Composed in 2002 for the Ashland City Band of Ashland, Oregon, the march contains numerous musical references to the band. Traditionally, the band begins its concerts with an arrangement of George Gershwin's "Strike Up The Band" and finishes its concerts with two John Philip Sousa marches. The march's introduction begins with references to "Strike Up The Band" and finishes with a Sousa march introduction.

The motif upon which the first strain is based contains the concert pitches A-C-Bb: the Ashland City Band's initials. The second strain's opening motif consists of the concert pitches D-B-D-B played by the trombones, euphonium, and tenor sax. These pitches stand for "Directed By Don Bieghler." The Ashland City Band sports an exceptionally fine French horn section. The Trio section actually presents the horns as a quartet (doubled by the ACB's eight horns) and allows them to sing, soar, and shine! (Second time through, the horn parts may optionally be left unsplit and only the lower octaves played.) The "dog fight" section becomes in fact a "band fight." The voicing of the warring factions is based on the seating arrangement in effect at the time of the march's composition so that the instruments on the left side of the band "argue" with the instruments on the right side of the band. In the reprise of the "band fight" the notes are the same but the parts are reversed. This provides every instrument with both sides of the "fight" and allows a part to participate with whichever side of the band it sits. Following the first "fight" comes the first rendition of the final strain. The initial melodic material is a rhythmic variation of the opening motif. The "doodles" over the long note refer directly back to the opening motif. This section contains the melody and a harmony line (with "doodles" in some parts), a bass line, and some rhythmic accompaniment filling out the harmony. After the second "fight" comes the reprise complete with additional "doodling," a counter-melody, and trumpet fanfares. In the final measure the band states its musical initials - A-C-B - one last time in full unison with the percussion adding an exclamation point.

Instrumentation: Piccolo, Flutes 1-2, Oboes 1-2, Eb Clarinet, Bb Clarinets 1-2-3, Alto Clarinet,, Bass Clarinet, Contrabass Clarinet, Bassoons 1-2, Alto Saxophones 1-2, Tenor Saxophone, Baritone Saxophone, Bb Cornets 1-2-3, Bb Trumpets 1-2, F Horns 1-2-3-4, Trombones 1-2, Bass Trombone, Euphonium, Tuba, Percussion.

Difficulty: Medium.

Catalog item: TMP950019.

Price: $45.00.