A History Of The Music For Wind Band

The book provides a historical survey of the wind band’s music and denotes how historical and cultural developments have influenced it over the course of time. Although the modern wind band developed first in the 19th century, it has its roots in the wind music of ancient times, and music survives that has been composed since the Middle Ages. Therefore, this book covers the music from that time to the present, including the dance music of the Renaissance, the Harmoniemusik of the Classical Period, and the nationalistic music of the Romantic Period, as well as the major wind band repertoire developed after 1900.

Nineteenth-Century Wind Band and Wind Ensemble Repertoire is the ninth volume in Dr. David Whitwell's ground breaking thirteen-volume History and Literature of the Wind Band and Wind Ensemble series. During the first decades of the nineteenth century one finds continued composition of music for Harmoniemusik. After the end of the Napoleonic Wars there was a new birth of civic bands in Europe and this resulted in numerous original compositions for large concert band. For society at large, however, the nineteenth century was one of enormous interest in all things military, which resulted in a great deal of marches and dance music. One very important exception is a large body of slow, expressive and beautiful original music composed for the church, music which was performed during the church service, including communion, as part of an annual recognition of the military by the clergy. Whitwell's meticulous scholarship reveals the continuous history of the wind ensemble, from its earliest roots to the nineteenth century - an unbroken tradition of wind music that music scholars have never been fully able to appreciate until now.

The rich history and tradition of the American wind band was heavily influenced by the influx of immigrants into the New York area during the 19th and 20th centuries. With their varied cultural backgrounds, building upon their diverse musical experiences and a wide variety of instruments and ensemble instrumentation, the seeds for the contemporary American wind band were planted. The story of the American wind band is revealed in this diverse collection of essays. Fascinating reading for band scholars everywhere!

As part of the mission of The Donald Hunsberger Wind Library, the 1994 hardcover edition (University of Rochester Press) of The Wind Ensemble and Its Repertoire has now been published in a paperback edition. This compendium of research includes "must have" information on the history and execution of the wind ensemble repertoire.

For almost 200 years, wind bands and wind band musicians were the pre-eminent form of large instrumental ensemble performance practice in Canada. From the earliest documented evidence of a "band of music" in 1770 Halifax to the post-World War II explosion of curricular school band programs across the country, bands were a genuine expression of popular musical culture. They attracted the best musicians in the villages, towns and cities they called home and ranged in ability from ensembles barely beyond the beginner stage to professional organizations, like the Anglo-Canadian Leather Company Band, that were internationally renowned. More importantly, those that performed in and led these groups also served as our first music infrastructure. They became music teachers, instrument importers, sheet music distributors and concert promoters. It was through their efforts that the foundations were laid for our present-day symphony orchestras, operatic societies, conservatories and music schools. Some of these musical pioneers were also composers. They created a small body of wind-band literature, often written for their own ensembles, that reflected the highest compositional standards of their time. The present volume, richly illustrated with historical photographs and musical examples, is a long-overdue attempt to document the story of Canada's wind bands and the Canadian music they played.