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£40.00Variations on a Theme of Michael Tippett (Brass Band - Score only)
A Centenary Tribute by Michael Ball, Edward Gregson, Elgar Howarth, Bramwell Tovey and Philip WilbyThis unique 'pice d'occasion' arose out of a telephone conversation in 2004 with Alan Wycherley, who was the soprano cornet player of the Foden's Richardson Band at the time. He indicated that the band would like to include an original birthday tribute for Edward Gregson (60) and Elgar Howarth (70) in its concert at the 2005 RNCM Festival of Brass in Manchester. I have been Artistic Director of Manchester's Festival of Brass since it was established in 1990 as a BBC Radio 3 series, As the centenary of the birth of Sir Michael Tippett fell on 5 January 2005, I devised this collective work as a way of embracing all three anniversaries in a novel way.The idea of joint compositions is not a new one in the classical music world. In the 1860s, Verdi was joined by a number of his contemporaries in a Requiem Mass for Rossini. In this country there have been a number of orchestral examples over the past fifty years, but never before for the brass band. Although Tippett composed only one work for brass band, Festal Brass with Blues, his orchestral works and operas are full of idiomatic brass writing. The theme I chose for this celebration is one of Tippet's most memorable miniatures featuring wind and brass. In the opera Midsummer Marriage it marks the entry of the Ancients. It is also included in the orchestral Suite in D (1948), for the Birthday of Prince Charles.I invited five of the leading contemporary voices in brass band music to add their own creative perspectives to the little Tippett theme, with it's characteristic rhythms, embellishments and modality - the Lydian mode. Each contribution was designed to fit into a tonal and formal template to give the whole work a flow and continuity. In Danse des Amis, Bramwell Tovey has composed a jazzy, humorous variation. Inspiration came from Tippett's love of jazz and, more personally, from the characteristically syncopated gait of the distinguished music critic John Amis, who Tovey once observed leaving a performance of Tippett's opera King Priam before the end. Incidentally, that performance was conducted by Elgar Howarth.We hear Edward Gregson in lyrical mode. His Midsummer Song is redolent of the sound world of Tippett's opera A Midsummer Marriage and it ends with a brief reference to a favourite of Gregson's, Tippett's Concerto for Orchestra. Michael Ball provides a brief moment of light, airy activity bringing to mind perhaps Tippett's love of Shakespearian fantasy, especially The Tempest. Elgar Howarth juxtaposes a slowed down version of the processional theme with distant recollections of fanfares from King Priam. Philip Wilby has rounded the tribute off with a spectacular fugue. During its inexorable progress Wilby ingeniously introduces the two other birthday references - the three-note musical signature that Elgar Howarth includes in much of his music and the characteristic theme which begins Edward Gregson's substantial work for brass an organ The Trumpets of the Angels. An elaborated reprise of Tippett's little theme is followed by a dynamic coda.- Paul HindmarshDuration: 13.00
Estimated dispatch 7-14 working days
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£79.95Neverland - Christopher Bond
"All children, except one, grow up" wrote J.M. Barrie about Peter Pan in 1911; the first line and an expression of beautiful melancholy and fantasy, coming to represent one of the best-loved children's stories of the twentieth century. 'Peter & Wendy', as the book was first released, has subsequently been transformed into adaptations for film and stage, with subsequent books based on this iconic tale. In writing this new work for brass band, the composer has taken three of the main themes from J. M. Barrie's book, and used these themes to create new musical material, forming a work in three contrasting sections. I. Journey to Neverland The opening of the work, mysterious in its style, reflects the opening chapters of the story - a leafy London street, still in the dead of night - with the music transforming quickly as it builds in texture and momentum - a Journey to Neverland through the night sky; Second Star to the Right and straight on 'til morning. "Then Peter knew that there was not a moment to lose. 'Come,' he cried imperiously, and soared out at once into the night, followed by John and Michael and Wendy. Mr & Mrs Darling and Nana rushed into the nursery too late. The birds were flown." II. The Windows that Closed The central section of the work takes its inspiration from the sense of longing throughout the book, mainly by Peter Pan, the Darling Children & The Lost Boys. Distant memories of life before Neverland, memories of the Lost Boys' mothers, and regret at what the children have missed. Peter says "Long ago, I thought like you that my mother would always keep the window open for me; so I stayed away for moons and moons and moons, and then flew back; but the window was barred, for mother had forgotten all about me, and there was another little boy sleeping in my bed." III. Aboard the Pirate Ship The final section of the work takes its inspiration from the Pirate Ship, and Peter Pan's ultimate battle with its infamous Captain Hook. "In person, he was cadaverous and blackavized, and his hair was dressed in long curls, which at a distance looked like black candles, and gave a singularly threatening expression to his handsome countenance. His eyes were the blue of the forget-me-not, and of a profound melancholy, save when he was plunging his hook into you, at which time two red spots appeared in them and lit them up horribly."
