We Three Kings: 2nd B-flat Trumpet: Choral SoundPax
Arr. Jay Althouse
Item: 00-PC-0015372_T2
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Description
A rich accompaniment and fresh-sounding harmonies drive this powerful arrangement to a dramatic and majestic finish. A holiday highlight for school and church.
Don't just read it, hear it, play along with it, and watch your students grow with it. In MakeMusic Cloud, We Three Kings: 2nd B-flat Trumpet: Choral SoundPax 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:
Alfred Choral Designs
Publisher:
Alfred Music
Page Count:
28
SKU:
00-PC-0015372_T2
Instrumentation:
SoundPax
More about this title
About the Arranger: Jay Althouse
Jay Althouse holds degrees in Music Education and Music from Indiana University of Pennsylvania, where he was honored as a Distinguished Alumnus. His career spans both music publishing and composition; he spent eight years managing rights and licenses for a major educational publisher and served on the Executive Board of the Music Publishers Association of America. As a composer, Althouse has over 800 choral works in print across all skill levels, earning him wide recognition in English-speaking choral communities.
Althouse's contributions to music education extend beyond composition. He has co-written children's musicals with his wife Sally K. Albrecht, edited respected vocal solo collections, and authored instructional resources including The Complete Choral Warm-up Book and Accent on Composers. His work has been performed at significant national events, including I Hear America Singing, which the San Francisco Girls and Boys Choirs premiered at President Obama's inauguration in 2009. A writer member of ASCAP and regular recipient of the ASCAP Special Award, Althouse currently serves on the National Advisory Board of the Folk Art Society of America.
Why we love this
Althouse's arrangement trades generic carol settings for genuine drama. The rich harmonic language and carefully shaped accompaniment reimagine a beloved tune without losing its recognizable core, giving your choir something substantive to sing and your audience something unexpected to hear. For holiday programming, this strikes the balance between tradition and artistry that lifts a concert beyond typical seasonal repertoire.
What to expect
Majestic and reverent, yet alive with harmonic color. The arrangement unfolds with the weight of processional dignity while the accompaniment keeps things moving forward, building toward a final statement that feels earned rather than imposed. This is carol singing that respects both the melody's heritage and the power of skilled choral writing.
Who it's for
This arrangement serves school choirs and church ensembles looking for a Christmas piece that demands genuine musicality without requiring soloists or complex staging. The straightforward accessibility of the tune combines with sophisticated harmonies, making it rewarding for intermediate and advanced high school choirs, college groups, and adult church singers.
How to get the most out of it
- Shape the phrases around the accompaniment's movement rather than stopping at obvious musical moments. The arrangement gains momentum through strategic harmonic shifts; let the organ or piano drive the singers forward.
- Balance the choral parts against the SoundPax accompaniment during rehearsal. In performance, the arrangement shines when voices and accompaniment weave together, not when either overpowers the other.
- Work the dynamic arc toward that majestic finish early and deliberately. This isn't a carol that builds accidentally; rehearse the climactic section with intention so it lands as written.
- Attend to diction during the harmonic changes, especially in sustained sections. Clear articulation prevents muddy blending when the voices sit on rich chords.
How to use it
Close a holiday concert's first half or anchor the finale with this arrangement; its dramatic arc and satisfying conclusion work equally well in either spot. Pair it with a lighter or more intimate Christmas piece to create programming contrast, or build a second half around it as the centerpiece of a choral Christmas celebration.
Skills your students will build
- Sustaining harmonic resonance across phrase boundaries
- Balancing individual voice parts against orchestral or keyboard accompaniment
- Dynamic shaping in four-part chorale textures
- Maintaining intonation through chromatic and secondary harmonic movement