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Guitar Ensemble
The ensemble pieces below were written or arranged specifically for my students, keeping both their technical ability and aesthetic enjoyment in mind. Since I have first through fourth-year students in my program, you should be able to find pieces to match the skill level of your particular high school or college-level guitar ensemble.

Most students enter my program with no guitar or music-reading skills. Therefore, in addition to teaching fundamental technique in both pop and classical guitar, the first semester of the first year is spent developing reading skills in the context of learning guitar duets. A few of these duets are listed below. By the second semester, students start learning the beginning quartets below. These can be played as student quartets or as a large ensemble. I've listed them in the order they are presented in the book. The intermediate and advanced duets and quartets are for my second through fourth-year students. These are not  listed in any progressive order or level of difficulty.

Below, you can listen to a recording of the pieces and download the score and parts to fit your needs. All gratis, with some restrictions (*​see below.) If you are a guitar educator, keep in mind that the beginning quartets and duets are already contained in the beginning book, which can be downloaded or viewed on the eBook, both on the Curriculum page.  

*You are free to download these scores and parts and are encouraged to perform these works.  However, like any of the material on this website, you are strictly forbidden to repost, publish and/or sell this music in any form or context.  If you record your performance of any of my compositions and/or arrangements (including those on the Vocal & Chamber page), you are free to share that performance on social media platforms, such as Facebook or YouTube. However, you are strictly prohibited from selling that recorded performance or receiving compensation in any form or context. This includes, but not limited to selling your recorded performance in CD format or on digital platforms and streaming media services, such as Spotify or iTunes. If you are interested in recording any of this music for the purpose of commercially distributing and selling it, please contact me and I will be happy to send you a license agreement. Lastly, the works below (and on the Vocal & Chamber page) are published works, registered with the U.S. Copyright Office and BMI. This means that in addition to it being illegal for anyone to sell or publish this music, whether it's in sheet music or sound/video recording format, copyright law also prohibits anyone  from creating arrangements of my music without my consent, whether or not there is intention to sell it. Thank you. 

Guitar Ensemble Library

Click on the + sign next to the title to listen to a recording of the piece and download a pdf of the score and parts.
(🎄While being appropriate for any concert setting, these pieces work well in a Christmas/Winter concert.)

BEGINNING QUARTETS​ 

Ode To Joy (beethoven)
arr. Lou Warde
Score & Parts
Finale (Saint-Saens)
Score & Parts
Finlandia (Sibelius)
Score & Parts
Be thou my vision (Trad. Irish)
Score & Parts
Here is love (TRAD. welsh)
Score & Parts
yosemite (Lou WardE)
Score & Parts

BEGINNING  DUETS

ARIETTA (D. Turk)
In this duet, the key signature is introduced.
PDF
Bouree (j.s. bach)
The rhythmic independence of each part can be a challenge for my first-semester students.
PDF
Allegro (Mozart)
An introduction to 16th notes.
PDF
Four-string melody (Warde)
As part of the beginning book curriculum, this duet is a uses a melody played on the first four string of the guitar only.
Four-String Melody

​INTERMEDIATE - ADVANCED DUETS & TRIOS

GYMNOPÉDIE NO. 1 (SATIE)
PDF
TWO-PART INVENTION NO. 1 (J.S. BACH)
PDF
Cibel (Jean Baptiste Loeillet)
PDF
ORIENTAL (ENRIQUE GRANADOS)
PDF
Recording coming soon...
A LITTLE FUGUE (Lou WARDE)
A short and relatively simple little fugue. 
PDF
Suite for two (Lou Warde) 2019
​The three pieces that make up this suite were intended to be performed together, as a set.  Below is a pdf of  the set. However, for those who wish to perform individual pieces from the set, I've made separate scores, for your convenience, which will be in the corresponding cells.
Suite For Two
          1. Suave
1. Suave
          2. You are me
2. You Are Me
          3. cirCUS PARADE
Circus Parade
ave maria (F. schubert)
Below are two versions of this arrangement. The "1st Position" version, is perhaps slightly easier since it incorporates open strings, but as a result, it is less warm and expressive than the other version. 
Ave Maria
1st Postion Version

ARRANGEMENTS FOR QUARTET

three Songs from Great Britain

The three pieces that make up this collection,  Dacw 'Ngharia, The Water is Wide and Scarborough Fair, were intended to be performed together, as a set.  For your convenience, I've made a singe pdf of the three scores with  parts. For those who wish to perform individual pieces from the set, you can download (and listen to) these pieces below.

