Volume 3, No. 1 September 2005

Phillip M. Hash
Calvin College
Grand Rapids, Michigan

pmh3@calvin.edu

Several factors influence band directors’ repertoire selection including the ability and instrumentation of the ensemble, preferences of students and parents, and the occasion for which the music is to be performed (Battisti, 1995; Prentice, 1986). Programming is also affected by music publishers who spend large sums of money to promote their latest products, and learning standards recommended by state and federal organizations. The National Standards for Music (Music Educators National Conference [MENC], 1994), for example, calls on students to “perform music representing diverse genres and cultures” and to be able to “classify [music] by genre and style (and if applicable, by historical period, composer, and title)” (n.p.). The Illinois State Learning Standards for Fine Arts (Illinois State Board of Education [ISBE], 1997) makes similar statements, requiring students to “play…a variety of music representing diverse cultures and styles” (n.p.).

To meet these standards, band directors must program transcriptions of historical masterworks and music of various ethnic heritages including those from non-European cultures. One could also argue that works by women should be included as well. Topp (1989) supports these assertions stating “music by black composers is too little known and too little chosen,” and that repertoire composed by females is “not as rare as a male-dominated music culture might lead us to believe” (p. 2).

The National Standards (MENC, 1994) further require that “exemplary [emphasis mine] musical works” be studied and that students be able to “explain the characteristics that cause each work to be considered exemplary” (n.p.). This statement directs educators to select repertoire of the highest caliber, perhaps using objective criteria such as those suggested by Ostling (as cited by Battisti, 1995, see appendix A), Battisti (1995, see appendix B), Cramer (1997), Del Borgo (1988), Kohut and Grant (1990, see Appendix C), and McBeth (1990). Directors may also consider recommendations offered in such resources as the National Band Association’s (2001) Selective Music List, Teaching Music through Performance in Band (Miles, 1997, 1998, 2000, 2002), Teaching Music through Performance in Beginning Band (Miles & Dvorak, 2001), and various state contest lists (e.g., Ohio Music Educators Association [OMEA], 2003).

Research suggests that in spite of efforts to promote the National Standards (MENC 1994) in the instrumental classroom (e.g., Kvet & Tweed, 1996; Snyder, 2001), some music educators may not be selecting repertoire with these standards in mind. Madden (1998), for example, surveyed band directors in central Illinois to ascertain their level of knowledge and commitment to the National Standards. Although many directors felt the standards could have a positive impact on instruction, the majority believed full implementation was impractical and unattainable due to a lack of resources, instruction time, and staffing. Madden therefore determined that participants in the study “did not support the Standards to the degree necessary to fulfill the vision of its authors” (p. 68).

Graettinger (2003) and Rose (2004) examined music selection strategies and criteria of high school band teachers in Iowa, each finding evidence that factors other than state and national standards influenced conductors’ repertoire decisions. Both researchers determined that music selection was based more on the group’s ability to execute technical demands of the piece and the development of performance skills rather than the acquisition of musical knowledge. Data also indicated that listening to publishers’ promotional recordings was among the highest rated strategies used by band directors to select repertoire. This trend, however, may not be consistent nationwide. In Florida for example, promotional recordings were found to be the least important among 12 factors influencing directors’ contest repertoire choices (Williams, as cited by Greiner, 2002).

Trends involving school band repertoire have been studied in both Texas (Harris & Walls, 1996) and Iowa (Greiner, 2002). Harris and Walls analyzed the Texas University Interscholastic League Prescribed Music List (PML) from 1967 to 1994 to identify older works that should be considered core repertoire for young band. Data indicated approximately two-thirds of pieces listed at the grade one and two levels did not remain on the PML for more than two revisions, and that over 42% appeared only once. Harris and Walls stated that instead of allowing quality works to eventually disappear, they could serve as a starting point upon which a foundation for a core repertoire of young band music may be established. This data also point to the potential instability of state contest lists, especially in regard to music for developing bands.

