Three Arrangements for Clarinet Choir

This creative project documents the methods and challenges of writing three clarinet choir arrangements of different musical genres, and culminates into three clarinet choir scores with an upcoming performance date. The three pieces that were arranged are “Dinah” by Sam Lewis and Joe Young, “Laud ye the Name of the Lord” from Vespers by Sergei Rachmaninoff, and “Peace” by Jeremy Zuckerman. The goal of the project was to arrange these pieces for clarinet choir without making any major changes to the form or style of the original works. Scores to the final three arrangements are included within this document, as well as a brief description of the processes involved in writing them. While the pieces were being arranged, the techniques of arranging were studied concurrently by reviewing a text on arranging, other successful clarinet choir arrangements, fixing the challenges that were presented by the pieces to be arranged. Each piece required a few drafts: after being written to near-completion, they were played by live clarinet groups and recorded to hear how they sounded. After these recording sessions, the pieces would be further edited for readability, suitability for the instrument, and overall sound and effect. Major difficulties are also covered within the following paper, including why those issues arose and what methods were used to solve them. Each of the pieces helped to explore different aspects of arranging for clarinet choir, and each piece has turned into a pleasing arrangement that may be performed by a live ensemble. This creative project greatly improved the skills of the author and serves to stoke interest in arranging and composition.