Results
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£14.95Funk Engine (Score Only)
'Funk Engine' was commissioned by Brass Bands England for the 2016 National Youth Brass Band Championships of Great Britain. What Ryan says about the piece:"When I was commissioned to write a piece for the Championships I decided that I wanted to create something a bit different to standard brass band repertoire. I decided that the best way to do this was to go a bit out of my comfort zone and explore some styles of music that I have yet to experiment with. I have always been a great lover of jazz, funk and big band music and the sounds associated with them. In 'Funk Engine' I have tried to capture some of these sounds, however I am a brass-bander at heart and as such I've tried to create a fusion of styles that hopefully combines the best of brass band and jazz into one piece.'Funk Engine' runs continuously, but is divided into three broad sections - fast, slow, fast. The opening is in driving big band style, which segues into a smoother lyrical section; the pace then picks up into a jazz inspired scherzo. After a delicate transition from the basses and trombones the euphonium plays a soaring scale - bringing us into the central movement - which begins with a series of languid solos before descending into a darker interlude. A flugel solo lightens the mood and the music gains momentum leading into a brief cornet chorale before a euphonium solo leads into a percussive climactic passage for full band. As this section winds down to settle on an open fifth, the Hi-hat and Bass section punctuate the texture with the first notes of the final section."The final section of the piece is in similar big band style to the opening and develops material from the first two movements. The percussion feature heavily at this stage and the tension builds towards a final statement, with the piece concluding with a bang!"
Estimated dispatch 7-14 working days
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£76.99On the Movieset - John Emerson Blackstone
Glitter and glamour, good-looking people, a lot of Bling Bling and fast cars images like these will cross our minds when we think of the movie world. However, reality proves to be different : as a rule, a tremendous amount of work will have been done on the set before a film is ready to be shown on the big screen. A visit to an actual movie set inspired John Emerson Blackstone to write a composition bearing the same name. He had both seen a number of characteristic attributes and heard the typical phrases used in film making, and he incorporated them into 'On the Movie Set' . In the first part, 'The Clapboard', a 'director's assistant' is supposed to shout "Quieton the set'" and "Action!", as is done before a real scene is shot. Subsequently, in order to create the right atmosphere, the clacking of a 'Clapboard' should be heard. During a romantic scene we should be transported to another world by means of sweet sounds in the background, so romantic music is of course heard in the next part, 'Love Scene'. At the end of a long working day 'It's a wrap' is called on the set to inform everyone that the filming on that day is completed. Now there is only one more thing left to dream of : an Oscar..... Perf. Note: The use of the right props will add to the performance and appreciation of 'On the Movie Set'. A red carpet and a glamorous reception should give your audience the feeling they are attending a real 'opening night'!
Estimated dispatch 5-14 working days
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£102.60Cherubic Hymn of Ukraine - Yakiv Yatsynevych - John Philip Hannevik
Ukraine was invaded on February 24, 2022, and the world again became spectators to a conflict between unequal opponents. Once again we saw lies, injustice and brutality up close.I must admit that a feeling of powerlessness arose when experiencing this, an empty feeling of not being able to do anything useful.One early Monday morning, a few weeks into the conflict, I sat down to listen to Ukrainian music.I hardly knew any Ukrainian music, but I was familiar with the composer Mykola Leontovych, the man who composed "Carol of the Bells". He was a member of the Ukrainian liberation movement, and he was assassinated by a Soviet agent in 1921.One of his contemporary colleagues was the composer, teacher and conductor Yakiv Yatsynevych (1869-1945). He wrote church music and choral music, and I became very taken by his Hymn to the Cherubim, a part of the Orthodox Mass.I could not find any sheet music for this. But I have listened to numerous choral recordings, and I have tried to notate the music as I believe the composer himself has done originally.I chose to do the arrangement for a solo group of 4 players. These players can be placed at a distance from the ensemble, maybe on a gallery or at the back of your concert hall.The arrangement was made for Brottum Brass for their participation in the Oslo Brass Festival in April 2022.The performance in the church this particular night was met with a long-lasting silence after the last note. The warm respect, the moving response and love we felt from the audience is a memory I will carry with me for a long time.In the lyrics to this psalm, one finds the phrase:Let us now lay aside all earthly cares- John Philip Hannevik -
