Ricker, Ramon: First Flight

Contemporary straight-eighth "Maiden Voyage" feel. This chart takes up where "Suspended Animation" left off. Uses same two suspended chords and adds a bridge. There is space for anyone in the band to solo. To help the beginning improviser, the composer has included some brief "Notes on the Improvised Sections". In addition this chart is correlated with material found in Vol. 1 of the Ramon Ricker Improvisation Series. Advance Music is proud to present our new Groovin' Easy Series. We've taken 10 tunes from two popular Advance Music publications (Reading Key Jazz Rhythms and The Ramon Ricker Improvisation Series) and asked our writers to give us creative and musically challenging charts that are also playable by young bands. To the normal big band instrumentation of 5 saxes, 3 trumpets, 3 trombones and rhythm section we've added optional parts for flute, clarinet, French horn, guitar and auxiliary percussion. In addition, each chart is written to sound full with a reduced instrumentation of only 3 saxes, 2 trumpets, 1 trombone and rhythm section. The brass ranges are reasonable with the lead trumpet never going above a written C and the rhythm section parts are carefully notated and thought out.