Carol of the Bells
Difficulty: Intermediate
Duration: 2:20
Price: $25
Instrumentation: 1 marimba (shared), 1 vibraphone, 1 glockenspiel, 2 xylophones*, chimes, (4) timpani, sleigh bells, bass drum, 2 toms, 2 suspended cymbals, triangle, finger cymbals
Personnel: 9 Players**
P1: marimba
P2: marimba
P3: bells
P4: xylophone
P5: vibraphone
P6: chimes
P7: sleigh bells/optional xylophone 2
P8: toms, bass drum, sus. cymbals, triangle, finger cymbalsP9: timpani
Live recording
*Xylophone 2 is optional
**Extra players can double on melodic instruments. Also auxiliary parts can be split into multiple parts if needed.
This version of Carol of the Bells was intended to be a groovy version of the original, that is accessible by a large variety of musicians. The instrumentation is common of what you would find in an ordinary middle school band program. Also the parts, although syncopated at times, are not too challenging. This piece would be great for a middle or high school concert if you are looking to give the percussion section a fun way to jam out to this classic Ukrainian carol. While it is written for a minimum 9 percussionists, melodic parts can easily be doubled as well as dividing the auxiliary instruments into multiple parts.