Christmas is truly here.
Well, not truly. I’m just finally getting around to cleaning up and posting some of my concert band arrangements in the hope that they might prove useful.
He Who is Mighty
Oh, the mercy our God has shown
To those who sit in death’s shadow
The sun on high pierced the night
Born was the Cornerstone
We’ve used this song during our community carols in 2016 and 2017. The imagery is beautiful, and I tried to capture some of the mystery and wonder of Christmas in the instrumentation. Like Who Would Have Dreamed, it’s from the Sovereign Grace Music album Prepare Him Room.
This arrangement does require a fairly strong upper woodwind section, and parts within each section do not always follow each other. This can be difficult for younger musicians.
There is also no notated piano part as yet. I played from the chord chart. I’ll pretend that was intentional, and not because I’m a terrible sight reader.
This arrangement is a half step higher than the original, in F Major. Sovereign Grace have an unrelated orchestral arrangement available as well.
Recording
Again, a Sibelius special. The vocal part is not present in the recording.
Instrumentation
- Flutes (Piccolo, 1, 2, 3)
- Oboe (doubles Flute 3), Bassoon (doubles Bass Clarinet)
- Clarinets (1, 2, 3, Bass)
- Saxophones (Alto 1, Alto 2, Tenor, Bari)
- French Horn
- Trumpet (1, 2, 3)
- Trombone (1, 2, 3)
- Euphonium (or Trombone 4)
- Tuba
- Timpani
- Percussion (Drum Kit, Suspended Cymbal)
- Glockenspiel
- Bass Guitar
- Lead Sheet
- Vocals