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The Concord Band Box 302, Concord, MA 01742 Tel: 978-897-9969 |
Program Notes |
Oklahoma!(1944)Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein, composer Robert Russell Bennett, arranger Oklahoma! is justly renowned as one of the most important of all works composed for the American musical theater. This show began the celebrated collaboration between Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II, both of whom were well-known figures on Broadway. Recognizing the need to secure the services of the finest talent in every area of this musical, Rodgers and Hammerstein selected Robert Russell Bennett, well known to us as the composer of the Suite of Old American Dances and Symphonic Songs for Band, to orchestrate their new show. Bennett was without question the finest orchestrator and arranger of his day. This set of selections from Oklahoma! has been faithfully transcribed for band from the masterful orchestral medley that Bennett constructed in 1944. —WGM INDEX |