Estimated dispatch 10-14 working days
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£35.00strange geometry
Descriptionstrange geometrywas commissioned by Morgan Griffiths and the Hammonds Saltaire Band for their performance at the Brass in Concert Championships of 2015.As a bit of a space/sci-fi geek, as well as a musician, two events during the summer of 2015 had a particular effect on me. The first was the tragic early death in a plane crash of the famous film composer James Horner. Horner's music, particularly in films like 'Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan', 'Avatar', 'Apollo 13' and even his debut in Roger Corman's 1980 budget film 'Battle Beyond the Stars', defined for a generation the sound of sci-fi at the cinema. Along with John Williams he created the vocabulary for those who wish to express other-worldly wonder in music and his inventive talent will be much missed in an industry where originality has become something of a dirty word in recent years.The second event was the epic flyby of Pluto by the NASA New Horizons spacecraft. There are many reasons to find this mission inspiring - for example, the scientists and engineers behind it created a craft that has travelled at 37,000 mph for nine years and three billion miles to arrive within seventy-two seconds of the predicted time for the flyby. That they achieved this with such accuracy is an outstanding tribute to humanity's ingenuity and insatiable curiosity. However, the most exciting aspect of the mission was the clear, high resolution pictures of this unthinkably remote and inhospitable world beamed back to mission control. The best previous image of Pluto was an indistinct fuzzy blob - suddenly we could see mountains made of ice, glaciers of methane and carbon monoxide and nitrogen fog - features previously unimagined on a world thought to be a slightly dull ball of cold rock. The BBC's venerable astronomy programme 'The Sky at Night' waxed lyrical about these newly discovered features, referring to "the surprising discoveries of mountains and strange geometry on the surface of this cold distant world".I like to think that Horner would have been as inspired as I have been by this real-life science story, and this piece uses some of the vocabulary of the sci-fi movie soundtrack in a tribute to the memory of a great musician and to the inspirational geeks at NASA who have boldly taken us where no-one has gone before.Note: This work comes with a B4 portrait score. Listen to a preview and follow the music below!
Estimated dispatch 7-14 working days
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£30.00Sortie in E Flat - Louis Lefebure-Wely
Louis James Alfred Lefebure-Wely is historically associated with the development of French organ music, as well as with organ technique. As a composer he was instrumental in the evolution of the French symphonic organ style and his works include many pieces for church use, and lighter fare like marches and sorties.It is probably in the latter genre that Lefebure-Wely scored his most enduring successes on the organ, with pieces like the sorties in B flat and E flat.Sue Hopkins has artfully captured the magic of Lefebure-Wely's writing and produced this great new piece which offers a perfect complement to your concert programme.
In Stock: Estimated dispatch 3-5 working days
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Scotch Missed - Len Jenkins - Len Jenkins
Back in the late 1980's a crowd of us went to Scotland to see in the New Year. We were dismayed to find that the pubs were shut early on New Year's Eve, and the only drink and merriment would be in an hotel (if resident or invited), or by 'first footing'. This involved taking a bottle of Scotch and presenting oneself at the door of a complete stranger, whereupon we were relieved of the bottle and welcomed into the general hubbub. The bottle was passed around those gathered there, so that by the time it got back to us it was empty. Just like its homonym, when it got around to us, it simply did not exist.
