Frank Sinatra

Serenade in Blue

This lush ballad is a transcription of Neal Hefti's arrangement for Sinatra's 1962 album 'Sinatra and Swingin' Brass'. This session was the first time Sinatra worked with Hefti on an album project, and it set the benchmark. Whilst the instrumental parts of this chart are not too tricky, the vocal part is quite demanding, as the vocalist doesn't get a rest from start to finish. Even Sinatra himself was quoted as saying 'boy, this is tough' during the recording takes. However, don't let this put you off. The brass are often muted though their background figures, so good intonation and ears are required to keep things balanced and tight. Sinatra originally recorded this chart in the key of E, which throws a lot of sharps at the transposing instruments. In view of this we have printed all of the parts double-sided, with an Eb alternative on the reverse of the pages. The vocal key is E(Eb) throughout and there are no sax doubles.