A Wild & Whacky Western Tune

Boomwhackers® are, in our experience, a lot of fun to play. Which makes them a natural for a revue that is all about fun! In this case, we decided to make our Boomwhacker feature a majestic Western style piece. That way, we could include a really cool Western theme with lots of horns and strings and stuff, not to mention that awesome whip crack you hear on the recording.

Though this is technically a Boomwhacker piece, we should note that it does work without them, too. The lyrics to the vocal part are joyful, commonly known Western clichés for the most part. Be sure your singers really belt them out with glee! If they're wearing cowboy hats, have them take them off and wave them when they yell "Yee ha!"

We also managed to sneak a little music lesson in with the doubling of the orchestra lines at the coda, as well as the "dum diddle-um's," in case you want to point that out. Of course, just reading a Boomwhacker part, and counting and learning which note is yours is a lesson in itself. But you know that.

At the end of the piece, we include a note indicating that you can have your players add Boomwhacker applause. This is random tapping, similar to an audience applauding, which you give cues to begin, fade, and stop. We have found this to be an enjoyable release for kids who are stressed and even tense about playing their notes at the right time. It is optional.