Despite a long and successful career that spanned Hollywood and Broadway, Mason City, Iowa native Robert Reininger Meredith Willson (1902-1984) maintained a strong connection with his hometown. He is most remembered for his first Broadway musical, The Music Man (1957), which was set in a town very much like Mason City. When The Music Man became a film in 1962, it premiered in Mason City, timed to coincide with the North Iowa Band Festival. Willson would return for this annual festival several times throughout his life. Willson spent his early career working in film and radio in Hollywood. He is also known for a handful of classical compositions and more musicals, especially The Unsinkable Molly Brown. He is profiled at Wikipedia, the Songwriters’ Hall of Fame, Masterworks Broadway, and IMDb.
Seventy Six Trombones is arguably the most famous song from The Music Man, at least among band lovers. This unique arrangement of it owes everything to Leroy Anderson (1908-1975). He was born in Cambridge, Massachusetts to Swedish immigrant parents, including a church organist mother, and he began piano and organ studies early in life. He went to college at Harvard University, where he earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees in music. He also led the Harvard University Band during his graduate studies. In addition to his early musical interests, he also was a prolific language learner: his PhD studies at Harvard were in German and Scandinavian languages, and he eventually became fluent in 9 languages. This unique talent led to his service as a translator and interpreter for the US military during World War II and the Korean War. The demands of his military duties left little time to contemplate music, but he devoted himself to composing as World War II drew to a close in 1945. Several of his legendary classical-pops pieces remain popular, and we are fortunate that he arranged many of them for wind band. Among them are Sleigh Ride, The Irish Washerwoman, Bugler’s Holiday, and Belle of the Ball.
Here is Seventy Six Trombones in the 1962 film, in which “Professor” Harold Hill tries to sell the River City residents on the need for a boys’ band in town (from which he would profit immensely):
What makes Anderson’s 1957 arrangement special is his skillful incorporation of several classic American marches into the tune. His original version was for orchestra:
Jay Bocook adpated this for band in 1997:
Anderson incorporates material from several American marches, some more obviously than others, and often multiple passages from each. Among them are Sousa’s Washington Post (dogfight section):
Bagley’s National Emblem (second strain and trio):
Sousa’s The Stars and Stripes Forever (piccolo solo):
And there’s more that I may have missed. The American march repertoire goes deep! Bonus: my favorite arrangement of Seventy Six Trombones is actually for male choir. Be prepared to experience pure joy!