The Eighth Candle - A Prayer and Dance for Hanukkah

[@kennycreamer43]

The last minute and a half of this song is just one giant flex lol

[@trumpetguy6430]

Our director hates Christmas music so she finds things like this, and I'm so happy she chose this I love this piece

[@venicetaylor1448]

She’s gotta learn to love it

[@lewisblakley8288]

I agree is very overused

[@benson3955]

You must be a Sax player

[@saxmanryan1187]

I feel sorry for your director 😢

[@jacquelynannehoward]

@@venicetaylor1448 actually no one has to learn to like certain music, or,art.

[@SteveReisteter]

WOW!!!!!!! This is the way I dreamed that the piece should be played! Best performance ever! Thanks so much for programming it!

[@ArmyFieldBand]

Hi Steve! Thanks so much. We enjoyed it.

[@PABWECG]

Well, I was going to comment that the tempos for both the slow sections and the fast were far faster than the indicated tempos, but if Steve Reisteter says that he dreamed the piece would be played this way, then so be it! And seriously, what an amazing, moving, and lively performance. (I know that my Community Band will have to stick closer to the 132 marking however)! Ha ha! Thanks for this incredible piece - it's been a pleasure to work on, and we have learned so much from it.

[@MichaeldeSousaCruz]

Steve Reisteter amazing piece!! Played it in a community band 15 years ago, absolutely loved it. Just one odd question, is that opening theme a variation on the Oscar Mayer Bologna Song?

[@fabricwheels7028]

Wait, the real and actual Steve? Oh my goodness, you’re one of my favorite composers! When my band played this, we didn’t have any official French horn players. I had to play horn with my alto sax on my lap, then hold the horn with my ankles while I played the important sax parts. Definitely one of the most memorable pieces we’ve done.

[@zachsplep]

May I suggest that the Brass either stand, or sit and lift their bells at 6:38, and then the entire ensemble stand at 7:04 till the end. This made for a tremendous dramatic effect as the closer to our concert-- we were already standing for the standing ovation we recieved! A joyous conclusion to a great night of music! :) This is a wonderful performance!

[@evanbelcher]

I love this piece. I played it in my freshman year of high school and fell in love with it then.

[@Thetubaguy104]

I'm in my freshman year and playing it. I have a concert soon too.

[@skittelkiddo1512]

As a percussionist it may seem I can't recognize the beauty in this piece. Upon getting our sheet music my first reaction is usually ugh 75 measures of rest?? But hearing the band play it made me understand that fast pieces are hardly the most memorable ones. I personally enjoy the beginning most even if all of my notes were at the end of the piece

[@finnsclarinet]

If only my high school band had such and awesome trumpet section….. Also beautiful clarinet solos!

[@emmamason7209]

I’m going into band and in 5 th grade and hope one day I’ll be just as good on a clarinet

[@ArmyFieldBand]

Keep practicing!

[@jimweinacht6341]

Well, did the now high school age Emma make it ??

[@techcentral7043]

Hows it going

[@christopherburton4309]

Playing tenor sax on this in community concert band. Gotta work those runs and that alternating 5/8, 3/4 section at 199.

[@nathanhorvath6751]

Just played this piece with my University and I played the Timpani part. Such a fun piece to play but very challenging indeed!

[@philipdai8682]

Nathan Horvath I’m in 8th grade and I played the timpani part in my wind ensemble too! It is definitely fun but hard to keep up haha

[@alanbeardsley8346]

I hope you did better than our Timpani did. He could NOT get the 5/8 rhythm and he forced the whole band to play in 6/8 at every performance.

[@nathanhorvath6751]

Alan Beardsley oh goodness!! It certainly is a difficult piece to play!

[@alanbeardsley8346]

I remember playing this in High School years ago, and thought then that it deserved to be more popular. I am a geek, and I just finished a noteblock rendition of the last section on a Minecraft Server. It will always be one of my favorites

[@yuh-xl8sk]

This piece is very difficult but I love it. 1st Clarinet is very fun but challenging. This sounds amazing.

[@nessanator0]

Aleks Martin currently struggling with that rn lol, any advice?

[@garrisonboehl258]

The end for first trumpet tho. Dear lord its a nightmare but i still love this piece!

[@venicetaylor1448]

It’s a nightmare for woodwinds

[@alphax101-gaming2]

@@venicetaylor1448 the ruuuunnnnsssss (im percussion but i see ur part lol)

[@venicetaylor1448]

AlphaX101-GAMING yessss it was a struggle lol but luckily we had a good band director and he simplified it

[@greendayrox489]

I played this when I was in HS. Such a lovely and fun piece!

[@paulpetrovich6869]

I play first bassoon for this piece and love it!!

[@Thetubaguy104]

We got this piece too, this is truly how it should be played.

[@MrLFJ7]

Very soothing, what a wonderful performance.

[@jc-wx5oo]

So glad you actually took the second half fast. It sounds so much better!!!

[@manuelmaldonadojr2526]

thank you for this video GOD love you and me to by.

