Results
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£125.00The World Rejoicing (Brass Band - Score and Parts)
The World Rejoicing was commissioned by the National Brass Band Associations of Belgium, Netherlands, Norway, Switzerland, and the British Open, as the test piece for their competitions in 2020/21. Although the work was completed in 2019, the pandemic of 2020 meant that these competitions were postponed until 2021/22. The premiere took place in September 2021 at Symphony Hall, Birmingham, UK.In searching for a common link between the brass band traditions of the various European countries that commissioned this work, I considered the fact that hymns have always played an important role in the relationship that brass bands have with their particular communities; and thus I turned to a well- known Lutheran chorale, Nun danket alle Gott (Now thank we all our God), written around 1636 by Martin Rinkart, with the melody attributed to Johann Cruger. A number of composers have incorporated this chorale into their music, most famously J.S. Bach in his Cantatas no. 79 and 192, and Mendelssohn in the Lobsegang movement of his 2nd Symphony (the harmonisation of which is usually used when this hymn is sung).It seemed fitting therefore for me to return to a compositional form I have used many times before (Variations) and to write a work based on this hymn. I have used it in a similar way to that which I employed in my Variations on Laudate Dominum of 1976 - that is, rather than writing a set of variations using elaborations of the complete tune, I have taken various phrases from the chorale and used them within the context of other musical material, applying an overall symphonic process of continuous variation and development. The structure, or sub-divisions of the work, which is through composed and plays without a break, is as follows:Prelude, Capriccio, La Danza 1, Processional, La Danza 2, Arias and Duets, Fuga Burlesca, Chorale, and Postlude.The work, which is around 16 minutes in length, is also partly autobiographical - in the manner say of Strauss's Ein Heldenleben - in that I have incorporated into the score brief quotations from many of my other major works for brass band. In that respect, The World Rejoicing sums up a particular facet of my life as a composer, and reflects the admiration I have always had for what is surely one of the great amateur music-making traditions in the world.Duration: 16.00
Estimated dispatch 7-14 working days
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£40.00
The World Rejoicing (Brass Band - Score only)
The World Rejoicing was commissioned by the National Brass Band Associations of Belgium, Netherlands, Norway, Switzerland, and the British Open, as the test piece for their competitions in 2020/21. Although the work was completed in 2019, the pandemic of 2020 meant that these competitions were postponed until 2021/22. The premiere took place in September 2021 at Symphony Hall, Birmingham, UK.In searching for a common link between the brass band traditions of the various European countries that commissioned this work, I considered the fact that hymns have always played an important role in the relationship that brass bands have with their particular communities; and thus I turned to a well- known Lutheran chorale, Nun danket alle Gott (Now thank we all our God), written around 1636 by Martin Rinkart, with the melody attributed to Johann Cruger. A number of composers have incorporated this chorale into their music, most famously J.S. Bach in his Cantatas no. 79 and 192, and Mendelssohn in the Lobsegang movement of his 2nd Symphony (the harmonisation of which is usually used when this hymn is sung).It seemed fitting therefore for me to return to a compositional form I have used many times before (Variations) and to write a work based on this hymn. I have used it in a similar way to that which I employed in my Variations on Laudate Dominum of 1976 - that is, rather than writing a set of variations using elaborations of the complete tune, I have taken various phrases from the chorale and used them within the context of other musical material, applying an overall symphonic process of continuous variation and development. The structure, or sub-divisions of the work, which is through composed and plays without a break, is as follows:Prelude, Capriccio, La Danza 1, Processional, La Danza 2, Arias and Duets, Fuga Burlesca, Chorale, and Postlude.The work, which is around 16 minutes in length, is also partly autobiographical - in the manner say of Strauss's Ein Heldenleben - in that I have incorporated into the score brief quotations from many of my other major works for brass band. In that respect, The World Rejoicing sums up a particular facet of my life as a composer, and reflects the admiration I have always had for what is surely one of the great amateur music-making traditions in the world.Duration: 16.00
