Rising Melodies: Twenty Songs for Treble Choir and Piano
Twenty original songs for treble choir and piano, written for the voices and lives of young singers.
Rising Melodies is a collection of new choral music for school choirs from the early elementary grades through middle school. Composer Innocent Okechukwu wrote both the words and the music, so every song speaks in the singers' own voice. They sing about the walk to school on a Monday morning, the bustle of the lunchroom and the quiet of the library. They sing about rain, rivers and the night sky, the courage to speak up, and the pride of a year well spent.
The songs are arranged from the simplest to the most demanding, so the book can grow with your choir:
Part One: School Life. Five easy SA songs that begin in unison and open into two parts.
Part Two: Nature. Three-part singing, a round, a waltz and a lullaby.
Part Three: Values. Songs about kindness, perseverance, belonging and courage, ideal for assemblies and character education.
Part Four: Identity & Growing Up. SSA and SAA songs for middle-school voices, including closing numbers for end-of-year concerts and graduations.
The musical styles range from march and lullaby to the joyful highlife rhythms of West Africa, reflecting the composer's Nigerian heritage. The piano accompaniments are playable by a confident school accompanist and give the singers real support.
Inside you will find:
20 full scores for SA, SSA and SAA choir with piano
An introduction page for every song, with voicing, suggested grade level, theme, a note about the music and rehearsal suggestions
The complete text of each song, which teachers may reproduce for classroom use
A quick-reference chart, notes for directors on voicing, ranges and healthy singing, and concert programming ideas
An index of titles and first lines
Whether you are building a first concert with young singers or looking for meaningful new repertoire for a middle-school treble ensemble, Rising Melodies offers music that respects both the voices and the intelligence of the children who sing it.
About the composer: Innocent Okechukwu is a Nigerian composer whose more than two hundred works have been performed internationally. His music has been recorded on Navona Records in collaboration with the Sphinx Organization. He is a Ph.D. candidate in Music Composition at the University of Iowa.
