Browse All Songs

INSTRUMENTATION
STYLE
DIFFICULTY
VOCALS
PERFORMER
SOLOS
    • Solos
    • Soprano
    • Bari
    • Trumpet
    • Trombone

    Empty Ballroom Blues

    as performed by Johnny Hodges
    $60
    Empty Ballroom Blues (which is not a blues!) is an Hodges/Ellington piece with great big riffs and big solo sections, and it makes for a great finale number!
    Instrumentation Ellington 7-Piece
    Style Swing Era
    Level 3
    TEMPO quarter note = 190
    Trumpet
    Range
    A5
    • Solos
    • Alto
    • Bari
    • Trumpet
    • Trombone
    • Piano

    Swinging in the Dell

    as performed by Johnny Hodges and His Orchestra
    $60
    This upbeat Hodges/Ellington piece is a variation on the old nursery rhyme The Farmer in the Dell. After a statement of the melody, it's all solos with background riffs until the melody comes back at the end. Swinging in the Dell is a very simple solo vehicle that's great for getting dancers on the floor!
    Instrumentation Ellington 7-Piece
    Style Swing Era
    Level 2
    TEMPO quarter note = 190
    Trumpet
    Range
    G5
    • Solos
    • Alto
    • Trumpet
    • Trombone

    Savoy Strut

    as performed by Johnny Hodges and His Orchestra
    $60
    Savoy Strut is a major hidden gem from the swing era! Duke Ellington starts the tune up with an unusually angular intro, which takes us to a winding but singable head. The soloists play over a beautiful and remarkable chord progression which also features some player-specific orchestration choices that take advantage of the unique sounds of his players. A must-have for any Ellington 7-piece ensemble!
    Instrumentation Ellington 7-Piece
    Style Swing Era
    Level 3
    TEMPO quarter note = 160
    Trumpet
    Range
    E5
    • Solos
    • Alto
    • Trumpet

    Skunk Hollow Blues

    as performed by Johnny Hodges and His Orchestra
    $60
    Skunk Hollow Blues is a very laid back colorful blues and a fantastic rare gem of the swing era. The intro and head features plunger trumpet on one line, bari and trombone on another, and the alto on a third melody, a rare true 3-part counterpoint! Riffs and triadic voicings back up a couple of solos, leading to an ending chorus that is half based on the head and half new material full of creeping chromatic motion full of dynamics.
    Instrumentation Ellington 7-Piece
    Style Swing Era
    Level 2
    TEMPO quarter note = 125
    Trumpet
    Range
    Eb5
    • Solos
    • Alto
    • Bari
    • Trumpet
    • Trombone
    • Bass
    • Piano

    Who Struck John?

    as performed by Johnny Hodges and His Orchestra
    $60
    Also known as "Non-Violent Integration", Who Struck John? is a very simple but very cool head tune. This arrangement is unusual in its use of rock/metal style parallel fifths in the rhythm section, otherwise known in modern times as barre chords. This is a chart for jamming on a straight-ahead D Major blues, with solo space for nearly everyone.
    Instrumentation Ellington 7-Piece
    Style Swing Era
    Level 1
    TEMPO quarter note = 160
    Trumpet
    Range
    Gb5
    • Solos
    • Alto
    • Trumpet
    • Trombone

    Good Queen Bess

    as performed by Johnny Hodges and His Orchestra
    $60
    Good Queen Bess is a standout riff tune from the Hodges/Ellington book, complete with a lighthearted, catchy melody, and player-unique background voicings. The solo changes are fairly standard but colorful and make for a great jam vehicle for your band.
    Instrumentation Ellington 7-Piece
    Style Swing Era
    Level 3
    TEMPO quarter note = 150
    Trumpet
    Range
    D5
    • Solos
    • Alto
    • Bari
    • Trumpet
    • Trombone

    The Back Room Romp (A Contrapuntal Stomp)

    as performed by Rex Stewart and His 52nd Street Stompers
    $60
    Back Room Romp is basically a simple blues in Ab, but there is a twist: the head is a series of building independent lines, thus a "Contrapuntal Stomp." Every horn player gets a solo chorus. The lead trumpet part is a bit of a blow, but this was written for longtime Ellington sideman, trumpeter Rex Stewart, who had the chops to play all day.
    Instrumentation Ellington 7-Piece
    Style Swing Era
    Level 3
    TEMPO quarter note = 154
    Trumpet
    Range
    Bb5
    • Solos
    • Alto
    • Tenor
    • Trumpet
    • Piano

    The Right Idea

    as performed by Charlie Barnet and his Orchestra
    $80
    Charlie Barnet wrote a trio of "Idea" pieces: one that paid tribute to Duke Ellington, one that parodied the unhip bands of the day, and this one, The Right Idea, a piece that Barnet felt represented a truly quintessential swing chart. With solo space for several instruments and some great riffs and lines, you can tell right away that Barnet was spot on!
    Instrumentation Big Band
    Style Swing Era
    Level 3
    TEMPO quarter note = 185
    Trumpet
    Range
    C6
    • Solos
    • Trumpet

    Christmas Land

    as performed by the Beantown Swing Orchestra
    $95
    An original song off the 2011 Beantown Swing Orchestra album A Beantown Christmas, "Christmas Land" is a light-hearted, swinging tune about the magical world of fun and happiness where all things Christmas are created. There are several solo spaces for trumpet and some great swinging ensemble parts reminiscent of Nelson Riddle's work for Frank Sinatra.
    Instrumentation Big Band
    Style Pop Jazz
    Level 4
    Vocals Female
    TEMPO quarter note = 124
    Trumpet
    Range
    Eb6

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