This tour de force will be ideal for bands looking for a barnstorming finale to their concert. The ‘Italian’ was really Mendelssohn’s 3rd Symphony at the time it was completed in 1833. The ‘Italian’ is certainly a youthful work, not in its technique, since it shows a perfect mastery of symphonic composition, but in its spirit. He had begun it two years earlier on a visit to Italy, where the vivid sights and sounds had impressed him immensely, just as the visit to Scotland had the year before. The atmosphere of Italy impelled him to translate his impressions into another symphony.
 
The dazzling finale, the Saltarello, conjures up a picture of Italian peasants dancing frantically in a wild and whirling fashion, not unlike the tarantella.
 
The arranger writes: ‘It was noted by some players of the day that the orchestral parts were somewhat virtuosic for the time, and this virtuosic style inspired me to arrange this for brass band.'
 
To view a follow-the-score video of the work featuring the Fairey Band please visit https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BvcuwwJQrR8
 
PDF download includes score and parts.
 
Sheet music available from:
UK - www.brassband.co.uk
USA - www.solidbrassmusic.com
 
Difficulty Level: 1st Section +
 
Instrumentation:
Soprano Cornet Eb
Solo Cornet Bb
Repiano Cornet Bb
2nd Cornet Bb
3rd Cornet Bb
Flugel Horn Bb
Solo Horn Eb
1st Horn Eb
2nd Horn Eb
1st Baritone Bb
2nd Baritone Bb
1st Trombone Bb
2nd Trombone Bb
Bass Trombone
Euphonium Bb
Bass Eb
Bass Bb
Timpani