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£77.00General Series Brass Band Journal, Numbers 2234 - 2237, August 2023
2234: Festival March - Above all names (Geoff McCorriston)This Festival March was originally written for the Camberwell Citadel Band, Melbourne, Australia. This composition marks the composers debut within our band journals. Geoff McCorriston served as Deputy Bandmaster at Preston Corps (Australia) for many years before joining the Camberwell Citadel Band. He has also been a member of the Melbourne Red Shield Band. Above all names is distinct from a standard street march in that it is more developed, both rhythmically and thematically. It is an original march that references We plough the fields and scatter (S.A.S.B. 70) and Camberwell (T.B. 182).2235: Flugel Horn Solo - Father, Creator (Simon Gash)Emma Pears has a gift for contemporary song-writing, with several of her songs featuring in the Sing to the Lord publication. The style and relaxed nature of the melody of Father, Creator (first published in the Children's Voices Series in 2011, and later in the Mixed Voices in 2014) seemed a perfect fit for the Flugel Horn. Throughout the piece, juxtaposed with Father, Creator, we hear snippets of the tune St Theodulph (T.B. 231), which outline the first lines of Albert Chesham's words, 'O Father and Creator, Thou God of perfect love' (S.A.S.B. 46).2236: A winter's carol (trs. Neil Smith)The history of the carol O come, Immanuel (C.C. 62) is, like the carol itself, a little mysterious! The melody was conceived as a monastic chant during the 8th century. It was not until 1851 that the priest and hymn writer John Mason Neale translated the verses into English, exposing the carol to a wider audience. There is an aura and enigmatic feel to this melody which is captivating to so many who hear it. This setting was originally conceived for wind band by American composer Mark Williams. The brass band transcription introduces a new name to our journals, Bandmaster Neil Smith, who is the Territorial Music Director for the USA Western Territory.2237: Mighty to keep (Eiliv Herikstad)Mighty to keep marks the composer's first publication since his Promotion to Glory in April 2023. Bandmaster Eiliv Herikstad served faithfully in his native Norway throughout his life, and since the early 1970s, has provided The Salvation Army with a wealth of original compositions and skilful arrangements. Eiliv explored many styles of big-band and jazz writing which, in the 70s, were not commonplace amongst brass bands, particularly in The Salvation Army. Music Editorial are grateful to Eiliv for using his gifts to support Salvation Army music ministry.The subject of this piece is Herbert Booth's song Mighty to keep, which was first published by The Salvation Army in 1889. The chorus of the song is more well-known that the verse and was included in the chorus section of the 1986 Salvation Army Song Book.
Estimated dispatch 7-14 working days
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£54.95Festiva Brazilia (Brass Band - Score and Parts)
Using a variety of Latin American musical influences the piece opens with a bass riff that is to be the prominent feature in this work. Accompanied with lively Latin American Samba Percussion section the work is reminiscent of the music heard at the world famous Rio Carnival. There are lots of Latin 'Riffs' and 'Licks' throughout the piece that keep returning in true samba style. This is a real fun piece to perform and the performing notes below act as a guide to getting the most out of this performance.Performing Notes:There are opportunities for soloists within the piece, particularly Solo Cornet, Soprano and Bongo's.When the Cornet and Soprano soloist play their solo part they have an instruction to stand out at the front to perform. It is at the players and conductors discretion where they would like to stand for their solo line.Obviously the Drum Kit soloist is restricted to their current positioning within the band. However, the other percussionists are quite at liberty to come out to the front of the band to perform their solo at rehearsal figure P at the conductors discretion.NB - At the 5th bar of figure P there is an optional repeat section. Performers can repeat this section over and over to extend the percussion feature. Or even add more players from the band to play percussion. If you do not wish to use this opportunity then dismiss the repeat so that there is a 16 bar section between figure P and figure R.There are also a variety of cameo roles for other soloists and musical sections during the piece. Other players and sections can stand to perform various motifs during the piece again at the conductor's discretion.Festiva Brazilia was composed for performers to have fun and enjoy performing the piece as much as possible. Just like the many Samba festivals around Brazil.