Estimated dispatch 7-14 working days
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£35.00Postcard to Grimethorpe (Brass Band - Score and Parts)
I composed the original version of Postcard to Grimethorpe in 1993 at the request of Elgar Howarth, for a concert at the Queen Elizabeth Hall, London, given by the Grimethorpe Colliery Band. This was at a time when after the Grimethorpe Colliery pit closed the future of the band was in severe jeopardy. The concert was given in aid of the band, both through publicity and funding.Then in late 2022 Jack Stamp, the American composer, conductor and educator, and at that time international composer-in-association with Grimethorpe, contacted me to say that he had discovered my short piece in the band library, and asked if I might extend it for a recording he was sponsoring for the band - the repertoire to consist entirely of music specially composed for Grimethorpe.I agreed and decided to extend the piece by using the miner's hymn Gresford, as a symbolic gesture of protest at the many thousands of miners in the UK who were made redundant from their jobs. After an angular (quasi-atonal) first section, the hymn enters, softly at first, but with each phrase it becomes more powerful and insistent, ending with the final phrase triumphantly accompanied by melodic percussion (replacing the drums and cymbals of the earlier phrases, as if the band were then on the march). However, this short work ends softly and gently, as if anger has been replaced by quiet resolution and determination, looking to the future with confidence.- Edward GregsonDuration: 3.00
Estimated dispatch 7-14 working days
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£29.95
Rhapsody in Brass (Score Only)
Rhapsody in Brass is in three movements and was written for the British Open Championships in 1949, held at Belle Vue in Manchester. The contest winners were Fairey Aviation Works Band under the baton of Harry Mortimer. Eric Ball came second with Ransome & Marles and Stanley Boddington 3rd with Munn and Felton Band. Rhapsody in Brass had the unusual distinction of being written as a test piece by a Salvation Army composer. Eric Ball's Resurgam was the only other piece to achieve that dual personality in that era.Dean Goffin was born in 1916 in Wellington, New Zealand, son of Henry Goffin, a Salvation Army officer and composer. At 19 he was appointed Bandmaster of the Wellington South Band and when World War II started, he enlisted in the New Zealand Armed Forces where he became Bandmaster of the 20th Infantry Battalion and later the 4th Brigade Band. During the time he served with them in the Middle East and Europe, he composed and arranged numerous pieces among which Rhapsody in Brass and the march Bel Hamid, later adapted for Salvation Army use and renamed Anthem of the Free.After the war, Dean kept on composing and his work was featured by the Wellington South Band. Later he transferred to Timaru for another job and became Bandmaster there. He was studying music at the time and as he wanted to take part in a competition for devotional selections for Salvation Army use, he sent some of his compositions to the International Headquarters. When Rhapsody for Brass was chosen as the test-piece for the British Open Championships, people at the Salvation Army started asking questions about the lack of publications of his work. It was discovered that the pieces submitted for the competition didn't meet the exact criteria. Among these pieces was one of his most appealing works The Light of the World which was published a year later, in 1950, the same year as he completed his Bachelor of Music studies at Otagu University.After entering the Salvation Army Training College in Wellington with his wife, Marjorie, Dean was in 1956 appointed National Bandmaster in the British Territory. Later he became National Secretary for Bands and Songster Brigades and in this period he organised the yearly festival in the Royal Albert Hall and was responsible for the national music schools in the UK. Dean returned to his home country in 1966 and to mark the centenary of the Salvation Army in New Zealand he was knighted by the Queen in 1983. Sir Dean Goffin died on 23 January 1984.
