Month of the Cold Moon - Score only

Month of the Cold Moon - Score only by Roland Barrett. For concert band. FJH Symphonic Band. Score only. Full set (score and parts) also available: B1367. Grade 4. Score only. Composed 2008. Duration 6:00. Published by The FJH Music Company Inc (FJ.B1367S).

This work was inspired by the tragic story of Nunna daul Tsuny ("The Trail Where They Cried" or "The Trail of Tears"), one of the saddest incidents in American history. In the early 1800s, the U.S., feeling threatened by European presence in western North America, attempted to create a buffer zone between U.S. and European holdings. It would be inhabited by eastern American Indians, allowing for American expansion westward from the original colonies to the Mississippi River. Between 1816-1840, local tribes between the original states and the Mississippi gradually signed treaties ceding their lands to the U.S. In 1830, Congress passed the Indian Removal Act, forcing remaining Indians off their land. In May of 1838, federal troops began the roundup of the Cherokee Nation. Three groups left that summer, traveling from present-day Chattanooga by rail, boat, and wagon. One of these groups suffered three to five deaths per day from illness and drought. By March 1839, survivors had arrived in the West. No one knows how many died but the trail took a heavy toll on infants, small children, and elderly. Accompanying missionary doctor Elizur Butler estimated over 4000 died - nearly one-fifth of the entire Cherokee population. The formal structure of the work abstractly depicts various stages of the tragic journey.