Creating the Canon of Wind Band Literature: A History of the National Contest Literature Lists, 1924–1943

Abstract

Band repertoire lists evolved from a desire to make the school band experience “more educational” when school bands themselves were relatively new. The first national band repertoire list was created for the National Band Contest in 1924, with new lists published annually through 1943. These lists gave prominence to the literature they contained, and through nationwide dissemination, the literature contained on them formed the foundation of many band libraries. This study was an analysis of the pieces and composers that were on the lists, how the lists were structured, and also the people who created them. Only 9.25 percent of the literature on the earliest lists between 1924 and 1931 had been originally composed for band, whereas 40.23 percent of literature on the lists from 1931 to 1943 had been composed for band. Only 2.58 percent of the literature on the lists was composed by women or people of color, and their works on the list were all transcriptions for band. The literature lists, designed to make band “more educational,” excluded popular styles, including jazz and ragtime. These lists were created and maintained by 41 White men between 1924 and 1943, predominantly (88.1 percent) from New York and seven states in the Midwest.