Estimated dispatch 5-14 working days
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£69.99South Down Pictures - Philip Sparke
South Down Pictures was commissioned by Millenium Brass 2000, an organisation comprising three brass bands from the county of Sussex, England.The bands (Patcham Silver, Hangleton and Brighton Silver) had got together to organise many events to mark the new millennium and these culminated in a concert in Hove Town Hall on July 9th 2000 when all three bands combined to give the first performance of South Down Pictures. The composer spent much of his childhood amongst the South Downs, a range of hills in Sussex which runs parallel to the sea.Opening with a strong unison passage, interrupted briefly by faster figures based on the interval of a fifth, South Down Picturesdevelops with an often-passionate legato melody. Reaching a climax, this is then followed by the main vivo section of the work, whose main theme is based on the earlier 'fifth' figures. A bridge passage leads to a short chorale figure and a rhythmic climax which dissolves into a plaintive cornet solo over staccato chords. This theme is taken up by the whole band and leads back to a recapitulation of the main theme and earlier material. The cornet tune returns triumphantly in the major key before the opening unison passage reappears to provide a stirring coda.
Estimated dispatch 5-14 working days
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£76.99Animal Kingdom - William Vean
In this composition William Vean takes you on a journey through the fascinating and exciting world of animals. Apart from it being a composition filled with "special effects", Animal Kingdom contains many educational elements, such as playing inswing (triplets feeling), chromatics, flutter tonguing, gypsy tuning, varying keys, and, of course, dynamics and articulation. The melodic lines occur in all four voices, as well as in all percussion parts, providing each musician with theopportunity to play a solo or to accompany. Highly recommended for your youth band! William Vean is an educational composer. He knows how to musically shape the special elements from our daily lives. His music is therefore veryexpressive, containing creative solutions to possible problems. Special ways of playing make his music particularly interesting for the winds, but the percussion section is also featured in his special effects. The world of the animalsalways plays on ones imagination. In Animal Kingdom, William Vean has portrayed a number of animals in a special manner: Kevin Kangaroo - The jumping character of this animal can be heard in different voices. The swing style alsoemphasizes the characteristic movements of the kangaroo. Playing in swing style can be practised by using scales. Eddy Elephant - For some of his smaller fellow fauna friends this can be quite an ordeal, but for Eduard (Eddy for friendsand intimates) it is his daily walk. Baldrick Bat - Baldrick the Bat is a mysterious character. This can be heard in the fast moving valves and keys, accompanied by special effects in the percussion section. Curtis Camel - Curtisthe Camel trudges across the desert, feeling bored. The idea that the horizon will never change does not affect him anymore. He has accepted his fate. The distinctive tones from the gypsy scale provide the suitable oriental sounds. BettyButterfly - Butterfly Betty elegantly, and without worries, flutters from flower to flower in the garden. Her motto: Carpe Diem (Seize the Day). Betty is a one-day butterfly. Marvin Monkey - A "swing" monkey stirs up the feelings. Evenmembers of the orchestra will look like real monkeys. How about your audience? Each part has its own difficulties and challenges. Important in the first part is playing "in swing" (triplets feeling). This can be practised usingscales. In the second part ensemble playing and balance are important. In Baldrick additional information on the effects that have to be played might be useful. "New" sounds are, of course, welcome. Curtis the Camel introduces thegypsy scale. Additional explanation of the use of the scale might be useful. Key changes are interesting in this part. A slight accent on the first beat of the bar will add to the charm of this part. Marvin the Monkey brings back the swingrhythm that was introduced in the first part, alternated by a "straight" part with attention to chromatics and articulation. A story teller will definitely be an asset when performing this composition.
