Multi-Level Masterpieces!
My Multi-Level Masterpiece arrangements and original compositions feature help music students to learn and grow in music performance, improvisation, and composition with greater efficiency, speed, and enjoyment!
Although there are so many wonderful professional and educational pieces available in this day and age, many of my fellow music educators and I shared similar hopes for resources that would maximize learning for all students within an ensemble no matter which instrument they happen to play, their ability level, or the size of their ensemble.
We wanted large groups of students from multiple levels to come together to make music together. We wanted the double basses to play more melody parts. We wanted structures that would accommodate the changes of life of our students as they entered classes mid-year or had to be absent. We wanted students to learn more about improvisation, composition, arranging, and music theory as a natural part of our normal ensemble rehearsals.
After 20 years of experimentation and refinement, the structure of these Multi-Level Masterpiece arrangements and compositions work better at addressing my hopes than anything else that I have found! I personally use these arrangements with my own educational ensembles and private students, and I have also used them for weddings, memorials, and other special-events. These Multi-Level Masterpiece arrangements have now been utilized as educational resources with the following organizations, to name a few:
Aspen Music Festival and School
University of Colorado Boulder
Kansas State University
University of Northern Colorado
Colorado Music Educators Association
American String Teachers Association
Westminster Public Schools
Boulder Valley Public Schools
Most of the currently-available pieces are Mariachi arrangements, and a wider-variety of arrangements and original compositions are coming soon! Over 100 arrangements/compositions have been started over the past 20 years, but now, one-by-one, they are being edited into this Multi-Level Masterpiece format to be made available for public use! Special thanks to the Aspen Music Festival and School as well as my Linert’s Lions, Cool Cats, and Kind Kittens Members for their support to develop this structure and for commissioning new works.
Based on over 1000 musicians’ experiences using these arrangements in the past year, updated versions of the currently-available works as well as enhanced usage information and walk-through videos will be released during the summer of 2024. Stay-tuned for updates! The flexible complexity of these pieces can make your first experience a bit tricky at first, but once you understand the various parts/options, they are extremely powerful educational pieces that can sound professional and can lead to improved skills in the areas of performance, improvisation, composition, and more!
Formats
Format 1: Most of my publicly-available Multi-Level Masterpiece pieces use this format. These arrangements feature parts ranging from a foundational player on their first day of instruction typically through a difficulty grade four. This format was developed and utilized largely as part of the Aspen Music Festival’s Mariachi Workshop allowing students with 0-8 years of experience to learn, explore, and perform together.
Each instrument has four primary parts they can play: Foundational Notes, Bass Line, Harmony Line, and Melody Line(s). The Bass, Harmony, and Melody parts typically each have two parts (part 1 and part 2) with differences of difficulty between them particularly with regard to complexity of rhythms and pitch range. Parts are available for all of the typical orchestral, band, mariachi, and general music instruments. Between the various instruments all of the pitches/rhythms are identical, allowing for unison playing and practice.
In most cases, these arrangements work best in public performance when there is at least one audible performer playing one of the melody lines (1 or 2), one of the harmony lines (1 or 2), and one of the bass lines (1 or 2). While some care is needed to have an appropriate balance of the parts, most any instrument can learn, play, and perform any part. These works were created with that sort of flexibility as a top priority. Lyrics are included for the melody parts on songs, but the pieces are written in a manner that they lyrics/singing can be optional as those parts are doubled by the instrumental parts.
Together the parts sound absolutely wonderful, but a focus is on unison playing of each individual part so that students can invest more time actively playing/learning rather than waiting for others to learn their parts or without having to break into sectionals.
Walk-through videos showcasing the usage of these “Format 1” arrangements are in development. Stay-tuned for updates!
Format 2: These arrangements feature parts typically ranging from a student with one to five years of experience. The parts typically include instruments from the string orchestra and mariachi, sometimes others, but each arrangement can be different. This format is for small to gigantic-sized groups (not as solos). Each instrument typically has three levels available to play (foundational, normal, advanced), but between different instruments, the parts can vary. Typically lower instruments play a bass line, guitars and other harmony strummed instruments play a harmony line, and upper range instruments play the melody. All lines are meant to be engaging, though the parts in the arrangements rarely switch roles (melody lines typically play the melody throughout). Some of these arrangements require vocals. The descriptions of each piece will make this known.
These pieces work great if you have an ensemble that can play the normal or advanced lines so that the piece sounds like the piece. Yay! The foundational lines are meant to be engaging, but to be played alongside a group playing the normal and/or advanced lines. The pieces work especially great for “festival” experiences, where you might bring elementary (or foundational middle or high school students) alongside to play with more advanced students for a huge performance experience!
More Multi-Level Masterpiece info, videos, and purchase info is available via the links below!
Buy 50 or more Multi-Level Masterpiece arrangements and/or original compositions from my website in one order, and I’ll create and send a free Musical Message to you!
Original Compositions and Public Domain Arrangements
Los Machetes - Mexican Folk Dance - Coming August 2024!
Las Golondrinas - Narciso Serradell Sevilla - Coming August 2024!
La Bamba - Mexican Folk Song - Coming August 2024!
Pomp and Circumstance - Edward Elgar - Coming Soon!
Korobeiniki (Theme from Tetris) - Russian Folk Song - Coming Soon!
Blackberry Blossom - American Fiddle Tune - Coming Soon!
Cold Frosty Morning - American Fiddle Tune - Coming Soon!
Beautiful Dreamer - Stephen Foster - Coming Soon!
Hun er så hvid - Edvard Grieg - Coming Soon!
Goin’ Home Theme - Antonín Dvořák - Coming Soon!
Avalanche of Yetis in a Blizzard - Original - Coming Soon!
Gnomish Encounters: Mushroom Miners - Original - Coming Soon!
Passacaille for Goodbye - Original - Coming Soon!
Aspen Leaves in Fall - Original - Coming Soon!
Grateful Waves - Original - Coming Soon!
Falling for You - Original - Coming Soon!
Open Air - Original - Coming Soon!
Arrangements of Copyrighted Works by Others
Feliz Navidad - Coming Soon!
I’ll Be Seeing You - Sammy Fain and Irving Kahal - Coming Soon!
I’m Glad There Is You - Jimmy Dorsey and Paul Madeira - Coming Soon!
Let’s Do It - Cole Porter - Coming Soon!