Anyone Can Arrange

Andrew Fouse

What is arranging?
Arranging is the practice of taking music written for one medium
and adapting it to be performed on another.
An arrangement can be done of any piece of music.
The only real limit is your imagination

Why change instrumentation?

There are A LOT of pieces in the world of classical music
On imslp.org, an online library of public domain music, there are
over 90,000 works, and thats just the pieces that are free to
use
In addition to those, there are at least as many pieces not free to use

This massive library of work is split up among all instruments

and voices

Why change instrumentation?

Despite there being a massive body of work, the pieces are
almost always composed exclusively for an explicit
instrumentation
Without changing instrumentation or creating a unique
arrangement of a piece, many pieces will never be accessible to
musicians who do not play the instrument it was written for

Example #1
Pictures at an Exhibition by Modest Mussorgsky
This piece was composed by Mussorgsky upon viewing an exhibit on
the art of a recently deceased friend
Original composition: solo piano
In 1922 Maurice Ravel orchestrated (arranged) the piece for full
symphony orchestra
The adjustment allowed for more room to experiment with texture and sound
It also made the piece accessible to wind and string musicians
(the piece was previously arranged in 1915 by Sir Henry Wood, but the Ravel
orchestration has been the standard since its debut)
Ravels orchestration

Pictures cont.
Pictures at an Exhibition is a popular piece among arrangers,
its been set for many ensembles besides the standard
orchestra

Brass Quintet
Percussion Ensemble
Woodwind Quintet
Solo Guitar
Harp Duet

Thats really cool, but what about other music?

As a classical trombonist, I know what it can be like to play so
much classical and art music that you start to get sick of it
Luckily, arranging is not limited to the classical world
Some Nights for String Quartet
Timber for Marching Band
Yesterday for Jazz Band

So you want to make an arrangement of your own?

What youll need
Know what song or piece of music you want to arrange
Know what ensemble you want to arrange it for
If sheet music is available, use it!
If not, there are other ways around

Knowing music theory is helpful, but not entirely necessary

Youll need manuscript paper or music notation software
Finale is one of the best, but there is a free alternative (Musescore)

If you want to perform it, make sure you have willing musicians and
rehearsal time/space

Getting Started
For this example, well arrange Caro Mio Ben, an Italian aria
that many classically trained vocalists have sung for a small
instrumental ensemble.

Step by Step
The first step in arranging (after choosing the piece and finding
music) is to determine the ensemble
To keep things interesting, lets do it for oboe, trumpet, horn, and
vibraphone

After selecting the instrumentation, look for lines in the piece,

whether theyre melodic or harmonic, just look for continuity,
and assign a line to an instrument
Well assign the trumpet the solo line, the horn the bass line, the
vibraphone the inner parts, and the oboe a hybrid part

What about something else?

For the next example, well examine Lana Del Rays song
Young and Beautiful
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O4uD6o9XxLs
Music for this song is available, but only for sale or obtainable
illegally.
What is an arranger to do in this case?
-Here is where your theory knowledge comes in handy

Wheres the music?!

Most pop songs can be
found on youtube for a
reference
Once you find a recording
you like, search for the
chords for the song through
any search engine and look
through some of the results,
eventually, you should come
onto something like this:

Wheres the music?!

The piano or guitar is your best friend at this point!
Take the time to listen to the recording bit by bit, and figure out the
notes and rhythms at a piano or other instrument, writing down
your discoveries along the way.
This method will take much longer than the sheet music approach,
and will likely require a broader knowledge of music theory,
especially if you are going to arrange it for a large ensemble
This method also allows room for you to put your own spin on
things; without being fed the lines and placements, you can add
your own flair to your arrangement without deviating off course

Finished product sample