Estimated dispatch 5-14 working days
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£33.23Polka from 'The Bartered Bride' (Brass Band) Smetana arr. Rob Bushnell
Considered a major contribution to the develop of Czech music, The Bartered Bride by Bedrich Smetana is a comic opera in three acts that premiered, in its final version, in 1870; having not been a great success when the original two-act version premiered at the Provisional Theatre, Prague on 30 May 1866. The opera was part of Smetana's aim to create a native Czech music after the conductor Johann von Herbeck commented that Czechs were incapable of making music of their own. Whilst he avoided the direct use of folksongs, Smetana did use numerous traditional Bohemian dance forms, such as the furiant and the polka, leading to music that was Czech in spirit. 'Sold Bride', a more accurate translation of the original Czech title (Prodana nevesta), tells the story of two lovers (Marenka and Jenik) who want to marry despite Marenka's father's obligations for his daughter to marry the son of a wealthy landowner, Micha. Scheming, condition proposals and secret identities leads to a happy ending. The polka was not in the original 1866 version. A revision in October 1866 saw the addition of a gypsy dance near the start of act 2. But by the next performance in January 1869, this had been replaced by a polka. In June 1869, a new polka replaced the January version's (as well as being moved to the end of act 1) and this is the one that we know and love today. This arrangement is for British-style brass band, with *alternative parts for horns in F and bass-clef lower brass. 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* Timpani Percussion (Triangle, Cymbal(s) & Bass Drum)
In Stock: Estimated dispatch 1-3 working days
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£29.95Adam Zero, Suite from (Brass Band - Score only) - Bliss, Arthur - Childs, Robert
Selected as the Section 2 test piece for the National Brass Band Championships of Great Britain 2025Following his ballet Checkmate, Bliss composed another score for the, by then, Sadler's Wells Ballet, Miracle in the Gorbals, which was choreographed by Robert Helpmann, to a scenario by Michael Benthall. Premired in 1944, the ballet made a considerable impact and was a box-office success. It was followed in turn by a further collaboration with Helpmann and Benthall, Adam Zero. This would serve Helpmann, in the eponymous role, as a vehicle in two respects: demonstrating his gifts as a dancer-actor and as a choreographer. First performed at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, on 8 April 1946, Adam Zero was conducted by Constant Lambert, the work's dedicatee. Bliss considered it 'his most varied and exciting ballet score'. Benthall provided a synopsis for the programme:There is a philosophy that life moves in an endless series of timeless cycles. As Nature passes through Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter, so man is born, makes a success in his own particular sphere, loses his position to a younger generation, sees his world crumble before his eyes and only finds peace in death. This age-old story is told in terms of a Company creating a ballet and calling on the resources of the theatre to do so. Lighting, stage mechanism, dance conventions, musical forms and costumes and scenery of all periods are used to symbolize the world of 'Adam Zero'.Apart from Adam, as the Principal Dancer, other main roles included the Stage Director (representing Omnipotence), and Adam's Fates (Designer, Wardrobe Mistress, and Dresser). 'The Woman in this allegory', wrote Bliss, 'under the symbol of the Choreographer, was both the creator and destroyer of Adam: his first love, his wife, his mistress, and finally the figure of beneficent Death.' When the curtain rose, the 'audience saw the Covent Garden stage right back to the wall, completely empty except for the protagonists, 'the Company poised, still and expectant, as they await the birth of... Adam Zero.'Unfortunately, soon after the premire, Helpmann injured himself and had to withdraw from the remaining performances. Despite generally positive reviews, the ballet did not capture the imagination of audiences and, to Bliss's considerable disappointment, was not revived. Seventy years would elapse before its first major return to the stage, in 2016, performed by the ballet company of Stadttheater Bremerhaven with choreography by Sergei Vanaev.Bliss extracted a concert suite from the ballet, conducting its first performance with the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra