Instrumentation

1 - Full Score
1 - Piccolo
4 - Flute 1
4 - Flute 2
2 - Oboe
1 - Eb Clarinet
4 - Bb Clarinet 1
4 - Bb Clarinet 2
4 - Bb Clarinet 3
2 - Bb Bass Clarinet
2 - Bassoon
2 - Eb Alto Saxophone 1
2 - Eb Alto Saxophone 2
2 - Bb Tenor Saxophone
1 - Eb Baritone Saxophone
2 - F Horn 1& 3
2 - F Horn 2 & 4
3 - Bb Trumpet 1
3 - Bb Trumpet 2
3 - Bb Trumpet 3
2 - Trombone 1
2 - Trombone 2
2 - Trombone 3 & Bass Trombone
2 - Euphonium B. C.
2 - Euphonium T. C.
4 - Tuba
1 - Contrabass
1 - Timpani
2 - Xylophone, Bells
3 - Cymbals, Triangle, Tom-toms, Tambourine, Temple Blocks, Castanets etc.
2 - Susp. Cymbal & Snare Drum
2 - Bass Drum, Gong

Circus Franticus (6:32)
Grade 5

Welcome to the Big Top!

Commissioned by the Air Force Band of Liberty, this piece takes the listener on a musical tour of the Circus!  Elephants, horses, clowns, the dog act and the high flying trapeze artists are all brought to life in this fast action melodramatic piece that captures the excitement of the Circus.

I attempted to portray the whole circus "experience" since the circus genre has almost all but died out.  It certainly is a mere shadow of what it was when compared to the circus I went to as a child.  The thrills, the laughs and what was sometimes scary kept me riveted to my seat, a task not so easily accomplished.

Circus music fits the concert band perfectly in many ways, just like a march does. The only difference is that circus music tends to go 90 miles an hour. Fun to play, with something for everybody, and the audience, minus the cotton candy, certainly can feel as if it has temporarily been teleported to the center ring!

To see and hear the score:  Circus Franticus