A couple of days remaining of the Summer Sale

There are only a few days left of this year’s Summer Sale. Sieze the opportunity to buy great sounding charts, that are fun to play and pleasing to listen to, at reduced prices for the upcoming autumn rehearsal semester. Until August the 31:st the reductions are 25% on all arrangements, and 30% on all compositions.

The last recommendations I give for this summer, are for those who look for charts that are difficult enough that not many bands can pull them off. If your band wants to show its skills, stamina and technique Iraqi Blues is a medium-up 5/4 meter piece that demands all that; with a prefered Piccolo Trumpet lead and a sax- and a shout- chorus that both require some serious rehearsing. Mister Ostrich is a fast piece in 17/4, most often subdivided 5-5-7, that due to its sheer tempo takes a really good band to play and perform, while Ge Mig (with Swedish lyrics) is an uptempo song that switches between 4/4 and 6/4 with a counterpoint shout chorus, that demands skills and an acute awareness of form in both the band and the female vocalist. Just Friends, is a difficult and demanding chart; not only from being in the key of E, but also from a long outro and intro with vocalise and reduced ensemble that takes some practising to master. Check these charts out to give your musicians a real challenge come the start of the rehearsing season!

I wish all of you visiting here a really nice August, and a great start of the oncoming Autumn!

Special recommendations for August

Today is the last day of July, meaning there still is about a month left of this year’s Summer Sale. Take the opportunity to buy some great Big Band charts at nicely reduced prices: 25% off on all arrangements, and 30% off on all compositions. All to get your band a repertoire boost for the autumn re-start.

This time, I recommend some more specialised charts, that are fun to play, sound terriffic but also offer something out of the ordinary that may or may not be discernible at first listening. Funk Foray, is a 13/4 journey into odd meter funk that is fairly easy to play, and catchy to listen to, where the odd meter isn’t so prominent that everybody immediately hear it as odd meter; Black Cat Blues, is a blues for a male vocalist, seemingly regular but in a thirteen bar form, where it takes a while for both the player and the listener to hear and get accustomed to the added measure; Like Someone In Love, is a regular swing for a female vocalist, where the key of the song gets transposed a half tone up and back again; discreetely enough that it’s not certain that all listeners catch up on what just happened; Matinee Idol, is a fairly straight off arrangment of the Yellowjacket’s hit, but with an interlude snuck in that many take for being a part of original form – when it really isn’t.

I hope you all visiting here have a great summer – or winter on the southern hemisphere! – and that you can relax, rest and recuperate on a summer vacation.

Recommendations from the Summer Sale

The Summer Sale is under way, and will continue to be until August 31:st. Take the opportunity to buy refreshing new charts for your band at a great discount: 30% off on all compositions, and 25% off on all arrangements.

This month, I recommend you visiting here to check out these charts: Sandu is a great showcasing chart for a tenor sax and trumpet duet, with ample soloing space, a nice sax chorus and some biting ensemble shout parts – all while still being fairly close to the original; My Shining Hour, is a high-tempo chart where the drummer, trumpet 2, the female vocalist and lead alto sax all get solistic space, while really nice ensemble parts set mood changes, melodies and marks; Laughing Pearl, is a disco ballad for a male vocalist rooted in the funk style of – for example – Brothers Johnson or The Meters; Quirky Quantum Quarks, is a rock-style chart, with a lot of solo space and a lot of exciting ensemble work that are both fun to play and listen to.

I wish all of you visiting here a really nice Summer!

Summe Sale 2023

The Summer Sale of 2023 is coming up; between June 1:st and August 31:st. Because of the financially shaky times, I’ve for the forseeable future decided to stick with the the reduction rates of 30% off on all compositions, and 25% off on all arrangements.

Take the opportunity to buy exciting, well sounding and fun to play charts at reduced prices; to have some invigorating additions to your band’s repertoire, when rehearsals start again after the Summer vacations.

Four really recommended charts are: “Days of Wine and Roses”, if you are looking for a sparkling and fresh set- or concert-opener; “This Masquerade”, for an expressive and interesting bossa for your female vocalist, possibly in a dance set; “A Foggy Day”, for a contrast-rich, fun to play and lively feature for the band’s male vocalist and second trombonist (also possibly in a dance set); and “Clear Sky” if you want a sweet sounding, very convenient odd meter concert chart, with some fun ensemble parts and nice solo features, that is easy enough to be within reach with some focused rehearsing.

Check them out or contact me for more information: contact”at”danieleng”dot”com!

……and then, of course, you are always welcome to the “Charts For Free” section, where you can download charts for free, promotional use!

I wish all of you visiting here a really nice ending of the Spring season, and a great start of the Summer!

Some were premiered

Last Saturday, the 22/4, the eminent Immanuel Big Band held a short concert of five songs entirely with my music, at Immanuelskyrkan, Stockholm. The concert was held as a part of the city-wide communal event “Kulturnatten”. In a five piece program with two instrumental songs, the great vocalist Anders Bergman premiered three songs publicly for the first time.

The band performed on top, with great spirit and interpretation, flavoured by very nice and inspired solistic appearances, while Anders filled the songs and the lyrics with meaning and soul. I’d like to say a warm, heartfelt Thank You! to everyone involved for a very nice and joyful experience.