Score & Parts
        1. Dacw 'Nghariad (Wales)​
Score & Parts
         2. The Water is Wide (Scotland)​
Score & Parts
        3. Scarborough Fair​ (England)
Score & Parts
CAROL OF THE BELLS (M. LEONTOVYCH)🎄

Trad. Carol by Mykola Leontovych, arr. Lou Warde

Score & Parts
CHORALE (J.S. BACH)🎄

from St. Matthew Passion, BWV 244, arr. Lou Warde

PDF
AIR (J.S. BACH)

from Orchestral Suite No. 3 in D Major, BWV 1068

Score & Parts
IL EST BEL ET BON (PIERRE PASSEREAU)🎄
Score & Parts
HABANERA (GEORGES BIZET)

​from Carmen, Act I, arr. Lou Warde

Score & Parts
IN THE HALL OF THE MOUNTAIN KING (GRIEG)
Score & Parts
GYMONOPÉDIE (SATIE)

​from Peer Gynt, Suite I, Op. 46, No. 4, arr. Lou Warde

Score & Parts

​NEW INTERMEDIATE – ADVANCED QUARTETS  (Warde)

bella (2016)🎄
Score & Parts
Parts w-Tabs

South Carolina Music Educators Association
2020-2021 All-State virtual Guitar Orchestra 


 France Guitar Ensemble
of Francis Poulenc Conservatory,
Rosny sous Bois, France

first snow (2016)🎄
"I love how subtle First Snow begins and then increases in complexity like wind throwing the snow around."   – J. Petri
Score & Parts
tango for four (2016)
Tango (V. 1)
Tango (v.2)
The musical content between the two versions is identical. The only difference between the two is that in Version 2, Guitar 3 and 4 switch parts at the repeat of the first section (mm. 9-24).
Étude (2016)
This piece works well towards the beginning of the second year as a study focusing on two areas:
1.) Playing a melody note (with a rest stroke) and bass note  at the same time. This can be technically  challenging at first.
2.) An introduction to playing out of first position.
Score & Parts
long road home (2016)
Score & Parts
This performance was a collaboration with Wilson High School's Dance and Guitar Departments, for the Grand Re-Opening of Wilson's School auditorium, October 11, 2018. Choreography by Brook Sudock-Baxter.
​Michelle Jusionis, Director of Dance.
spanish garden (2016)
Score & Parts
november (2016)🎄
Score & Parts
Moon rising (2016)
Score & Parts
GESTURES suite (2018)
Gestures is a collection of four miniatures for guitar quartet, each less than two minutes long. The imagery and feelings each piece evokes in me are very poignant, and I was going to title each piece accordingly. However, in the end, I didn't want to influence the listener's own response, so, I kept the titles neutral.

Obviously, being a suite, these four pieces are intended to be performed together. Of course, you have the option not to. To accommodate that, I provided the score and parts for each piece, rather than one file with all four pieces.​
      1. march
Score & Parts
      2. Passacaglia (2016)🎄
Score & Parts
      3. Waltz
Score & Parts
      4. Rhapsody
Score and Parts
Sunset paradise (2019)
Score & Parts
Six Bells (2019)🎄
Score & Parts
Technical ​Levels:
​Guitar 1 & 2: Intermediate/Advanced
Guitar 3: Intermediate
Guitar 4: Beginning/Intermediate
Wind & Willows (2020)
Score and Parts
Dance de montebello (2021)

In Memory of Bob Croghan

Score & Parts
Shades of Green (2021)
Shades of Green
she dreams of argentina (2021)
Score & Parts
A thanksgiving (2021)
Score & Parts
Blue Mango (2022)
Score & Parts
volo (2022)
Score & Parts
galya's dance (2022)
Score & Parts
Teta (2022)
score & Parts

GUITAR QUARTET & STRINGS (Warde)

MAMA'S LULLABY (2017)
GUITAR QUARTET & VIOLIN or cell0
Score & Parts
MUSIC FOR A LOONIE (2018)
GUITAR ENSEMBLE AND STRING SYMPHONY
Commissioned by the
Vancouver Symphony Orchestra School of Music
for its Orpheum Showcase Concert, June 24, 2018

This commission was written specifically for a beginning to intermediate string and guitar ensemble. Therefore, from a technical perspective, this piece should be manageable for 2nd – 3rd year a high school string and guitar ensemble.

The performance in the above video was taken at a much slower tempo than I intended. Below is a recording with guitar quartet and sampled strings at the appropriate tempo.
Score
Guitar Parts
String Parts
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