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Shelley Washington

MO'INGUS

for solo baritone saxophone

(2016, revised in 2019)
Duration7-12 min.
PublisherPSNY

Media

Program Note

Inspired by some of my favorite licks that Charles Mingus ever wrote, this piece, originally written for solo baritone saxophone, is meant to swing hardMO’INGUS takes snippets of baselines, riffs, background lines, and melodies, all strung together in a sound collage slightly reminiscent of the solo Bach pieces I’ve loved and performed throughout the years. 

When I was in middle school, my parents gave me the “Mingus Big Band: The Essential Mingus Big Band” album, and immediately his music became on oof the biggest reasons I wanted to play saxophone. I can still sing every single note of that entire album because I listened to it so often. The sweeping emotional range of his works and how he seemed to write each performer an equally crucial part in his sound structure has been a major influence on my writing. It’s like each floor of the song buildings he built has a totally different vibe, but if one of them goes missing, the whole thing tumbles down. 

On the other end of the music spectrum, I have long loved Bach, and the beautifully intricate solo cello puzzle pieces that he wrote. I had the opportunity to perform his first cello suite on my senior saxophone recital in undergrad on Bari Sax. I spent nearly a year diving in traditional (and non-traditional) performances, learning bowing and how to correlate that to breathing, and the beautiful nuances of Baroque ornamentation. Because of the hours and hours and hours and hours shedding the suite, it became thoroughly embedded in my subconscious. When I started to write MO’INGUS, I had so many different fragments of sounds I wanted to include, but had to figure out a way to coherently string them together monophonically that hinted at what the rest of the band was doing, but didn’t get in the way of the melody. I wanted the listener to just have enough information that their minds could fill in the blanks that the ‘ghost band’ plays behind the sax. 

Mingus wrote and performed some of the most influential music in American history, and his colossal library of repertoire spans the full length, breath, and depth of sounds and emotions. If you haven’t had the opportunity to dive into his rep, get to it my friend. Mingus was a huge man in so many ways. His passion, empathy, that rage, the soul, his fiery energy... Mingus was a brilliant man possessed by sound. He once said: 

“Creativity is more than just being different. Anybody can play weird-- that’s easy. What’s hard is to be as simple as Bach. Making the simple complicated is commonplace -- making the complicated simple ,awesomely simple-- that’s creativity.” 

This piece is my own small reflection in tribute to the “Angry Man of Jazz,” and man I hope I condensed the whole hubbub of his stuff in my brain down to something he’d be proud of. 

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Types of Products

Voice and Piano Score (Print)

Full Score/Performance Score (4 required for performance) (Digital)

solo part and piano reduction (Digital)

solo part and piano reduction (Print)

Full Score/Performance Score (6 scores required for performance) (Digital)

Performance Score (includes 4 scores) (Print)

Choral Scores (Digital - Bulk Purchase for Performance) (Digital)
This price covers the minimum cost of digital copies for performance.

Choral Score Set (Digital)

Choral Score Set (16 copies) (Digital)

Choral Score Set (License for 16 copies) (Digital)

Full Score/Performance Score (5 scores required for performance) (Digital)
Pricing reflects cost of 5 digital scores.

Full Score/Performance Score (8 scores required for performance) (Print)

Full Score/Performance Score (5 copies required for performance) (Print)

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Vocal Score Set - License for 16 copies (Digital)

Vocal Score Set - 16 copies (Print)

Score (Digital)

Score (Print)

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Full Score/Performance Score (price reflects 5 copies) (Digital)

Full Score/Performance Score (6 scores needed for performance) (Print)

Full Score/Performance Score (price reflects 6 copies) (Digital)

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Free ToneBase Digital Download (Digital)

Full Score/Performance Score (3 scores required for performance) (Print)

Full Score/Performance Score (3 scores required for performance) (Digital)

Free download with code ToneBaseFree (Digital)

Full Score/Performance Score (price reflects 3 copies) (Digital)

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Includes 8 copies of the soprano/alto part and 8 copies of the tenor/bass part.

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Parts (Mov. 11 only) (Print)

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Full Score/Performance Score (2 required for performance) (Print)

Full Score/Performance Score (includes 3 copies) (Digital)

Full Score/Performance Score (includes 3 copies) (Print)

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Choral Booklet (Print)

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Score and part PDF files are delivered via email upon receipt. Any electronic files associated with the work are included with every purchase.

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A PDF file of the full score is delivered via email upon receipt.

Soprano/Alto Part (Print)

Choral Score Set (License for 50 copies) (Digital)

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A PDF file of the part(s) is delivered via email upon receipt.

Parts (Print)
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Solo Instrument Score (Digital)
A score PDF file is delivered via email upon receipt. Any electronic files associated with the work are included with every purchase. An email containing a link to download the electronic files is sent to the customer's email address.

Full Score/Performance Score (Digital)
The full score serves as a performance score for all players. A score PDF file is delivered via email upon receipt. Any electronic files associated with the work are included with every purchase. An email containing a link to download the electronic files is sent to the customer's email address.

Score and Parts (Print)
A print edition of the score and part(s) ship to the customer's address upon receipt. Any electronic files associated with the work are included with every purchase. The email containing a link to download the electronic files is sent to the customer.

Solo Instrument Score (Print)
A print edition of the score is shipped to the customer's address upon receipt. Any electronic files associated with the work are included with every purchase. An email containing a link to download the electronic files is sent to the customer's email address.

Full Score/Performance Score (Print)
The full score serves as a performance score for all players. Print edition(s) of the full score/performance score are shipped to the customer's address upon receipt. Multiple copies are included if the work has more than one player. Any electronic files associated with the work are included with every purchase.

Choral Score (Digital)
A PDF file of the choral score is delivered via email upon receipt. The set is priced to allow multiple copies of the PDF to be printed for performance by the purchasing organization only.

Study Score (print) (Digital)

Study Score (print) (Print)

Choral Score Set- 8 copies (Print)
Minimum order quantity is 8 copies. Single copies are not available.

SATB choral score (Print)

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Vocal Score (Print)

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A print edition of the score and solo part ships to the customer's address upon receipt.

Mezzo-soprano, 2 tenors, baritone score (Print)

Study Score (Print)

Study Score (Digital)

SATB choral score (Digital)

Mezzo-soprano, 2 tenors, baritone score (Digital)