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  £45.00

  

  Caerfyrddin - Brass Band - LM957

  COMPOSER: Alex McGeeA four movement work describing the historic county town of Carmarthen.1. FanfareThe first movement is an opening Fanfare,2. Castell Caerfyrddyn(Carmarthen Castle)The second movement is a lament describing the now ruined castle.Carmarthen Castle(Welsh:Castell Caerfyrddin) is a ruinedcastleinCarmarthen,West Wales. First built by Walter, Sheriff of Gloucester in theearly 1100s, the castle was captured and destroyed on severaloccasions before being rebuilt in stoneduring the 1190s. The castle was captured byOwain Glyndrin 1405.Henry VII's father died at Carmarthen Castle in 1456. During theWars of the Rosesthe castle fell toWilliam Herbertand, during theCivil War,was captured by Parliamentary forces. It was dismantled by order ofOliver Cromwellin the mid 1600s.It has been used as the site of Carmarthen's gaol until the 1920s.The remains of the castle were given a Grade Iheritage listingin 1954and is currently a tourist attraction and site of the town's Tourist Information Centre.3. Pysgota Cwrwgl(Coracle Fishing)The third movement is a Scherzo which depicts coracle fishing on the river Towy.Should you take an evening stroll down by the River Towy,if the weather and river conditions are suitable, you may be lucky enough to see apair of coracles float gently down river with a net suspended between them.The coracle man will hold the net in one hand and skilfully moving the paddle in afigure of eight motion in the other. As soon as a fish in caught, which many havedescribed as a 'silent noise travelling from the fish, into the net and up into thefisherman's arm', the two coracles are drawn together by pulling at the net.Sewin (sea trout) or salmon being the chosen catch.4. MarchThe Fourth movement is a March representing the town itself. Carmarthenshire in West Wales lies on the River Towy and claims to be the oldest town in Wales. Some variants of theArthurian legendclaim thatMerlinwas born outside the town and that he lies imprisoned in a cave in nearbyBryn Myrddin(Merlin's Hill), which stands right by the A40 trunk road.The myth maintains that his groans can be heard issuing forth from the hill and will continue until he is called to help his fellow countrymen. It is also claimed that, when Merlin's Oak fell, it would be the downfall of the town.For many years great effort was employed to brace the tree, situated in the town.Although it eventually died, it is hoped that catastrophe was averted by preservingsome bits in theCarmarthenshire County Museum.Larger branches are in the Civic Hall in Nott Square and a statue of Merlincarved from another local tree stands in the town centre.St. Peter's Church, the largest parish church in Wales,also has thelongest navemeasuring 60 metres and its tower containseight bellswith the heaviest weighing just under a tonne.It is surprising that few traces survive of the medieval town; however,a small section ofCivil War defences, thrown up by the Royalists, survives on the south-west of the town. They are known as "The Bulwarks," and consist of an earthwork bank and a well-preserved four-sided bastion.Suitable for Most Bands - Duration 8 mins (Approx.)

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  £30.00

  

  Niagara Falls - Brass Band - LM597

  COMPOSER: Neil LockThis descriptive piece commemorates a visit I made to Niagara Falls back in October 1984.At the beginning, the music is very quiet; the falls are a long way away! But as it progresses, the noise of the falls becomes louder and louder. The piece has three principal motifs, whichrun through most of it. Descending crochets signify the water going over the cliff, and risingquavers the spray coming back up. And the frequent discord (a major chord with anadditional 2nd) represents wetness.Right after my first sight of the falls, I see the "Maid of the Mist" boat phut-phutting outinto the stream, with horns and E flat basses on the off-beat. There is also an "Indian"war-cry in this section from the trombone, euphonium and B flat bass. Then, an extendedclimax describes my first view of the full majesty of the falls.After this climax dies away, I go up the tower near the falls. The music goes into the minorkey, and loses the discord. It isn't wet up there!In the final section, I stand close to the falls; almost close enough, it seems, to put an armin. The music becomes very loud. Twice I look aside, but when I turn back the falls are stillthere. At the end, the descending crochet motif takes over entirely, and a timpani roll isfollowed by a classic final chord.

  In Stock: Estimated dispatch 3-5 working days