on 28 October 1948. For his own suite, arranged for brass band in 2023, Dr Robert Childs chose three dances linked to the seasons, book-ending them with the ebullient 'Fanfare Overture' and 'Fanfare Coda'. After Adam has grown to manhood, his Fates clothe him in a costume synonymous with confident youth, appropriate for the virile, ardent 'Dance of Spring'. In the 'Approach of Autumn', Adam, now wearing a sombre costume, has grown older: his Fates have streaked grey in his hair and put lines on his face. But they had earlier raised Adam to the zenith of his power, and the 'Dance of Summer' depicts him in the prime of life, in music of sweeping grandeur. The 'Fanfare Coda' signals that the next cycle of life is about to begin.Duration: 10.30
Estimated dispatch 7-14 working days
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£19.65
Adam Zero, Suite from (Brass Band - Study Score) - Bliss, Arthur - Childs, Robert
Selected as the Section 2 test piece for the National Brass Band Championships of Great Britain 2025Following his ballet Checkmate, Bliss composed another score for the, by then, Sadler's Wells Ballet, Miracle in the Gorbals, which was choreographed by Robert Helpmann, to a scenario by Michael Benthall. Premired in 1944, the ballet made a considerable impact and was a box-office success. It was followed in turn by a further collaboration with Helpmann and Benthall, Adam Zero. This would serve Helpmann, in the eponymous role, as a vehicle in two respects: demonstrating his gifts as a dancer-actor and as a choreographer. First performed at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, on 8 April 1946, Adam Zero was conducted by Constant Lambert, the work's dedicatee. Bliss considered it 'his most varied and exciting ballet score'. Benthall provided a synopsis for the programme:There is a philosophy that life moves in an endless series of timeless cycles. As Nature passes through Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter, so man is born, makes a success in his own particular sphere, loses his position to a younger generation, sees his world crumble before his eyes and only finds peace in death. This age-old story is told in terms of a Company creating a ballet and calling on the resources of the theatre to do so. Lighting, stage mechanism, dance conventions, musical forms and costumes and scenery of all periods are used to symbolize the world of 'Adam Zero'.Apart from Adam, as the Principal Dancer, other main roles included the Stage Director (representing Omnipotence), and Adam's Fates (Designer, Wardrobe Mistress, and Dresser). 'The Woman in this allegory', wrote Bliss, 'under the symbol of the Choreographer, was both the creator and destroyer of Adam: his first love, his wife, his mistress, and finally the figure of beneficent Death.' When the curtain rose, the 'audience saw the Covent Garden stage right back to the wall, completely empty except for the protagonists, 'the Company poised, still and expectant, as they await the birth of... Adam Zero.'Unfortunately, soon after the premire, Helpmann injured himself and had to withdraw from the remaining performances. Despite generally positive reviews, the ballet did not capture the imagination of audiences and, to Bliss's considerable disappointment, was not revived. Seventy years would elapse before its first major return to the stage, in 2016, performed by the ballet company of Stadttheater Bremerhaven with choreography by Sergei Vanaev.Bliss extracted a concert suite from the ballet, conducting its first performance with the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra on 28 October 1948. For his own suite, arranged for brass band in 2023, Dr Robert Childs chose three dances linked to the seasons, book-ending them with the ebullient 'Fanfare Overture' and 'Fanfare Coda'. After Adam has grown to manhood, his Fates clothe him in a costume synonymous with confident youth, appropriate for the virile, ardent 'Dance of Spring'. In the 'Approach of Autumn', Adam, now wearing a sombre costume, has grown older: his Fates have streaked grey in his hair and put lines on his face. But they had earlier raised Adam to the zenith of his power, and the 'Dance of Summer' depicts him in the prime of life, in music of sweeping grandeur. The 'Fanfare Coda' signals that the next cycle of life is about to begin.Duration: 10.30
Estimated dispatch 7-14 working days
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£64.95
Adam Zero, Suite from (Brass Band - Score and Parts) - Bliss, Arthur - Childs, Robert