The three songs premiered were: “Black Cat Blues”, “No Quick Fix For Crying” and “Laughing Pearl”.

I wish all of you visiting here a really nice April ending, and that May will be a lovely bridge between Spring and Summer.

Some premieres

On Saturday April 22 starting at 20:30, the eminent Immanuel Big Band will hold a short concert entirely with my music, as an event within “Kulturnatten” in Stockholm. In a thirty minutes concert, they will perform five of my pieces for big band, including three premiering songs – “Black Cat Blues”, “No Quick Fix For Crying” and “Laughing Pearl” – all with the great vocalist Anders Bergman.

The program will be mostly focused on funk and fusion style big band music, and is as follows:

“Every Now and Then”
“Black Cat Blues”
“No Quick Fix For Crying”
“Quirky Quantum Quarks”
“Laughing Pearl”

Very welcome to a short, energizing and grooving concert at Immanuelskyrkan, Kungstensgatan 17 Stockholm, on April 22 at 20:30. Free admission!

Events of Yesterday

Yesterday, I had the pleasure of conducting Huddinge Big Band (picture above) once again performing the full repertoire from the magnificent Diane Schuur & the Count Basie Orchestra record from 1987. This time with a new vocalist, the eminent Camilla Widell, whom performed with dash, skills and feeling well fitting for the songs. The concert, which was held at Scandic Bredden with the production of Bio Sober, drew a large, enthusiastic, and interested audience, made the band play its best and the whole performance a joy and an energizing experience.

A great Thank You to the band for taking on the repertoire and doing it so well, to Camilla for a great performance and show, and to all the friendly and interested people who came to listen.

More events are coming up, and I hope some of you visiting here can come and listen sometime. I’ll notify about those in due time.

Upcoming Projects

The December holidays and the ditto sale are since long over, and now we all are into those long toiling weeks of work, with no longer holidays – in Sweden, at least – until spring break and Easter holidays far later – when winter has turned into Spring. Also: This winter – again: at least in Sweden – being unusually warm, rainy and murky without any real change in sight, doesn’t help making this period any easier.

With those prospects, I find it encouraging and energizing to have fun things to look forward to, and one such thing is that Huddinge Big Band will hold a following-up concert of the Diane Schuur-project they performed in June last year. The concert will be held at Scandic Bredden in collaboration with the cultural association Bio Sober on Sunday February 19th. More info on that event will be published later.

Another such thing to look forward to, is a just started collaboration with the eminent (and very nice) orchestra Immanuel Big Band, which supposedly will result in the performing of my music later this spring. More information will be published here later.

The third thing to look forward to, is the composing of new Big Band music, which has begun again in earnest after a break during the Holidays. The composing for the Japanese-influenced project is proceeding both with writing lyrics – about the earlier mentioned Nué – and composing music to already completed lyrics – about persons with dubious personalities in a song titled “City Bird” for a female vocalist. Six songs for the project are already finished, and another two are on the piano composing-stand, and it’s an energizing feeling to see everything coming nicely into finished songs and arrangements. All those compositions will be published here upon completion.

I wish and hope that you all visiting here can find your own things that give you energy, strength and good prospects to endure these weeks without any real long weekends or holidays – at least for us in Sweden. Until spring really sets in to make everything a little brighter and lighter, and the more substantial holidays coming up later can give rest and recuperation.

New Composition and December Sale

So busy have I been this December, that I almost forgot to set up for the December Sale. Now, I got the sale up and running on December 1:st but it got an unannounced start this year, so more than two weeks in I now, finally, state: The December Sale is on between the 1:st and 31:st! Take the opportunity to buy great big band charts at 30% discount on all compositions, and 25% on all arrangements.

There is also a new composition in the web shop, a piece influenced by Japanese modes and scales titled “Childhood Friends”; a slightly melancholic contemplation about seeing how the emergence of the traits and characteristics we all develop as we grow up affect friendships that were founded in childhood and youth. This chart is published at reduced price.

The concert “Standard Story”, that Huddinge Big Band performed the 16:th of November, was a really fun and successful project! The band and Anna Häll, the vocalist, really stood up to the task, the concert was well attended and the whole project was a great preparation for the subsequent “Christmas Cantata” concerts – as well as an over all fun and inspiring undertaking. I think the picture from that concert provided here, shows how elegant and spectacular a well set up big band can be – alas with this picture not showing the eminent vocalist Anna Häll.

I wish all you visiting here a great and happy December! May you all look forward to the upcoming holidays with joy and happiness – despite these perilous times.

Close to Concert

After an intensive, inspiring and invigorating rehearsal period (from which this photo above is taken), Huddinge Big Band featuring Anna Häll as vocalist will perform the concert “Standard Story” under my conducting at Huddinge Gymnasium’s assembly hall this coming Wednesday, the 16/11. Doors open at 19:00 hrs, and concert start is 19:30. Admission is 100:- with free entrance for those of age fifteen and under.

There will also be coffee and some homemade pastries for sale in the foyer.

Concert length is just above one hour.

Very, very WELCOME!