Estimated dispatch 7-14 working days
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£29.95St. Andrew's Variations (Score Only)
This piece, written for the East Anglian Brass Band Festival in 1998, takes the form of eight variations and a finale, loosely based on the descending third motif heard in the initial theme. It was initially composed for junior band, and expanded and rescored for full band in 2006. There is no significance in the title, other than the fact it was written by a Scotsman to be played in the St Andrew's Hall, in Norwich!Alan Fernie was born and brought up in the Scots mining village of Newtongrange. From the age of 13 he learned to play the trombone both at school and with the local brass band, going on to study music in Glasgow and London. After a short period working as an orchestral musician, Alan moved into instrumental education, spending over 20 years teaching brass in schools all over the East of Scotland. It was during this time that he began to conduct and he has since directed bands at all levels, winning many awards. He first wrote for brass whilst still a student, and his music is now played, recorded and published throughout the world.In 2009, Alan was honoured with the "President's Award" from the Scottish Brass Band Association for services to banding. He is also proud to be associated as composer in residence with the acclaimed charity "Brass for Africa", with whom he spent two months recently teaching in Kampala, Uganda. Living in the Scottish Borders, Alan now works as a freelance musician, finding time to write, teach, conduct, judge, perform and act as compere throughout the UK and beyond.
Estimated dispatch 7-14 working days
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£31.50Edward Gregson: Postcard to Grimethorpe
DescriptionComposer's NoteI composed the original version of Postcard to Grimethorpe in 1993 at the request of Elgar Howarth, for a concert at the Queen Elizabeth Hall, London, given by the Grimethorpe Colliery Band. This was at a time when after the Grimethorpe Colliery pit closed the future of the band was in severe jeopardy. The concert was given in aid of the band, both through publicity and funding.Then in late 2022 Jack Stamp, the American composer, conductor and educator, and at that time international composer-in-association with Grimethorpe, contacted me to say that he had discovered my short piece in the band library, and asked if I might extend it for a recording he was sponsoring for the band - the repertoire to consist entirely of music specially composed for Grimethorpe.I agreed and decided to extend the piece by using the miner's hymn Gresford, as a symbolic gesture of protest at the many thousands of miners in the UK who were made redundant from their jobs. After an angular (atonal) first section, the hymn enters, softly at first, but with each phrase it becomes more powerful and insistent, ending with the final phrase triumphantly accompanied by melodic percussion (replacing the drums and cymbals of the earlier phrases, as if the band were then on the march). However, this short work ends softly and gently, as if anger has been replaced by quiet resolution and determination, looking to the future with confidence.For more information on Edward Gregson's music please visit the composer's website: www.edwardgregson.com
Estimated dispatch 7-14 working days
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£40.00Legends of Cyfarthfa - Matthew Hall
Legends of CyfarthfaCombining the music of Joseph Parry and the legendary Cyfarthfa Band, Legends of Cyfarthfa is a technically challenging but musically rewarding concert work. Robert Crawshay owned the Cyfarthfa Ironworks in South Wales creating a business empire second to none.Cyfarthfa Castle was built by Crawshay as the family home from the income made via the ironworks. He wanted his own private band to play under the name of the ironworks with the best players in the world, playing on the highest quality instruments at the time. Employing the band members under the guise of iron workers, the Cyfarthfa Band was made up of virtuoso players, performing for the pleasure of the Crawshay dynasty.This virtuosity can be heard in some of the more technically challenging sections of Legends of Cyfarthfa. Joseph Parry was born in Cyfarthfa.He composed the first piece of music specifically written for brass band called Tydfil Overture for the Cyfarthfa Band, alongside many other memorable works for other instrumentation.Legends of Cyfarthfa incorporates many of Parry's works including his opera Blodwen, hymn tune Aberystwyth, folk melody Myfanwy and the Tydfil Overture, alongside many other melodies from Wales. Sospanfach, Men of Harlech, Lisa Lan and Calon Lan are just a number of the melodies that are used in this composition.The premiere performance was given by Tredegar Town Band under the direction of Ian Porthouse at the 2010 Brass in Concert Championships where it was awarded the Cyril Beere Memorial Trophy for Best New Composition or Arrangement.https://matthew-hall.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/05-Legends-Of-Cyfarthfa.mp3Legends of Cyfarthfa
