American composer Kenneth F. H. Underwood published “À La Belle Étoile - “Under the Stars” - Valse Boston” for solo piano in 1911 through New York’s West End Publishing. It is presented here in an arrangement for the instrumentation of Alford’s “Hungry Five” series of Polka/German band books. In this edition, the waltz melody gets passed back and forth between the various instruments along with a number of other active lines to keep things interesting for players and listeners alike.
While this piece shouldn’t feel out of place in context with other Hungry Five pieces, this longer composition allows for a more extended musical statement alongside shorter polka and waltz tunes. There are no extreme range requirements in this arrangement (other than some lovely chalumeau register tones for the clarinets), and the technical challenges shouldn’t be out of reach for intermediate players so even fairly young ensembles could include this on a German band performance. Ready to go for your Oktoberfest OomPah gig!
