Available in print only. A set of fourteen short jazz quartets for reading and teaching. Fun and musically satisfying for both player and listener. Great for small concert pieces and for practicing and teaching style. Encompasses varying tempos and styles of swing and Latin. Recording "A" has no.'s 1 through 12. Recording "B" has no.'s 13 and 14. Click here for a FREE download of rhythm section parts to accompany the above publication (folder with pdf files). Leadsheet for soloing also included. 220 kb

A lightish, fun work, not too tough. typical Hefti, Medium up tempo. Lead trumpet goes to D. Head/changes/outchorus/head/coda.

A light samba that sounds really nice on flugelhorns. Tasty lines and harmonies. Everyone gets a shot at the melody with solo spots for first and third. An eight-measure swing shout on trumpets heralds the return to the head. A very pretty chart.

Another simple but effective bossa nova. Very pretty. Solos are in the rhythm section. Range to G. Optional 5th trumpet part. With rhythm section (piano, guitar, bass and drums). From the TRPTS Jazz Quartet Series.

A simple yet effective bossa nova in a minor key from the TRPS book of Mike Vax. No range demands. Rhythm section includes piano, guitar, bass, and drums. Head/solos/outchorus/head. Open solos all around. Changes are a little tricky but only mildly so. Flugelhorns are best suited for this piece.

Con lenezza means "in a quiet, gentle manner." A dramatic work that starts con lenezza and builds to a strong finish. The piece is slow all the way through, but contains lots of musical contrasts

Switching between Latin and swing, this is a harmonically complex tune that is otherwise not too difficult but requires stylistically mature players. Excellent writing for the trumpets. Piano chords are written out (with changes) as is the bass line. Flexible roadmap.

A lightish, straight ahead medium up-tempo head/solos/head/out. Lead trumpet to high C, with optional F's. One of Brad's simpler charts, cute and fun. Drums on brushes.

Salsa (rhumba). Great idiomatic arrangement of this classic latin tune. Rhythm parts are written out to facilitate style. Solo space for all in the refrain section. From the Triplo Press TRPS jazz trumpet quartet series.

A jazz waltz with a harmonized solo section and open solo and shout sections in 4/4. Clever, sophisticated writing, with tight, extended harmonies typical of Brad's arrangements.

More medium tempo be-bop. Lead trumpet to high C, and takes solo trades with drums. Not quite as "involved" as the other be-bop tunes, but still swings hard. From the TRPTS Jazz Quartet Series.

An expansion by Mike Vax of Willie's Three More Foxes, the famous blues originally written for Maynard Ferguson. Thus, as one would expect, there are some range demands (g'''). With rhythm section (piano, guitar, bass and drums). A great classic and great fun to play. Everyone has the opportunity to solo. From the TRPTS Jazz Quartet Series

Approximately 25 seconds each. A modern sounding set of strong fanfares based on a common theme. Each fanfare adds another voice and becomes a little more complex. Comissioned for the opening of the Nutter Center Sports Complex in Dayton, Ohio USA. Click here to read what the ITG Journal said of this piece.

A great arrangement of this classic done in SuperSax style with Clifford Brown's famous solo as a harmonized chorus for the whole section. Very clever and fun to play and work on. Another Brad Sharp beauty.

Yep, Laura is in there. Medium tempo be-bop with some fun intertwining lines. Lead trumpet to high C. Second trumpet has the solo. Drums have space as well.

A real bebop treat at a very fast tempo (MM=240). Not much demand for range, but fingers are a must. Beautiful quartet writing and very exciting. With rhythm section (piano, guitar, bass and drums). From the TRPTS Jazz Quartet Series Recording by Mike Vax and TRPTS on Summit Records DCD 308.

Excellent hip-hop funk. Great lines and great changes, with Brad's great voicings, interesting harmonies and quirky out-chorus lines. Really fun to play, and a super audience pleaser. The recording is electronic and sparse (sorry about that), but we are really anxious to get this piece out there. The examples are of score excerpts and the first trumpet part.

Short, quick, tricky, lightish and fun to play, rehearse and perform. It is similar in writing style to the Suite (see below). A very effective piece with lots of rhythmic and melodic interaction.

A very exciting professional level arrangement of this classic blues. Medium up tempo. With rhythm section (piano, guitar, bass and drums). From the TRPTS Jazz Quartet Series Recording by Mike Vax and TRPTS on Summit Records DCD 308

Easy, very tasty and pretty bossa nova. Works best with flugelhorns, but effective either way. Head/solos (keyboard or guitar) with a few backgrounds/head. Arranged for Mike Vax and TRPTS

Four movements: Entrada, Lullabye, Scherzo, and Finale. A very idiomatic piece for the trumpet with lots of action for all four parts, but in appropriate tessituras. Another work fun to play and perform.

Three movements: Allegro con spirito; Andante cantabile; Tempo rigoroso. Similar in styles to the Suite for Four Trumpets (TRP-45).

Four pieces (La MajestŽ, La Crace, L'Amour, La Vigilance) from Twelve Heroic Marches arranged in excellent style. Wise use of tessitura for the grade level. Effective, accessible. On the Ohio Music Educators Association Contest List

Fanfare; Eternal Call of Taps; Fugue and Flourishes. Commisioned by Bugles Across America. Intertwining lines, both melodic and rhythmic, combine the hymn Eternal Father and Taps into a rather complex, fascinating and effective five-minute composition

Simple but interesting and fun both melodically and harmonically. Great for intonation practice and counting. Introduces fugue writing, triplets, and swing. Musically quite effective. Recordings left to right: Movement 1, Movement 2, Movement 3.

Louis Armstrong's famous solo on Wild Man Blues arranged for four trumpets ala Supersax. An amazing and challenging - and fun - study in style. With rhythm section (piano, guitar, bass and drums). From the TRPTS Jazz Quartet Series Recording by Mike Vax and TRPTS on Summit Records DCD 308.