[@toasty8120]

Currently in freshman year of high school playing this piece. Such a difficult but beautiful piece if done right like this. I'm a F Horn player, and I hated this piece when I first got it, before I listened to it, because I was so intimidated by the time signature, but now I love it. GO CHIEFS

[@alanbeardsley8346]

I remember that our timpani player COULD NOT get the 5/8 rhythm down and it forced the whole band to do 6/8 during every performance. 😢

[@ethang2494]

Bro same. Imma junior rn. I love this piece and I think are band is cabable or playing it but corona might ruin rehearsing or the concert. So idk

[@Jonathanstepney4]

How’s senior year treating you

[@toasty8120]

@Poofisbadatminecraft personally, quite good, i became a band captain and the only senior that played in the top band freshman year, but overall our band has downgraded so badly lol we went from doing this to really easy pieces because of how many freshman we have now and our lack of really strong players through our ensembles. it's unfortunate but shit happens i guess

[@Jbyll00]

My brother loves playing the part at 6:16

[@shadowfaxyt9556]

I am currently playing this piece in highschool and really loving it

[@samarthshirsat2761]

Playing this piece in band during my freshman year of high school(timbales), the constant changes in odd time signatures, especially in the second half, proved to be quite challenging, but its still a fun piece to play!

[@garrisoncluff5367]

I love the sound of the English Horn in this piece! I wish we had one in high school!

[@goldencheeze]

High school + percussionist = love for odd time signatures! Playing this sophomore year (Timbales) and i can’t get enough of this piece Although in our interpretation we made the timbales a little louder because it sounds nicer to us to have the timbales and timpani’s matching rhythms be played at the same volume

[@samarthshirsat2761]

ah, a fellow timbales player I see

[@ransome51]

Fabulous Band.

[@manuelmaldonadojr2526]

once again thank you very much by.

[@AlexK-c9c]

This 5/8-3/4 is brutal from a sticking perspective

[@caseyhorvat4264]

Bass clarinets rise up

[@DragonKing-qf4cb]

Mr Vasquez was great band director, We went to State 2019,8th prelims,10 state finals ,she told our class to come listen to this music piece as a class lesson during coronavirus for our 2020-2021 school Year at Lyford Highschool-Tx

[@ArmyFieldBand]

Congratulations! Sounds like you have an awesome teacher.

[@DragonKing-qf4cb]

@@ArmyFieldBand yes sir we do she's a great band director band director

[@manuelgchapajr2000]

So Beautiful DEFENSE MONEY WELL SPENT!!! WHOOAHH!!!

[@ninjaarakaki9181]

Yes!!! I love the French horn section in this song. I showed this to my band class and it really inspired us. We got so many ideas on our phrasing and blending. The only thing I wish was that our school had that great of a horn section.

[@marialuisaburgamy353]

Wonderful performance. Many thanks.

[@addisondurrence1431]

Playing flute in this and those runs on page 3 after 180 are a beast, need to work on those. Also the 5/8 3/4 mix-metre thing is a pain

[@heltonqueiroz302]

Maravilhoso 👏👏👏👏

[@ajjohnston7779]

I hate Xmas music, but this is pretty slick! Why is the bass drummer in camo uniform whilst the rest are in dress uniform?

[@ArmyFieldBand]

He’s part of another component within our organization-the Six-String Soldiers. They often wear that uniform in performance and we needed an extra set of hands in the percussion section!

[@miracos488]

Very good!

[@SharonCreamer671956]

Very good job.

[@kylerhopkins9247]

What if this was a marching show

[@saulronsayro583]

Fawn 45787 it would be a nightmare. Cause of the constantly changing time signature

[@SimonNéhmé]

moving

[@noahjoo7231]

Who else is here from ms.todd and ligon :)

[@philipdai8682]

Noah Joo YOOO NOAH

[@noahjoo7231]

@@philipdai8682 ok

[@ericcheng6576]

Lmao she’s my private teacher she showed me the score and I was like tf is this

[@hercishernandez3079]

Go MHS WIND ENSEMBLE

[@jamescarmody4713]

Sure this isn't the Israeli Army Band?

[@ArmyFieldBand]

We play everything here in the USA

[@robertllr]

These are the composer's notes on the piece: "Back in 1997 our conductor, Ronny Demkee (to whom The Eighth Candle is dedicated) came to me asking if I could compose a piece for Hanukkah since the band had hardly any music for that beautiful holiday. Unfortunately, he asked me to do this in November and the band needed it in a hurry. Luckily, things went well and I finished composing the piece in about three days. The orchestration and printing out the parts took a little longer." "I just wanted to write a piece with two contrasting sections. Being Roman Catholic I didn’t grow up singing Hanukkah songs or celebrating the holiday. I’m familiar with Jewish music from playing clarinet and tarogato with Klezmer groups (so maybe that explains some of the hyperactive passages for the woodwinds near the end of the piece). I tried to do with the piece what Copland did in some of his works. Don’t get me wrong: I’m nowhere near Copland’s league as a composer. However, in many of his compositions he composed his own folk songs and hymn tunes. He did this in pieces like Our Town, The Red Pony, and Appalachian Spring (except where he quoted Simple Gifts). I tried to make my material in The Eighth Candle sound as if it could be Hebraic, but they’re all composed by me (it’s not an arrangement of pre-existing material). I’ve had Jewish band directors contact me and ask where I found all of these Hanukkah tunes that they weren’t familiar with. The simple answer is that they’re my own from my imagination." - Program note by composer

[@trumpetguy6430]

Does anyone know what year this was performed?

[@green_ball8773]

TrumpetGuy64 2017

[@trumpetguy6430]

@@green_ball8773 thanks