Wedding March from Lødingen for String Duet

Yay, more duet music for viola and cello! 😁

This wedding march is a lovely folk tune that has been played at weddings in Norway for generations. It originates in Lødingen in Nordland, but is well known all over the country. You can listen to a sound clip here!

Download this duet together with two other traditional Norwegian wedding tunes at Sheet Music Plus. Also available for violin and viola or violin and cello!

Anglais from Skåne - Swedish folk dance for children's string orchestra

A fun little piece for the youngest string students! This lively Swedish folk dance is a great addition to the repertoire of any children's string orchestra. The rhythmic patterns are easy to learn and fun to play for everyone. The second violin and double bass parts are written with beginners in mind, and the double bass part may be played on the cello, too.

Celebrate Midsummer the Swedish way this year! :D

Parts available here - including viola part (second violin part in alto clef).

The Banks Of Allan - Scottish Jig

Jigs and reels and other lively folk dance tunes are always popular in my youth orchestra. This one is a jig from Scotland, and a lot of fun to play! I have tried to give all of the parts some interesting challenges. The piano part is optional.

You can download the parts on Sheet Music Plus - in which case you'll get an Irish jig into the bargain :)

Wedding March from Seljord

This traditional fiddle tune is still very much in use as a wedding march in Norway. But it works great as a festive concert piece as well!

Separate parts are available at Sheet Music Plus.

"Reinlender" - traditional dance from Northern Norway

This traditional fiddle tune is from the area where I live, quite close to where the Arctic Circle crosses Norway. It's a popular dance as played by the local fiddler Mikal Rabliås, which I have arranged for a combined junior/youth orchestra with a very easy open string part. That way everyone can join in!

The Violin 1 and Cello 1 parts provide some challenges to the youth players, whereas the violin 3 (Viola) and Cello 2 parts avoid any streching, and so are suitable for less experienced players. The open string part is written in treble clef with violin in mind, but is equally playable on the viola or cello.

Hope you enjoy this festive tune! :)

 

The Tenants' Polka (Husmannspolka)

The Tenants' Polka is yet another lively Scandinavian traditional dance tune!

The Violin 2 and Cello 2 parts in this arrangement should be fairly easy to play. The Cello 1 section, on the other hand, needs to be comfortable with playing in second/third/fourth position. A nice challenge for the oldest cellists in the Junior string orchestra!

Synes du om meg?/Ut å søke tjeneste – Two folksongs from Norway

A new piece for The Double Bass Project: Two Norwegian folk tunes. The song called "Synes du om meg?" (Do you love me?) starts at letter A, and "Ut å søke tjeneste" (Seeking a post) starts at letter B.

Like in most of my other Junior pieces, the Violin 2 and Cello 2 parts are intended for the least experienced musicians in the orchestra. Nevertheless I have tried to make them as musically meaningful as possible – to encourage practicing at home!

Polly Wolly Doodle

A well known tune for Junior string orchestra, with a very easy double bass part!

In my experience, most children find it easier to play fast notes than long slow ones. That's why most of the Junior pieces on this blog are of the lively kind. Also, they tend to be more popular – many of my youngest students seem to rate music by speed: the faster the better! Nevertheless, I do have some pieces of the slightly more slow and soulful kind up my sleeve... Stay tuned!

Back-stick dance

Another lively junior piece with very beginner-friendly violin 2 and cello 2 parts: Back-stick dance, a traditional scandinavian dance game ("Kjeppryggedans" in Norwegian).

Hopp, vennen min – Jump, little friend

Another traditional tune for the juniors, this time from Solør in southeastern Norway. 

Here the parts are marked with individual dynamics. The original tune moves through all the parts, but it's always marked f (starting in the cellos at bar 5, then the second violins take over at bar 9 etc.). The point is that everyone should be able to hear which part has the tune. After all, one of the most important lessons in beginners' ensemble playing is learning to listen to the others!

Note: If any of the cellists don't play in fourth position yet, they may skip the short intro and start playing at letter A.

Saint James Infirmary Blues

Time for another youth orchestra piece! Shorter and less technically demanding than the Grieg Lyric Pieces, this melancoly melody is nice for working on a rich, warm string orchestra sound.

Billy Boy

A new piece for junior strings: my arrangement of the North American traditional tune Billy Boy!
The viola part is optional, i.e. if you're lucky enough to have a viola section in your orchestra, it may replace the cello 1 section (and vice versa).

Like in my other Junior pieces, the second violin part is a little easier to play than the first. Also the cello 1 part is slightly more technically challenging than the cello 2 part. But my goal is, as always, that every player should have a part that's interesting enough to be practiced at home!

Dudlebska – Czech polka

Let's start out with a lively Czech polka for junior strings!
This is written with violin and cello players aged seven to eleven in mind. The first violin part is slightly more demanding than the second violin part, but all the parts should be easy enough so that the orchestra can play this piece fairly fast, which is always fun!

Enjoy! And please let me know how you like it :-)