Top of the Pops

Three weeks after our launch, I thought it would be interesting to see which arrangements are proving most popular.
So I had a look through the records for each of our founding arrangers to see which of their contributions are getting most attention.
And there are some interesting titles in the list.
Richard Salt has clearly caught the imagination of the Manilow fans with his tricky a cappella arrangement of Copacabana.
With its delicious harmonies and challenging syncopated ostinato parts, Richard’s twist on this pop classic is a clear favourite.
So is his spine-tingling arrangement of Kiss Me, originally performed by Sixpence None The Richer. To use Richard’s words, “scrunchy harmonies and dynamic changes make this a real audience pleaser.”
Sales from Gitika Partington’s catalogue are dominated by two very different titles: the traditional Zulu song Iqude and Bill Withers’ Ain’t No Sunshine.
And from Craig McLeish’s arrangements there are a couple of clear favourites: Billy Joel’s The Longest Time and God Only Knows by the Beach Boys.
According to Craig, his arrangement of The Longest Time is close to the original, which is “basically an a capella song” written to be sung by “Billy and his mates while they cleaned up a warehouse.”
We’ve got more songs on the way, and will let you know as soon as they’re published on the site.
For now, which are your favourites among the list available so far? Please leave your comments below – I’d love to know what you think.
We are learning ‘Ain’t no sunshine’. Going really well. Sounds really complex but is relatively easy to learn. Taken about three learning periods to learn the notes. Now starting to concentrate on the presentation. Nice to have the altos singing the tune. Mine are very devoted and used to singing all the hard notes but to apply their rich, gutsy sound to the tune is a real pleasure to them and me. ‘Shouted whispering’ is the order of the day and trying to keep the speed down! Combination of long notes and short bursts can set the horses galloping. Great arrangment Gitika – as always!
Steve
Thanks so much for your comment Steve. We really appreciate your feedback.
Would you be willing to add your comment as a review on Gitika’s arrangement? That means that other potential buyers of her work will be able to benefit from your experience.
It’s easy to do. If you log in to your ChoirCommunity account and then browse to that arrangement (https://www.choircommunity.net/downloads/aint-no-sunshine-sheet-music/) you’ll see the option to add a review if you scroll to the bottom of the page.
Thanks again for your feedback. Great to hear you’re enjoying the piece.