Mike Hannickel

Mission Control

Names like Mercury, Gemini, Soyuz, Sputnik, Apollo, Salyut, Eagle, Skylab, Space Shuttle and Mir have kindled the imaginations of millions. This new beginning band piece by Mike Hannickel honors all the brilliant and dedicated space visionaries who stayed here on Earth, but whose efforts made space exploration a reality. The simplest of rhythms, careful scoring and easily achieved instrument ranges are hallmarks of the Curnow Music Press Great Foundations Series, which is carefully designed to get your beginning band off to an exciting start. This composition limits the upper brass range to a sixth, while the low brass parts encompass a range of only a fifth. The basic flute part avoids difficult finger combinations, and an optional 'advanced' flute part (playable simultaneously with the easier part) gives those who are progressing more rapidly a bit more challenge. You have the same choice of difficulty levels for your percussion section, with a basic part and a slightly more difficult 'advanced' part.