This piece begins with a version of Dixie, a song written by Dan Emmitt that eventually became associated with the Confederate side of the American Civil War though it had roots on both sides. The arrangement here is inspired by a portion of the concert band arrangement done many years ago by the famous arranger Carmen Dragon.

A modernized "fife and drum" version of Yankee Doodle, with the drum line providing significant battlefield thunder, provides a transition to the Battle Hymn of the Republic.

The words written by Julia Ward Howe to William Steffe's tune became the de facto anthem of the Union side during the American Civil War.

One of the most famous arrangements of Battle Hymn is the choral arrangement by Peter J. Wilhousky. In the early 1960s, Don Angelica scored a version of Battle Hymn for The Troopers, a DCI drum and bugle corps out of Casper, Wyoming, that was based on Wilhousky's arrangement. In 1968, Mike Duffy, a famous corps arranger and horn line coach who is in the World Drum Corps Hall of Fame, extensively reworked that score, moving the refrain to a new key and writing a very exciting transition into it, including a unique waterfall feature. The Troopers won the VFW National Championship in 1970 with his arrangement in their show. Around 1973, Knute Holian, also of the Troopers, made some additional changes, and the Troopers continued to use that version from time to time up into the early 1980s.

This version for marching band borrows heavily and directly from the Holian revision, with a few adjustments backward to the Duffy version and some all-new material. The drum parts are totally original and bear no resemblance to anything done by the Troopers.

Dixie is in concert Eb, Yankee Doodle in concert Bb, Battle Hymn begins in concert F, and concludes in concert D.

Parts included are:

Flute & Piccolo
Clarinet 1 & 2
Alto Sax
Tenor Sax
Baritone Sax
Trumpet 1 (includes frequent divisi passages)
Trumpet 2 & 3
F Horn 1 (includes some divisi)
F Horn 2 (includes some divisi)
Trombone 1 & 2
Trombone 3 (requires F trigger)
Euphonium (BC)
Baritone TC (doubles euphonium)
Tuba (includes some divisi)
Timbolis (five-tom set)
Crash Cymbal, Snare Drum, Bass drum

There are no mallet or other tuned percussion parts included.

Very suitable for a parade piece, or for field marching in a Civil War- or patriotic-themed show. Structure is such that either Dixie or Battle Hymn could stand alone.

MP3 sound sample: entire piece (synthesizer/midi).



DIXIE BATTLE HYMN arranged for marching band by Tom Kirkland comes in a pdf file of 908K, including a twenty-four page score, sixteen parts (march format, two-to-a-page, eight pages), and a license page, thirty-three pages in all. Performance time should be about 2:40.