both worlds together, creating a thrilling overlay of the gentle and the fierce.

Who it's for

Advancing string orchestras ready to tackle third position work across all sections and comfortable with contemporary harmonic language. This piece works well for orchestras preparing for festival or contest settings, and for groups looking to expand beyond traditional tonal harmony into the dissonant, colorful writing of early twentieth-century composers.

How to get the most out of it

Spend rehearsal time isolating the shift into third position for each section separately before combining them; mark shift points clearly in all parts so players know exactly where the movement occurs and can practice the motion independently.
Shape the Largo section with sustained, warm tone and careful attention to the harmonic suspensions, which should feel unresolved and plaintive before the abrupt shift to Allegro.
Balance the overlay in the final section carefully so both melodic ideas remain audible; the Largo material should not disappear beneath the Allegro's dissonant activity.
Use the contrasting tempos and characters (beautiful to frightening) as your dramatic framework in rehearsal; ask students to inhabit each section's emotional world rather than treating it as a technical exercise.

How to use it

Program this for a festival or contest performance where contemporary works are valued and advancing orchestras are expected. Its 3:45 duration and strong dramatic arc make it a compelling centerpiece in a concert program, or pair it with Baroque or Classical repertoire to show the breadth of string orchestra literature. The shifting requirement makes it ideal for mid-year or spring programming when orchestras have developed secure fundamentals.