Trumpets Sound with a Shout of Joy

"OCP routinely provides an "Assembly Edition" on the back of their octavos, and this delightful piece is no different. However, to make the piece sound its best, a children's choir should sing in two parts as written. This is a nice arrangement of the French carol "Il est né," and the text is useful for the entire Christmas Season. The key is E major, making the starting pitch B, which is too low for children's voices. The piece would sound fine in a bright F sharp major, which would make F sharp the high note of the harmony part. As written, the highest note for the melody part is C sharp, so transposing up would not be a stretch for children to sing. The accompaniment is indicated for organ. With its percussive nature, piano is an acceptable—perhaps preferred— alternative. Because of the simple harmonic structure of the tune, other instruments could easily be added for melodic or rhythmic ostinati."