In the Alpine Meadows
Jeremy Bell
Shipwreck Cove is an exciting, pirate-themed piece for beginning band. The work contains several themes that alternate between major and the parallel minor, creating feelings of heroism in the face of despair. Shipwreck Cove opens with the bass instruments representing the sea and accompanied by an ocean drum mimicking the sound of the waves while other instruments blow air to create wind sounds. The second theme is then introduced in the upper woodwinds as a sorrowful pirate melody. After a quick restatement of the first theme, the mode changes to major and takes on a more heroic theme as the pirates brave the treacherous seas. Despite the sailors’ best efforts to navigate Shipwreck Cove, though, the piece ends with a shortened version of the “ocean” theme as the sea claims another ship for Davy Jones’s Locker.
​
Shipwreck Cove was originally planned to be the 2nd movement or a suite titled Davy Jones's Locker. The final movement, The Sea of Eternity is currently published with C. L. Barnhouse, and the first movement, The Pirates of Nassau, is currently self-published and available for free for anyone who would like to perform the entire suite.
Shipwreck Cove has been selected as a J.W. Pepper's Editor's Choice, is one Band World's top 100 picks, and is also available for purchased at Alfred Music.