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£30.00Edward Gregson: Music of the Angels, for Symphonic Brass and Percussion
DescriptionProgramme NoteMusic of the Angels is a dramatic work of some 16 minute's duration, scored for a large symphonic brass ensemble, including seven trumpets, and percussion. The percussion section deploys 'dark' instruments such as three tam-tams, a bass drum and two sets of timpani.The title of the work is based on a quotation from the Book of Revelations:And I saw the seven angels which stood before God; and to them were given seven trumpetsThus, the idea behind the work is a dramatic one and the composer has emphasised this by the partial spatial arrangement of the ensemble, with six solo trumpets standing centre stage, but behind the main ensemble, and the seventh trumpet off-stage throughout.The work opens with a four-note motif, dominant throughout the work, announced initially by four off-stage horns and answered by fanfare figures on four solo trumpets. Then in turn each of the first four solo trumpets announce their own cadenzas before joining together, independently playing their own music. This reaches an intense climax before subsiding into slow music which might be described as a Kyrie eleison - a lament for humanity - a cantilena for flugel horn and euphonium, accompanied by trombones. The drama soon returns with the entry of trumpets 5 and 6, playing music that is fast, more urgent and foreboding, and describing in musical terms the horsemen of the Apocalypse.At the climax of this section trumpet 7 enters dramatically, representing the words of the seventh angel ... and time shall be no more. The opening four-note motif is here transformed into a cadenza of epic proportions, to the partial accompaniment of three tam-tams (representing the Holy Trinity). The ensuing scherzo, scored for the ensemble, is fast and furious, but despite the somewhat desolate mood of this music (briefly interrupted by the re-appearance of trumpet 7), it slowly moves towards a more optimistic conclusion, transforming the 'lament for humanity' music into an affirmative and triumphant climax.This work has been commercially recorded on a critically acclaimed CD from London Brass on the Chandos label, available HERE.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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£59.95
MY STRENGTH, MY TOWER Rhapsodic Variations (Brass Band Set) - Dean Goffin
This music consists of a theme followed by five extensive variations. The theme is the composer's own tune set to the words, 'Thee will I love, my strength, my tower', a hymn by Johann Scheffler translated by John Wesley. A strong modal flavour is characteristic of the theme. Variation 1: This is a light and graceful variation with a good deal of imitative writing. It leads, without a break, into the next variation. Variation 2: Fire and ferocity are asked for in the course of this variation. Variation 3: This variation demonstrates the original approach of the composer. Solo lines for cornet and euphonium are included with their arabesques and arpeggii. Variation 4: Taking the form of a passacaglia, the 'ground' is given out at once by the basses. Fragments of the 'ground', plain or decorated, are combined and used in a number of ways, revealing the composer's mastery of counterpoint. Variation 5: The briskly moving and scintillating final variation abounds in sudden variations of dynamic. The tempo remains constant until an increase is called for in the coda. This 'contest' version has been prepared by Brian Bowen who was asked to re-work the percussion part and introduce a repiano cornet part (Salvation Army band publications do not, in general, have a part for repiano cornet).
Estimated dispatch 7-14 working days
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£49.99Chorale for Peace (Brass Band - Score and Parts) - Deleruyelle, Thierry
Chorale for Peace is a song of hope and peace for humanity. In commissioning this work, the wind band of Le Portel (France) wanted to pay tribute to the victims of 8 September 1943, when around 100 Allied planes dropped more than 5,000 bombs on the town of Boulogne and the surrounding area. In fact, this operation was nothing more than a diversion to make the enemy believe that a landing was imminent in the north of France. This music is slow, an adagio commemorating the human sacrifice of this operation. But more broadly, the composer also wanted to express his support for the peoples who, even today, suffer oppression.This set includes an optional choir part that offers the possibility of making an even deeper impression on the listener.Duration: 6.00
Estimated dispatch 7-14 working days
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£133.70Spirit of Time (Brass Band - Score and Parts) - Schwarz, Otto M.
