HOWL

HOWL is a show about the wolf: the pull of the full moon, the shiver of the pack in the dark, the wild thing that lives just past the edge of the firelight. It runs on transformation and instinct, the tension between the human and the animal, the civilized and the untamed. Part moonlit and atmospheric, part fangs-out and ferocious, it plays the whole range from the eerie calm of a silver night to the snarl of the hunt.

This show was designed for small bands to be successful. The score includes parts for all instruments, but there is significant doubling across those parts, so any combination of instruments, including less-than-ideal instrumentation, can carry the show in performance.

The production gives an ensemble a rich vein of drama to sink into, moody and cinematic one moment, snapping and physical the next. It's a concept with instant hooks and a real sense of theater, the kind of show a crowd feels in the back of the neck, built for a program that wants to prowl the field rather than just march it.

The music:

• Moonlight Sonata (Beethoven)
• Moondance (Van Morrison)
• Hungry Like the Wolf (Duran Duran)

This show is rated Medium, which lines up with a concert grade of roughly 2.5 to 3.5. That's an approximation. A featured soloist or small ensemble moment can sit toward the top of that range, while full ensemble sections built around visual impact stay lighter on the musical demand.

The rating leans almost entirely on rhythmic and technical difficulty. Keys and meters are chosen to stay band-friendly and to line up with the phrasing the drill needs, and instrument ranges sit inside the grade window rather than pushing its edges.

Permissions to arrange are required for the Van Morrison and Duran Duran selections. Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata is in the public domain.