Greiner (2002) compared repertoire performed during 1998 and 1999 at the Iowa High School Music Association (IHSMA) Large Group Festival with that identified by established resources as quality literature. Resources included five state festival required music lists, Teaching Music through Performance in Band volumes 1 and 2 (Miles, 1997, 1998), Best Music for High School Band (Dvorak, Grechesky, & Ciepluch, 1993), Best Music For Young Bands (Dvorak, Taggert, & Schmalz, 1986), and the National Band Association’s (2001) Selective Music List. Results indicated that depending on school size, between one-third and one-half of the literature performed was not included in any of the resources examined. Based on data from this research, Iowa band directors adopted a required music list for use at IHSMA large group festivals in an effort to raise the quality of repertoire performed.

Stevenson (2003) conducted a meta-analysis of 24 state contest lists and the National Band Association’s (2001) Selective Music List to determine which titles were most frequently recommended for festival performance. Although a total of 9,647 individual titles were found among the 25 lists, 35% (n = 3,402) were only listed once, a fact that indicated no broad consensus as to the musical or educational value of a large amount of literature. Stevenson, in determining a possible core repertoire, therefore included only the 1,270 works (grades 1-6) that appeared on seven or more of the 25 lists.

Most research conducted thus far (e.g., Graettinger, 2003; Greiner, 2002; Madden, 1996) has focused on literature selection of high school directors. The purpose of this study, however, was to provide a description and analysis of repertoire content at the middle school level. Research questions included:

1. How much of the music programmed was published in the past three years?

2. Which publishers were represented most frequently?

3. How many female and minority composers/arrangers were represented?

4. Which composers and arrangers had their music performed most frequently?

5. To what extent was music of various cultures and historical periods selected as called for in national and state learning standards?

6. Which pieces were performed most frequently?

7. How much of the literature selected has been judged by music educators to be of high quality and listed in respected repertoire resources as a result?

Data generated from this analysis will serve as one indicator of the impact national and state learning standards, the music industry, and leading music educators have on repertoire selected for middle school band contests in Northern Illinois. This information can then be used as a basis for recommendations to improve the quality of literature performed at these events.

METHOD

Programs from 10 Illinois Grade School Music Association—Northern Division (IGSMAND) district level contests were analyzed in relation to the questions listed above. All contests were held in March of 2003 and included a mix of urban, suburban, and rural schools. Information regarding music published between 2000 and 2002 was obtained through the new band music listings from program books of the Midwest Clinic (2000, 2001, 2002). Additional information was determined based on lists of top selling pieces from the J. W. Pepper (2003) catalogue.

Ascertaining musical quality is a subjective task. It is important, nonetheless, that repertoire be evaluated in order to judge the effectiveness of instrumental curricula. One indicator of artistic and pedagogical value may be the frequency a particular work appears on respected repertoire lists. Therefore, Teaching Music through Performance in Band (TMPB), volumes I-IV (Miles, 1997, 1998, 2000, 2002), Teaching Music through Performance in Beginning Band (TMPBB) (Miles & Dvorak, 2001), the National Band Association’s (2001) Selective Music List (SML), and Stevenson’s (2003) listing of most frequently recommended works on selected wind band/ensemble music lists were chosen as criterion variables for determining quality. TMPB and TMPBB together list 211 concert selections for grades 1-3; the SML includes 487 titles at the grade two and three levels; and Stevenson lists 20 grade one, 228 grade two, and 332 grade three titles appearing on 7-25 individual repertoire lists.

These sources were selected because 1) they are accepted by the profession as resources for finding outstanding literature (Greiner, 2002), 2) include the most current repertoire, and 3) tend to be more stable (e.g., Harris & Wall, 1996) and consistent (Stevenson, 2003) than individual state lists. Each of these sources lists criteria for the inclusion of repertoire though it is unclear as to what extent they were applied in the selection process. Cramer (1997) implied that pieces listed in TMPB (Miles, 1997) should have 1) a well conceived formal structure, 2) creative melodies and counter lines, 3) harmonic imagination, 4) rhythmic vitality, 5) contrast in all musical elements, 6) scoring that best represents the full potential for beautiful tone and timber, and 7) an emotional impact.

Repertoire on the SML (National Band Association [NBA], 2001) was chosen based on the recommendations of a nine-member SML committee and an ad hoc subcommittee. According to the NBA (2001),

All works from the seventh edition [NBA, 1997] that were recognized by at least one member of the committee were initially selected for inclusion in the [eighth] edition. However, each of the committee members were encouraged to make recommendations for works from the previous edition that should not be included in this edition. If a majority of the committee members agreed on titles for exclusion from the current edition, then the editor made appropriate changes to the list (p. ii).

