Boss Composer #1- Percy Grainger

Almost nobody writes band music like Percy Grainger anymore. And no one really wrote like him back in his hey-day. Now, don’t get me wrong, Holst, Vaughn Williams, and others were fantastic, but when it comes to folk music, Grainger is by far my favorite.

First of all, he wrote so much music and many of his compositions he either wrote or arranged for band. It would be so cool if there was a completely Grainger concert (apparently there has been recently and I missed it) but it would be even cooler to play a program of all Grainger. Work in Colonial Song, Irish Tune, The Gumsucker’s March, Lincolnshire Posy, and maybe some other stuff like Children’s March and it would be, hands down, a fantastic show.

My personal favorites of Grainger are Colonial Song (not just because of the saxophone solo) and Irish Tune from County Derry. I’ve been fortunate enough to perform Colonial Song and read through Irish Tune (only to have it be replaced by Contra Qui, Rose). Apparently Colonial Song was not a big hit when it came out, which I think is cray.

It’s really hard to put how much I like Grainger into words. If you haven’t heard his music, stop whatever you’re doing and start listening. May I suggest:

Colonial Song- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=07IOPHrg7Lg

Irish Tune from County Derry- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qPDvAHgesYw

Molly on the Shore- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=66wSECRpWIY

And there are some pretty good playlists on YouTube for Grainger.