It Had To Be You little big band with vocal arrangement by Bill Fulton

Description

Enjoy this classic standard “It Had To Be You” with a twist – this Bill Fulton arrangement provides an enriching experience tailored for little big band and vocal. Suitable for any jazz or swing night, the subtle nuances in this piece add an extra layer of enjoyment over traditional arrangements.

This It Had To Be You vocal jazz chart by Bill Fulton brings the classic American standard to vocalist and little big band. In particular, the arrangement gives performing groups the color and impact of jazz ensemble writing without requiring a full-size big band. As a result, it is well suited to groups that want a rich horn sound with a compact lineup.

It Had To Be You Vocal Jazz Chart for Little Big Band

Written by Isham Jones with lyrics by Gus Kahn, “It Had To Be You” has remained a familiar part of the American popular-song and jazz repertoire for generations. Today, the song continues to work naturally as a vehicle for a featured vocalist. For this arrangement, Bill Fulton places the standard in a little big band setting built around the singer.

The ensemble combines alto sax, tenor sax, trumpet, and trombone with guitar, piano or keyboard, bass, and drums. Consequently, each instrumental voice has an important role in the overall texture. At the same time, the four-horn format allows the arrangement to retain the character of ensemble jazz writing while remaining practical for smaller groups.

Vocal Jazz Writing with a Compact Horn Section

A successful vocal arrangement needs to give the singer room while allowing the instrumental writing to contribute its own musical identity. Therefore, this It Had To Be You vocal jazz chart uses the little big band as a supporting ensemble rather than simply treating the horns as an abbreviated full big band. In this way, the compact instrumentation becomes part of the musical character of the arrangement.

In addition, the combination of reeds, brass, and rhythm section provides a broad range of instrumental colors. Because of this, a smaller ensemble can still produce varied jazz textures. Moreover, the instrumentation makes the chart useful for professional groups, jazz ensembles, concerts, clubs, and other performances where a traditional jazz vocal chart is needed with fewer musicians.

Instrumentation

• Vocal
• Alto Sax
• Tenor Sax
• Trumpet
• Trombone
• Guitar
• Piano/Keyboard
• Bass
• Drums

Explore More Little Big Band Arrangements

If you are building a library for a smaller jazz ensemble, browse more little big band arrangements and charts by Bill Fulton. Alternatively, you can explore the complete big band arrangements and charts for larger ensembles.

For additional historical context, the Library of Congress maintains extensive collections documenting American popular music, songwriters, recordings, and jazz history. In addition, its collections provide a useful resource for exploring the broader history of American music.

Finally, Bill Fulton is a professional composer, arranger, orchestrator, and keyboardist whose work includes jazz ensembles, vocalists, orchestras, film, television, and recording projects. For more music, explore music arranging and orchestration by Bill Fulton or browse the sheet music catalog for additional ensemble choices.

Genre

Jazz, vocal jazz, standard

Instrumentation:

• Vocal
• Alto sax
• Tenor sax
• Trumpet
• Trombone
• Guitar
• Piano/Keyboard
• Bass
• Drums