Zeitgeist; transformations; a departure for new shores... these are buzzwords we often encounter nowadays. Above all in this digital age, it is essential that we face changes positively and that we make the very best of them. Music is emotion! Otto M. Schwarz begins many of his lectures with this phrase, and this is exactly what we feel in this new concert work. Rapid, and full of energy, is the leap into a new chapter, wonderful opportunities are waiting to be discovered in uncharted lands. But change is not only loud and momentous. The creative power of the future lies dormant in the inventive spirit of the individual, quietly, thoughtfully, silently and alone! The final sequence of this work is all about good vibes: it lights the way to a positive future and stands for the dawn of a new era!Duration: 10.00
Estimated dispatch 7-14 working days
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£66.00S.O.S. (Brass Band - Score and Parts) - Kjaernes, Bjorn Morten
When the publisher asked me to make an arrangement of an ABBA tune, S.O.S. was the first song I thought of. Its introduction and melody are well suited to play for band. Admittedly, the key had to be shifted to make it sound good for this instrumentation. To me, this is nostalgia, while for others, the Mamma Mia movie/show will be what they associate with this wonderful song. Apart from a few medleys, few of ABBA's songs are available for band. So, it was very fun to work on this classic.The arrangement is made quite simply to fit many sizes of bands. Technically, it is also relatively simple both in range and rhythm. As you can see, there are many ways to adjust this arrangement to your own ensemble. Bring out melody lines and the bassline, and a lot is done. If needed, simplify to make it sound nice.Get creative and have fun!- Bjorn Morten KjaernesDuration: 3.30
Estimated dispatch 7-14 working days
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£79.95The Lost Village of Imber (Brass Band - Score and Parts) - Bond, Christopher
The Lost Village of Imber was commissioned by Bratton Silver Band in 2019 in celebration of 160 years of the band; 1859-2019. Structured in three movements, the complete work was premiered by Cory Band at Wiltshire Music Centre in February 2020.The village of Imber on Salisbury Plain had been inhabited for over one thousand years when it was evacuated in 1943 to make way for military training in the Second World War. At the time, with preparations for the Allied invasion of Europe underway, most villagers put up no resistance, despite being upset, with the belief that they'd return once the war had concluded. To this day, Imber and its surrounding land remain a military training ground. The villagers never returned, and just the shell of what was once a community remains.Structured in three movements, it is on this very real story that the work is based, setting out the series of events of 1943 in chronological order.The first movement, On Imber Downe, portrays a sense of jollity and cohesiveness, a community of individuals living and working together before news of the evacuation had broken. Sounds of the village are heard throughout, not least in a series of percussive effects, the anvil of the blacksmith; the cowbell of the cattle and the bells of the church.The second movement, The Church of St. Giles, begins mysteriously and this sonorous, atmospheric opening depicts Imber in its desolate state and the apprehension of residents as they learn they have to leave their homes. Amidst this is the Church, a symbol of hope for villagers who one day wish to return, portrayed with a sweeping melodic passage before the music returns to the apprehension of villagers facing eviction around their sadness at losing their rural way of life.In complete contrast, the third movement, Imemerie Aeternum, portrays the arrival of the military, complete with the sounds of the ammunition, firing and tanks, sounds which were all too familiar to those living in the surround areas. To close, the Church of St. Giles theme returns in a triumphant style, representing the idea that the church has always been, even to this day, a beacon of hope for the villagers and local community, both the centrepiece and pinnacle of a very real story.Duration: 13.30
Estimated dispatch 7-14 working days
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£35.00Good King Wenceslas (Brass Band - Score and Parts) - McKenzie, Jock
This popular Christmas carol tells the story of a Bohemian King who braved harsh winter weather to give alms to a poor peasant. This takes place on the Feast of Stephen, the first day of Christmas (December 26th). This legend is based on the life of the historical Saint Wenceslas 1, Duke of Bohemia (907 - 935). In 1853 the English hymn writer John Mason Neale wrote his own version of this tale, setting his words to the melody of a 13th century spring carol "Tempus adest floridum" which had first been published in Piae Cantiones (1582). It is this version that has endured to become the popular carol of today. Duration: 4.30
Estimated dispatch 7-14 working days
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£45.00Lament (Brass Band - Score and Parts) - Bridge, Frank - Hindmarsh, Paul