Estimated dispatch 5-7 working days
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£29.95
The Land of the Long White Cloud (Score Only)
Dating from 1979, The Land of the Long White Cloud (Aotearoa) was Philip Sparke's first test-piece. It was commissioned by the New Zealand Brass Band Association for their 1980 National Championships (their centenary year) and set for the European Brass Band Championships, the same year, at the Royal Albert Hall in London. Aotearoa was the name given to New Zealand by its Polynesian settlers whose first sight of the islands was a long, flat cloud lying low over the land. The work has no specific programme although many have seen pictures of the surging ocean in the opening bars. A faster dance-like section leads to a slow, haunting solo for soprano cornet; this is taken up by the whole band before earlier material returns. The dance-like tune is, this time, given a fugal treatment and the opening bars return to close the work.Philip Sparke was born in London and studied composition, trumpet and piano at the Royal College of Music, where he gained an ARCM. It was at the College that his interest in bands arose. He played in the College wind orchestra and also formed a brass band among the students, writing several works for both ensembles.At that time, his first published works appeared - Concert Prelude (brass band) and Gaudium (wind band). A growing interest in his music led to several commissions, his first major one being this featured piece for the Centennial Brass Band Championships in New Zealand - The Land of the Long White Cloud. He has written for brass band championships in New Zealand, Switzerland, Holland, Australia and the UK, including three times for the National Finals at the Royal Albert Hall.In September 2000, he was awarded the Iles Medal of the Worshipful Company of Musicians for his services to brass bands and in 2005 Music of the Spheres won the National Band Association/William D. Revelli Memorial Band Composition Contest. In 2011, he received the BUMA International Brass Award for his contribution to brass music.His conducting and adjudicating activities have taken him to most European countries, Scandinavia, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, Taiwan, South Korea, Canada and the USA. In May 2000, he took the major step of becoming a full-time composer by founding his own publishing company, Anglo Music Press. The company is devoted to publishing his brass band, concert band, fanfare band and instrumental publications as well as recordings dedicated to his latest works.
Estimated dispatch 7-14 working days
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£42.95Little Suite (Brass Band - Score and Parts)
Trevor Duncan (1924 - 2005) was an English composer, particularly noted for his light music compositions. Born in London, and largely self-taught, he originally composed as a side line while working for the BBC. In the UK, he is well known for pieces such as High Heels and the March from A Little Suite, all of which gained fame as television and radio themes.Composed in 1959, and remembered by most for TV's Dr Finlay's Casebook fame, 'A Little Suite', was not necessarily inspired by Scotland, in fact it was more English in inspiration according to the composer. The piece was described by the composer as 'absolute music', and taking the three movements into account, this is not far from the mark.
Estimated dispatch 7-14 working days
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£44.95Powerhouse (Brass Band - Score and Parts)
Spirit divine, come as of old. So begins the song by Brindley Boon (S.A.S.B. 311), and that phrase becomes the message of this piece, and an important motif in the music. It appears at the very beginning of the work and recurs at important points during the piece. The theme of the need for spiritual power is further underlined by the use of the hymns Show your power (S.A.S.B. 365), Wonder-working power (S.A.S.B. 451) and the very old chorus Send a new touch of power on my soul, Lord (S.A.S.B. 785).The composer first heard Boon's song Spirit Divine when it was sung by Parkhead Songsters in the Sunday morning meeting at his home Corps of Greenock Citadel. They were visiting for the weekend from Glasgow, and were conducted by Songster Leader Walter Chalmers, himself a beautiful lyric tenor soloist. They sang it in a moving fashion, unaccompanied, and such was the impact that, at the conclusion, many people went to the mercy seat. It made a huge impression on the young composer. It was the first time that Downie discovered the enormous power of music in worship. It also serves as a reminder to us all that young people of a tender age are very capable of grasping deeply significant events happening around them. This music was written for the 2020 UK Territorial Youth Band course.
Estimated dispatch 7-14 working days