Sax Choir

Procession of the Sirdar

Mikhail Ippolitov-Ivanov, arr. Ben Tordoff

Composed:
1894 Arranged:
2023 Grouping:
lsSSAAATTTBBbc Duration:
05:15

A crowd-pleasing concert favourite, Mikhail Ippolitov-Ivanov's "Procession of the Sirdar" (Cortège du Sardar) is the final movement of his first Caucasian Sketches suite, composed when he was director of music at the Conservatory in Tbilisi, Georgia. Inspired by folk songs and tales from the Caucasus mountain region this fun piece describes the arrival of a dignitary or military leader with his colourful entourage.

This arrangement is a fairly literal transcription of the original parts onto 12 or more saxes, with the opening bassoon-piccolo duet recast onto baritone and sopranino. Sopranissimo, contrabass, and even C Melody parts are provided but can be omitted if necessary.

If you enjoyed this piece, have comments or corrections, we'd love to hear from you.

This music is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution Licence.