Music for any combination of instruments?

[Guido]

I have discussed in my geology department setting up a small ensemble, but as per usual, there are far too many winds, especially flutes, to perform anything from the standard repertoire really. We are all amateurs at a variety of skill levels from intermediate to really quite advanced. I have aready found Vaughan Williams' Household Music which is absolutely perfect for our requirements, but is there anything else which is written for any combination of instruments which people can recommend? (Aside from Cage's 4'33''!)

[Guido]

Oh I just remembered there's Cage's seventy-four which is also very beautiful... but maybe a bit far out for the likes of most people.

Woops - just saw that it's called seventy four because he specifies seventy four players, but I guess that one could do an "arrangement", given that there are only two lines...

[bhodges]

Definitely check out Terry Riley's In C, which can be performed by any combination of instruments, large or small, and is ideal for all experience levels.  Here is the score.  Although I personally have never played it, whenever I've seen it performed, the musicians all look like they're having a fabulous time.

Also for "any combination of loud instruments" is Louis Andriessen's Workers Union, but it is more difficult than the Riley piece.

--Bruce

[Guido]

Ah yes, in C! Of course - it's very enjoyable to play - did it a few years ago.

Was just thinking maybe we should do the Grand Canyon Suite, or Messiaen's Des Canyons Aux Etoiles  (- if only!) What other rock related pieces are there? Messiaen's liturgie de cristal...

[bhodges]

Was just thinking maybe we should do...Messiaen's Des Canyons Aux Etoiles  (- if only!)

   

What other rock related pieces are there? Messiaen's liturgie de cristal...

Magnus Lindberg: Related Rocks (1997)    (Info here)

--Bruce

[not edward]

I would imagine there would be something by Hindemith that would fit--maybe stuff from the Plöner Musiktag?

[Dana]

      Exactly what kind of numbers do you have? There are wind quintets all over the place (Mozart, Beethoven, Hindemith, etc), and Mozart and Beethoven also wrote several flute quartets/trios. Beethoven also wrote this septet for Violin, Viola, Cello, Double Bass, Clarinet, Bassoon and Horn, which I very much enjoy.

[some guy]

Aside from 4'33" (and why are you excluding that?), there's Christian Wolff's For One, Two, or Three People, and Barney Childs' Take Five, and Hal Budd's Candy Apple Revision.

Actually, there are tons of pieces like those, for unspecified instruments, or for any brass or any wind or any string or whatever. A lot of graphic pieces are for any instrument(s).

[greg]

Definitely check out Terry Riley's In C, which can be performed by any combination of instruments, large or small, and is ideal for all experience levels.  Here is the score.  Although I personally have never played it, whenever I've seen it performed, the musicians all look like they're having a fabulous time.

Also for "any combination of loud instruments" is Louis Andriessen's Workers Union, but it is more difficult than the Riley piece.

--Bruce

My own arrangement of In C is somewhat unusual- 1 Trumpet, 2 Violins and Timpanist. So, yeah, you can get away with quite a bit. 

[Guido]

Aside from 4'33" (and why are you excluding that?), there's Christian Wolff's For One, Two, or Three People, and Barney Childs' Take Five, and Hal Budd's Candy Apple Revision.

Actually, there are tons of pieces like those, for unspecified instruments, or for any brass or any wind or any string or whatever. A lot of graphic pieces are for any instrument(s).

Thanks for these everyone! I'm only excluding 4'33'' because I already know about it, and we want to play together rather than sit together with our instruments - we already do a lot of sitting together!

[snyprrr]

Xenakis: Linea-Agon

[Luke]

Rzewski - Les moutons de Panurge

stick that into Google and the first two results give you the score and Rzewski's note on the piece

[Joe Barron]

Zappa: peaches en Regalia.

I'd go for anything baroque or medieval: it's usually not too hard and sounds good on any combination of instruments.

[Guido]

Thanks for these guys.

Rzewski - Les moutons de Panurge - I'd forgotten about that - a terrifying piece, probably too intense for a casual group of amateurs...

I hadn't thought of that Joe - I think I might actually go between your time periods and choose something from the Renaissance, some Tallis or Byrd might work very nicely.

[Conor71]

Arvo Part: Fratres?