Product Description
Be sure to ask your audience if anyone is celebrating a birthday, then offer up
this special treat! "Happy Birthday Fantasy" is a clever reimagining of the tune
everyone learns in childhood, then sings again and again throughout their
lifetime. It's been around since 1859 and is probably the most loved and
familiar song in history.
"Fantasy"
begins with the familiar waltz sounds of "Happy Birthday." Then, bingo! Do I
hear a minuet by Johann Strauss? A transition into a surprising minor key follows, with echoes of
composer Florian Hermann's memorable "Dark Eyes." Next, it's time for a key
signature change to 4/4 time, as the musical influence of the "March King," John
Phillip Sousa, comes to the fore. Finally, the "Fantasy" closes with the
arranger inventively superimposing the theme from Franz Liszt's "Hungarian
Rhapsody #2" over the time-honored melody.
Full
of surprises and deft forays into five musical genres - and offering a little
classical education for your students along the way - "Happy Birthday Fantasy"
is scored for Middle School/Jr. High School String Orchestra.
This product was created by a member of ArrangeMe, Hal Leonard's global self-publishing community of independent composers, arrangers, and songwriters. ArrangeMe allows for the publication of unique arrangements of both popular titles and original compositions from a wide variety of voices and backgrounds.