I often see bands playing orchestral arrangements and transcriptions without experiencing the actual sound of string harmony. We all have a lot to learn from strings' technique and musical expression. When I was directing the Freshmen Wind Ensemble at Senzoku College of Music, I worked on a piece for violin and wind ensemble over the expanse of three years. Putting the ideas together created a three movement concerto. The premier was performed by Sachika Mizuno. I then wrote a version with saxophone for the 1st movement and marimba for 2nd movement as well as a piano reduction version. I used old, familiar melodies for each movement and titled the song "Sopra l'arie antiche."

Keep the ensemble size as small as possible. The violin should be able to dominate without amplification in the wind ensemble setting.

1st Movement - Capriccio
I borrowed Arcangelo Corelli's "La Falia" (also used in Lizt's "Rhapsodie espagnole") and Niccol? Paganini's "Caprice No. 24" (used in variations by Brahms, Rachmaninoff, Lutos?awski and Lloyd Webber)

2nd Movement - Scherzo
Borrowed Niccol? Paganini's "Violin Concerto No. 2" (also known as "La Campanella"). The latter part uses the melody directly.

3rd Movement - Introduction and Rondo
Find the melody used partially here from a famous work entitled "Introduction and Rondo."