Under the Boardwalk

Summer, sun and beach - this carefree attitude to life was expressed in 1964 by the black vocal group The Drifters with their song Under the Boardwalk. Latin-American inspired rhythms at a moderate tempo give the song a sunny, relaxed holiday atmosphere, which is also mentioned in the vocal text. A prominent Caribbean percussion element, a guiro resounds in the background.

Stefan Schwalgin has conceived his arrangement as a solo for flugelhorn and wind band. The range for the soloist is almost as comfortable as lying on the beach. A clever feature of the arrangement is that the brass section initially pantomimes the sound of a guiro (which actually comes from the drum register) with their palms. A small interlude “Mexican” orchestral trumpet in parallel thirds completes the slightly exotic flair of the whole.

Serie Sound Classics No. 40