Title: Carnegie Anthem

Composer/Arranger: William Owens

Identity: African American

Difficulty/Level: 3.5

Compositional Benefits from Performing: The piece is short and energetic without it every

getting boring. There are melodies as well as a counter melody that play around and try to stay

out of each other’s way. This also fits with balance.

Technical Benefits from Learning: I believe the most important skill for this piece is the brass

controlling there sound by being present but not covering up the woodwinds.

Title: Warrior Legacy

Composer/Arranger: Soon Hee Newbold

Identity: Woman, Asian American

Difficulty/Level: Medium/3

Compositional Benefits from Performing: The piece becomes rhythmic driven near the end with

driving patterns. Playing long flowing melodies that seem to almost never end. Also a use of a

soloist.

Technical Benefits from Learning: Syncopated accents as well as control of dynamics in order

not to cover up the soloist.

Title: Hands of Mercy

Composer/Arranger: Julie Giroux

Identity: LGBTQ+

Difficulty/Level: 3
Compositional Benefits from Performing: a musical build with instrumentation starting with

little woodwinds to crescendo with full band through out the piece while maintaining calm

mood.

Technical Benefits from Learning: Air control for long phrases and maintaining an even constant

tone.

Title: Legend of Asturias

Composer/Arranger: Isaac Ableniz/arr. Victor Lopez

Identity: LatinX

Difficulty/Level: 3

Compositional Benefits from Performing: The piece has an ABA form with A being a quick

machine with repetition with variations. The B section, which is slower and more lyrical, starts

with brief solos from violin and cello.

Technical Benefits from Learning: Use of syncopated rhythms where violins and violas play on

the + of 1 as cello and bass play 1, and of 2, and + of 3. There is also a switch in rhythm where at

one point there is triplet 8ths and later they are played as 1 8th and 2 16th.

Title: The Sword Of Kusanagi

Composer/Arranger: Hayato Hirose

Identity: Asian (Japan)

Difficulty/Level: 3

Compositional Benefits from Performing: The piece is programmatic in which it tells a story that

students may come up with on there own or as a class we would all discuss what we think is

happening.
Technical Benefits from Learning: Switching playing style form soft and legato to quick and

more agitated.

Reflection: Over all I believe that the pieces that I picked out will fit nice into a concert and have

elements that students will be challenged with and learn from as well as being from divers

backgrounds. I noticed that for several of the technical benefits I focus on rhythm/syncopation. It

could be more benifital for future students that I find music that challenges more then just their

rhythm. One thought that I had while looking for music was trying to hear the person’s identity

form there music and it got me thinking wither I should be able to do that. Should I make it a

point to go into the composers back ground or should students make connections by reading the

composers name. Over all I stuck with the pieces because I feel they do reflect the composers

and are worth playing. I mentioned how The Sword Of Kusanagi is programmatic so students can

do a creative listening and write their own story to it and some pieces have solo sections and

rehearsals can be spent on learning how to improvise in those solos.