Thank You for Your Prayers Trumpet Trio

Description

Thank You for Your Prayers Trumpet Trio

By Eddie Lewis

The Poem

Thank You for Your Prayers trumpet trio is a one verse composition based on a poem I wrote expressing my gratitude for all the people, around the world, who were praying for me when I was ill. Here is the poem for the composition:

Thank you for your prayers.
Thank you for your prayers.
Family, friends, and Christian brothers,
All around the world.
I thank you, I thank you,
I thank you for all your prayers.

In this case, I made all of the notes in the melody match the syllables in the poem. I wouldn’t normally do it that way. I would typically add at least some melismatic movement. But in this case, I really wanted to keep the piece on target with my message.

And that message is that I appreciate all the prayers of the people who prayed for me. I was in pretty bad shape and now things are almost back to what they were.

Ha ha… Notice I didn’t say that things were back to “normal”. Lot’s of people told me stuff like, “don’t worry, things will be back to normal before you know it”. And I thought, “what a terrifying notion for someone who has never been normal” LOL!!!

The Composition

Thank You for Your Prayers trumpet trio really is my expression of gratitude to the people who prayed for me. When I got out of the hospital and was feeling so much better, I wanted to do something to let everyone know that I appreciated them. And I thought, “nothing else makes sense. I need to write a trumpet piece”.

Of course I do!!! LOL

That’s who I am. That’s what I do. I’m the trumpet piece guy. Ha ha ha…

So yes, I wanted to compose something short and to the point. I wanted to have a genuine message behind the composition, something that anyone could enjoy if they heard it. No compositional trickery. No cleverness on my part. Nothing impressive. Just a clear message communicated through music in a simplified and very clear manner.

I should mention here that I did not compose this piece to sell it. It may never sell a single copy. I composed it to record it so that I could share that recording with those who have been praying for me. I will post it to our catalogue, but that wasn’t my original motivation.

Trumpet Apprentice Skill Level

The Trumpet Apprentice Skill Level is the fourth of seven trumpet skill levels. Compared to other compositions at this skill level, it is mostly pretty easy. The only thing that bumped it up to the Apprentice Skill Level was the range. If your first trumpet player has a solid A above the staff, then your good to go.

Practice Suggestions

The only practice suggestions I have for this piece is to make an effort to express gratitude while you play. I know that’s an abstract concept. I know that it falls outside of the practical, hands-on practice that most people want in their rehearsals. However, there is great benefit to the students who practice applying their abstract “feelings” to the performance of the music they are performing.

I remember a brass ensemble rehearsal when Francis Orval (world famous hornist) demanded this of me. We were practicing a Tomasi piece for large brass ensemble and I had a very important solo. Orval wanted me to do what I’m suggesting here, to express abstract concepts and emotions through the technique of my musicianship. It’s a very important blend of worlds… the abstract and the concrete.

True music always has this blend.

Thank You for Your Prayers Trumpet Trio Play-Along

We have a play-along video for Thank You for Your Prayers trumpet trio that you can access with the following button:

Thank You for Your Prayers Trumpet Trio Play Along

If you are interested in play-along videos, then the best way to access Eddie Lewis’ is on our other website, EddieLewis.com.

Thank You for Your Prayers Trumpet Trio Performance Video

Below is a performance video of Thank You for Your Prayers Trumpet Trio. The purpose of the performance video is so that you can see that the parts are genuinely playable. In our modern times, it is too easy to write music on computers without ever knowing if the music works. We make these live performance videos to demonstrate that the duets are indeed accessible.