Incidental Music from The Crown of Manfred

Composed for a saxophone quintet at Berklee College of Music in 1978, this 12 - minute work is a wonderful workout for woodwind players who are learning doubles and perhaps interested in playing in a Broadway-style pit orchestra. The instrument changes are many! It is also a fun piece for an audience to hear and well as to see. The first and last of the seven movements are for a saxophone quintet. The five other movements require those same players to use multiple doubles. A complete instrumental breakdown is found in the composer's notes in the full score. In addition to the five saxophones, the flute, clarinet and double reed families are well represented. The music is structured as a suite of incidental music for a stage production with movement titles which suggest the story that would unfold if there were a play. The stage play is, however, in the composer's imagination. The music is contemporary but has a quasi-Arabian or Sinbad feel. The five parts could could be performed by several players if needed to cover all the instruments. As a stand alone piece or perhaps a feature for the woodwind section of a concert band, this is a very unusual and exciting piece.