Works listed by Stevenson (2003) only indicated the frequency each piece appeared on the repertoire lists examined. Although criteria for individual lists were not provided, Stevenson only considered lists that 1) were maintained by non-profit professional music education associations or non-profit associations devoted to the advancement of wind bands/ensembles, 2) included music from a broad range of difficulty levels, and 3) included literature based upon some stated or implied criteria of educational and/or aesthetic merit (p. 38).

No pieces grade four or higher listed in these sources were performed at the contests examined. Because TMPB, TMPBB, the SML, and Stevenson (2003) do not include marches, and a comparable list could not be found, marches were not evaluated in this portion of the study. Marches were, however, included in the analysis of data related to research questions 1-6. For the purposes of the present study, the term concert selections will be used when referring to the portion of the repertoire that does not include marches.

RESULTS

Data indicated that 81 concert bands from 72 schools performed a total of 243 compositions among the 10 contest programs analyzed. With the exception of one elementary group consisting of fifth-grade students, all bands were from the middle school level (grades 6-8). Each ensemble presented a march and two additional selections as per rules of the contest. The IGSMAND does not utilize a required music list (IGSMAND, 1999).

A total of 29.2% (n = 71) of all compositions performed (N = 243) were less than three years old. Fifteen percent (n = 37) were published in 2002, 8.6% (n = 21) in 2001, and 5.3% (n = 13) in 2000. Furthermore, 59.3% (n = 48) of all bands participating in the contests (N = 81) performed a work published in or after 2000.

Pieces written within three years prior to March 2003 (n = 71) were analyzed to determine which publishers were represented most frequently. C. L. Barnhouse published 31% (n = 22), C. P. P. Belwin/Warner Brothers, 14% (n = 10); Hal Leonard, 11% (n = 8); Alfred, 11% (n = 8); and Carl Fischer, 9.9% (n = 7). Six additional companies published the remaining 22.5% (n = 16). Further analysis revealed C. L. Barnhouse produced 27.6% (n = 67) of the total compositions performed (N = 243).

Music by a total of 101 individual composers and/or arrangers was performed at the contests examined. Barbara Buehlman (n = 2) and Anne McGinty (n = 3) were the only females listed with a combined total of five performances. Quincy Hilliard was the only African-American composer/arranger represented with a total of three pieces performed. Furthermore, 46.1% (n = 112) of the repertoire performed was produced by only 9.9% (n = 10) of the total number of composers/arrangers represented (N = 101). In fact, the music of James Swearingen alone accounted for 9.9% (n = 24) of the selections performed (N = 243) (see table 1).

Table 1

Composers/Arrangers Performed Most Frequently

Transcriptions and arrangements of historical masterworks accounted for 7.8% (n = 19) of the total pieces selected (N = 243) (see table 2). For the purpose of this study, a piece was considered an historical masterwork if it was written by a medieval, renaissance, baroque, classical, or 20^th century composer listed in Baker’s Biographical Dictionary of Musicians (Slonimsky & Kuhn, 2001).

Table 2

Transcriptions/Arrangements of Historical Masterworks

                        *All pieces were performed once

In addition, Ancient Castle (n = 1) and Korean Folk Rhapsody (n = 2) by James Curnow, and Mazama: Legend of the Pacific Northwest (n = 1) by Jay Chattaway were the only pieces based on music from non-European cultures. A total of 42 compositions, however, contained material based on folk music from the Western-European tradition (see table 3).

Table 3

Repertoire Incorporating Western-European Folk Material

The most frequently programmed compositions included Ceremony, Chant, and Ritual by David Shaffer (2002), Big Four march by K. L. King/arranged by James Swearingen (2002), and A Childhood Hymn by David Holsinger (1991). Each of these pieces was performed five times.

Of the total number of concert selections (N = 162) examined, 48.1% (n = 78) were included in the SML and/or TMPB, TMPBB, or Stevenson (2003) (see tables 4 & 5). Despite the relatively few number of titles selected from these sources (see table 6), 75.3% (n = 61) of all bands in the contests (N = 81) performed at least one concert work included in one or more of these resources.