The English composer Frank Bridge (1879 - 1941) did not take an active part in the First World War. However, he was devastated by the slaughter on the western and the eastern fronts, especially the loss of so many of his musicians friends and colleagues. Writing in 1963, his former pupil Benjamin Britten confessed that 'a lot of my feelings about the First World War which people seemed to see in the War Requiem came from Bridge. He had written a piano sonata in memory of a friend killed in France and though he didn't encourage me to take a stand for the sake of a stand, he did make me argue and argue and argue. His own pacifism was not aggressive, but typically gentle'.Bridge composed this Lament for string orchestra on 14 June 1915, in memory of Catherine Crompton, who drowned when the Cunard liner Lusitania was torpedoed by a German submarine on 7 May, 1915. According to figures researched by Liverpool historian Kevin Roach (www.lusitania.net), 1201 men, women and children lost their lives out of the 1962 people aboard. Ninety-four children died, including Catherine, her twin brother Paul and four other siblings. Paul Crompton, Snr. (44), a British businessman working in Philadelphia, his wife Gladys (40) and the family nanny were also drowned. How Bridge's dedication came about is uncertain. The music critic Edwin Evans, who knew Bridge well, has written that the Catherine was a young friend. It is also possible that he came across the family photograph which was published in many newspapers in the wake of the tragedy. By that time, Bridge was greatly distressed by the war as a whole. It seems perfectly in keeping with his pacifist leanings and the strength of his reaction, that this poignant and deeply touching 'war memorial' should mourn a child who he did not know, rather than one of the thousands of young men who fell in battle.Through the musical tears of this melancholy lullaby, Bridge may have regarded the death of young Catherine Crompton as symbolic of the loss of so many innocent lives in wartime. His response to this personal tragedy was characteristically spontaneous and utterly sincere. It is one of his most effective miniatures, poignant yet restrained in its lyrical beauty, with a compelling directness and simplicity of construction.This brass band transcription is pitched one tone lower than the original for string orchestra.- Paul HindmarshDuration: 5.00
Estimated dispatch 7-14 working days
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£137.99Metamorphosis (Brass Band - Score and Parts) - De Haan, Jan
The opening of this three-movement work features an initial appearance of the thematic material that returns in various guises later on in the work. The leitmotiv centres on a minor second.A range of thematic variations is heard in the lively and energetic Metamorphosis One. This movement is interrupted by an atmospheric meno mosso, containing melodic passages that return to the opening theme.Metamorhosis Two is characterised by various changes in tempo and musical character. Seven different soloists transform the thematic material - each in their own way. This eventually culminates in a passionate tutti passage.The source of inspiration for Metamorphosis Three is the so-called BACH-motif, a musical autograph consisting of the notes B flat, A, C and B. This distinctive motif arises from the leitmotiv (here a descending minor second), which continues to evolve through various transpositions and transformations. For the composer, this spectacular last movement is an homage to one of the greatest and most influential composers in the history of music: Johann Sebastian Bach.Duration: 17:00
Estimated dispatch 7-14 working days
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£95.00A Wartime Sketchbook (Brass Band - Score and Parts) - Walton, William - Hindmarsh, Paul
Early in 1941 William Walton, 39, received his call-up papers. He was by then one of the most eminent of British composers and was exempted from military service on condition that he provided music for films deemed to be of 'national importance'. Scoring Lawrence Olivier's Shakespeare epic Henry V in 1943 was the most substantial of these wartime projects. His role in patriotic films from 1941 and 42 like The Foreman went to France, Next of Kin, Went the day Well and The First of the Few was to provide appropriate title music and some underscoring at key moments. Walton extracted the most substantial portions of the latter as the popular Spitfire Prelude and Fugue for orchestra. The remaining music remained unpublished until 1990, when Christopher Palmer assembled the highlights into A Wartime Sketchbook. I was intrigued to hear these examples of Walton's wartime music and having discovered that they would fit naturally and idiomatically onto the brass band, I arranged six of the numbers into a suite for Besses o' th' Barn Band, which I was conducting at the time.In 1995 the brass band suite was recorded by the famous Black Dyke Mills Band as part of an all Walton album which I produced for the ASV label (ASV CD WHL 2093). This award- winning CD also included Walton's First Shoot, in the edition by Elgar Howarth, my transcription of movements from Music for Children and two substantial brass versions by Edward Watson of the suite from Henry V (with narrator) and the March and Siegfried Music from The Battle of Britain music.Prologue: This is the stirring title music from Went the day Well, a screen play by Graham Greene about a German airborne invasion of an English village. The main theme leads toBicycle Chase: Characteristic musical high-jinks for J.B.Priestley's The Foreman went to France.Refugees: From the same film, this is a poignant accompaniment to the long march of refugees. As Ernest Irving, the film's musical director, put it, "this really makes your feet sore and your knees sag."Young Siegfrieds: This lively movement comes from the music that Walton composed for The Battle of Britain in 1968, with the assistance of Malcolm Arnold, but which the film's producer rejected. It portrays first the Berliners, cheerfully ignoring the black-out and then, in the trio, the Young Siegfrieds of the Luftwaffe, courtesy of a parody of Siegfried's horn call from Wagner's opera.Romance: A soldier and a Dutch refugee snatch a few tender moments together in Next of Kin.Epilogue: At the end of The Foreman went to France, the French look forward with hope and optimism to eventual liberation.- Paul HindmarshDuration: 14.00
Estimated dispatch 7-14 working days
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