Estimated dispatch 7-14 working days
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£40.44Christmas Day (Brass Band) Gustav Holst arr. Philip Rayment
VIEW SCORE PDF Well-known English composer, Gustav Holst (1874-1934) wrote this choral fantasy in 1910, about five years before his renowned orchestral suite, The Planets. The piece was originally composed for SATB choir and orchestra and dedicated to the students of Morley College, where Holst taught music. In the years since, it has been arranged for various combinations of voice and/or instruments. This arrangement is in the original key and could be adapted for use with choir and/or organ. Christmas Day features three carols in their entirety: Good Christian Men, Rejoice; God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen and Come, Ye Lofty, Come, Ye Lowly (an old Breton melody). There are also references to The First Nowell. Although well-received initially, this work (like many of Holst's) was neglected for many years and has not been widely recorded. It is hoped that it will be useful for brass bands during the festive season, particularly in a large acoustic. To listen to the Canadian Staff Band performing the work please visit www.youtube.com/watch?v=ccXkbWi_iWE Sheet music available from: UK - www.brassband.co.uk USA - www.solidbrassmusic.com Difficulty Level: 3rd Section + Instrumentation: Soprano Cornet Eb Solo Cornet Bb Repiano Cornet Bb 2nd Cornet Bb 3rd Cornet Bb Flugel Horn Bb Solo Horn Eb 1st Horn Eb 2nd Horn Eb 1st Baritone Bb 2nd Baritone Bb 1st Trombone Bb 2nd Trombone Bb Bass Trombone Euphonium Bb Bass Eb Bass Bb Percussion 1-3
In Stock: Estimated dispatch 1-3 working days
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£110.00
Legend - Geert Jan Kroon
Other than the title, there is no real story that connects this piece to eyeballs or werewolves. There is no real legend that precedes this work. The legend will evolve in the listener's mind while listening to this piece. For me, it started with the title. It was dreamed up by my son. He also suggested a musical gesture, which I then used to build all the musical materials in this piece. I have sought to capture a dark atmosphere with a sense of excitement. Although, there are some not so dark moments in the piece which serve as a musical contrast. I would like to invite every listener to imagine a world where there exists a legend of a bleeding eyeball and a blind werewolf. And if you do dream up a great story, please let me know and share it with each other!
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£30.00A Million Love Songs - Gary Barlow
Made famous by the boy band 'Take That', this fantastic new angle on the song from Lucy Pankhurst, creatively features the flugel and tenor horn section with full support from the accompanying band.Take That's Gary Barlow wrote 'A Million Love Songs' when he was 15. He also recorded a rough demo of the track, and was one of the songs he gave to music manager Nigel Martin-Smith on a cassette tape as part of his audition to join a boy-band.In his autobiography A Better Me, Gary revealed that Martin-Smith was so impressed by the tape, that he didn't realise it was Gary singing. As legend has it, the conversation went like this:Martin-Smith: "This tape, who has written the songs?"Barlow: "Me"Martin-Smith: "Who wrote the words, then?"Barlow: "Me. And the music and the backing track."Martin-Smith: "Wow, you'd better come back and see me tomorrow."The ballad became one of the group's most popular songs, and is often voted among the greatest love songs of all time. It peaked at No. 7 in the UK charts, and remains a firm favourite, not just for its sentiment, but for the beautiful melody Barlow created.Lucy's arrangement for brass band brings a whole new dynamic to the music and offers the flugelhorn and tenor horns a golden opportunity to shine.
In Stock: Estimated dispatch 3-5 working days
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