Selected as the Section 2 test piece for the National Brass Band Championships of Great Britain 2025Following his ballet Checkmate, Bliss composed another score for the, by then, Sadler's Wells Ballet, Miracle in the Gorbals, which was choreographed by Robert Helpmann, to a scenario by Michael Benthall. Premired in 1944, the ballet made a considerable impact and was a box-office success. It was followed in turn by a further collaboration with Helpmann and Benthall, Adam Zero. This would serve Helpmann, in the eponymous role, as a vehicle in two respects: demonstrating his gifts as a dancer-actor and as a choreographer. First performed at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, on 8 April 1946, Adam Zero was conducted by Constant Lambert, the work's dedicatee. Bliss considered it 'his most varied and exciting ballet score'. Benthall provided a synopsis for the programme:There is a philosophy that life moves in an endless series of timeless cycles. As Nature passes through Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter, so man is born, makes a success in his own particular sphere, loses his position to a younger generation, sees his world crumble before his eyes and only finds peace in death. This age-old story is told in terms of a Company creating a ballet and calling on the resources of the theatre to do so. Lighting, stage mechanism, dance conventions, musical forms and costumes and scenery of all periods are used to symbolize the world of 'Adam Zero'.Apart from Adam, as the Principal Dancer, other main roles included the Stage Director (representing Omnipotence), and Adam's Fates (Designer, Wardrobe Mistress, and Dresser). 'The Woman in this allegory', wrote Bliss, 'under the symbol of the Choreographer, was both the creator and destroyer of Adam: his first love, his wife, his mistress, and finally the figure of beneficent Death.' When the curtain rose, the 'audience saw the Covent Garden stage right back to the wall, completely empty except for the protagonists, 'the Company poised, still and expectant, as they await the birth of... Adam Zero.'Unfortunately, soon after the premire, Helpmann injured himself and had to withdraw from the remaining performances. Despite generally positive reviews, the ballet did not capture the imagination of audiences and, to Bliss's considerable disappointment, was not revived. Seventy years would elapse before its first major return to the stage, in 2016, performed by the ballet company of Stadttheater Bremerhaven with choreography by Sergei Vanaev.Bliss extracted a concert suite from the ballet, conducting its first performance with the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra on 28 October 1948. For his own suite, arranged for brass band in 2023, Dr Robert Childs chose three dances linked to the seasons, book-ending them with the ebullient 'Fanfare Overture' and 'Fanfare Coda'. After Adam has grown to manhood, his Fates clothe him in a costume synonymous with confident youth, appropriate for the virile, ardent 'Dance of Spring'. In the 'Approach of Autumn', Adam, now wearing a sombre costume, has grown older: his Fates have streaked grey in his hair and put lines on his face. But they had earlier raised Adam to the zenith of his power, and the 'Dance of Summer' depicts him in the prime of life, in music of sweeping grandeur. The 'Fanfare Coda' signals that the next cycle of life is about to begin.Duration: 10.30
Estimated dispatch 7-14 working days
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£34.95Tribute Music (Brass Band - Score and Parts) - Downie, Kenneth
The composer writes: Having received delightful reports about Neil Ferguson from his colleagues in Granite City Brass, I thought it might be a good idea to incorporate the musical initials from his name, EFEG, in the opening idea of the music. I used this short idea as a motif during the piece. A recurring comment in the tributes referred to his dry sense of humour, and particularly his ability to deliver a one-liner when least expected. The music does therefore contain a few surprises and sudden changes of direction. I also thought that it might be in character for me to include a little "joke" of my own, which is there to be heard by the very careful listener! Such listeners would do well to remember that the Granite City Brass, the commissioning band, is based in Aberdeen. The idea of commemorating such a faithful member of the band with a piece of music led me to try and write a noble, upright theme, which might be remembered as a melody in the future. I hope that it is a fitting tribute.
Estimated dispatch 7-14 working days