Pomp and Circumstance
For concert band
Sir Edward Elgar wrote his Pomp and Circumstance Military Marches, Op. 39 in the early 20th century. The first of the six marches was played for Yale's graduation ceremony in 1905, and has since been played at countless thousands of graduation ceremonies. For audience members it is the sound of tradition; for the band (especially the tuba players) it is the endless drone* of a humid late spring afternoon. I wrote this arrangement to be as simple as possible, easily adapted to be played as long as is necessary and with minimal rehearsal time. It was first played by the Fillmore Central Concert Band at graduation on May 12, 2012.
*In college, we would play games: playing every other measure, or every third note, etc. It kept us awake...