The Sleigh Ride

The Sleigh Ride by Leopold Mozart

Arranged for Flute Choir and Percussion by Judy Nishimura

Score and parts

Instrumentation:

• Piccolo
• 4 C Flutes
• Alto Flute
• Bass Flute
• Contrabass Flute/Contralto Flute (optional)
• Percussion (Sleigh Bells, Horse Hooves, Slapstick)

The music of Leopold Mozart is largely overshadowed by that of his prodigious son, Wolfgang Amadeus.  The elder Mozart composed a fair amount of music prior to 1763, however from this point, the career of Wolfgang became a central focus of his life and his compositional career was finished.  “The Sleigh Ride” (or “Die Schlittenfahrt”) was composed in 1755, originally a movement of his Divertimento in F for orchestra, and has been arranged here for flute choir by Judy Nishimura.  NOTE:  THIS IS NOT THE “SLEIGH RIDE ” BY LEROY ANDERSON.

About the arranger:  A lifelong resident of Chicago, Judy Nishimura (b.1953) received her degree in Flute Performance from Northwestern University where she studied with Walfrid Kujala of the Chicago Symphony.  Her award-winning music for flute has been performed all over the world.  In 2015, her original composition Transverses won 1st prize in the National Flute Association’s Flute Choir Composition Competition.  Through her own company, Nish Music, she composes flute music and works as a freelance music engraver for major publishing companies.