It is with particular pride that we present edited and corrected publications of the library of octets and chamber pieces composed by Alec Wilder, written between 1938 and 1947. These were recorded for the Brunswick, Columbia, and Vox labels. A compilation of these octets is available on compact disc from the Hep label.

During the late 1930s several composers were intrigued with short-form composing using jazz rhythms and harmonies. Alec Templeton, Reginald Foresythe, and Raymond Scott had different approaches to such materials, Scott’s being the most eccentric and successful partly because his pieces had unusual names such as War Dance for Wooden Indians. The works of all three were ultimately considered novelties and were modified and published as stock arrangements for dance bands. They were to be found in many big band libraries throughout this period.

During this time, Wilder was writing songs and arrangements for dance bands when he had a meeting with Joe Higgins, an executive with Brunswick Records. During this meeting the executive asked Wilder if he wrote instrumental music. Wilder said that he did, and Higgins suggested that he compose a series of short pieces for small ensemble. Due to the success of the Scott Quintette for Brunswick, Higgins envisioned a new series that would also become popular and sell records. Wilder suggested that the ensemble be made up of woodwinds (so he could include such fellow Eastman School of Music alumni as Mitch Miller and Jimmy Carroll) with bass and drums. He was listening to the harpsichord quite a bit during this time – his friend John Barrows was composing pieces for the instrument, and Miller was performing concerts with harpsichordist Yella Pessl - so Wilder added that instrument as well. Alec wrote a test piece for the ensemble, and Brunswick executive and Wilder friend Morty Palitz gave the go-ahead for a recording session to be held in December 1938. James T. Maher, a close friend of Wilder’s, confirms that Wilder knew the Scott and Foresythe recordings and was influenced not just by the music but also by the titles. Wilder's titles for these octets are sometimes autobiographical, sometimes elusive.

Very early on, Wilder realized that swing rhythms could easily be played on the clarinet and flute, but not on the double-reeds (today many saxophone players double on oboe and bassoon, so this is no longer an issue). He successfully exploits this 'swing eighth vs. straight eighth' issue in his music, part of the reason why these pieces are even more popular today. He was also well trained in classical music theory and history and successfully used his skills in the creation of these pieces, perhaps most notably in Sea Fugue, Mama (Cat # JLP-7103), a swinging classical fugue.

The recordings got mixed reviews, but they obviously sold well enough so that additional recording sessions were held for more of them throughout 1939 and 1940. The attention Wilder received for these recordings led to work opportunities for the singer Mildred Bailey, for whom he would write songs and arrangements.

The Wilder octets and chamber pieces have had an interesting publishing history. Some were initially published by Regent Music (Harry Goodman, Benny's Goodman's brother, owned the company) but were slightly simplified. In the 1950s, publishing executive Howard Richmond took over Wilder's entire catalog so that, in his words to me, "all of his music would be in one place and he would have a home." For a time, Wilder's concert music was distributed by Margun Music and made available in the form of photocopies of the original hand-written scores and parts; these materials had discrepancies between the sources. Clearly a publishing project needed to be planned to prepare corrected scores and parts. These pieces occupy an important place in American music history and deserve to be made available in pristine form for performance and study. Judy Bell, Creative Director of The Richmond Organization, gave Jazz Lines Publications permission and licenses to make this happen.