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£49.95Malcolm Arnold Variations (Score Only)
MALCOLM ARNOLD VARIATIONS was commissioned by Philip Biggs and Richard Franklin for the 20th All England Masters International Brass Band Championship held in the Corn Exchange, Cambridge on 25 May 2008. The work is dedicated to Anthony Day, long time carer of Sir Malcolm Arnold in his final years. I first met Malcolm and Anthony in 1990 and remained in constant touch until Malcolm's passing in 2006. Anthony, of course, remains a friend and plays his own role subliminally in this piece. The work is not based on any of Malcolm Arnold's own themes, rather it is a portrait of him (and by association Anthony Day) through my eyes and as a result of my friendship with both parties over some 18 years. If there is any theme as such it is the personalities of the players, the protagonist and his carer placed together by my own efforts coloured and influenced by aspects of Arnold's style and technique without recourse to direct quotation but through allusion and parody. It is of course designed as a brass band test piece but in my eyes is first and foremost a musical challenge. The pyrotechnical elements are there but always secondary to the musical thrust of the work's structure. I have long beforehand submerged myself in Malcolm Arnold's music and ultimately delivered this tribute. Music Directors will be advised to acquaint themselves with the composer's personal music, particularly the film scores, symphonies, concertos and ballets: the solutions towards a successful interpretation of my piece are all in there - and YES, I want, and sanction, this piece to be interpreted, and therein lies the challenge for those of you 'up front'! The challenge for players is that of virtuosity, ensemble and careful attention to where they are individually in relation to their colleagues - a question of balance, taste and insight. With regard to tempi, as is my usual custom, I have indicated all metronome marks with the prefix circa. I would suggest that the fast music is played at these tempos but that the more rubato moments can be allowed some freedom in expression and fluidity of line. With regard to the type of mutes to be employed - this decision I leave to the discretion of players and conductors. Structurally the work is cast as an Introduction, 20 Variations and a Finale. Some variations are self contained, others run into each other as sequences in the same tempo. In other variations, segments are repeated and developed. I could describe the overall concept as a miniature ballet or a condensed film score - there is much drama and character and the repeated elements assist this in driving the action forward. I have deliberately avoided the more extremely dark qualities of Malcolm's own music in this, my celebration of this master-composer, as I have always viewed (and evidenced by my previous Masters scores Tristan Encounters and Chivalry) that the Cambridge contest is a 'sunshine- affair' and firmly believe that Malcolm Arnold would have had it no other way too!
Estimated dispatch 7-14 working days
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£36.77A Fugal Overture (Brass Band) Gustav Holst arr. Rob Bushnell
A Fugal Overture was written in 1922 by Gustav Holst. It was first performed at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden on 14 May 1923 and was used as an opening work to Holst's one-act opera The Perfect Fool. It received its concert premiere on 11 October 1923 at one of Henry Wood's Queen's Hall Promenade Concerts. It is an early example of neoclassicism and was influenced by the counterpoint of J. S. Bach, despite its unconventional use of the fugal process. Holst began writing the piece in the summer of 1922, having hoped to develop it into a ballet. It is divided into three sections, the fugal subject with its distinct 3+3+2 pattern, a slower section with solos at the end, and a third section where the subject returns. Although reviews of the piece were mixed at the time of its premiere, the likes of Adrian Boult have said it was "an invigorating work that could effectively start any [...] concert". In more recent years, it has been compared to John Adam's A Short Ride in a Fast Machine. This arrangement is for the British-style brass band, with alternative parts for horns in F and bass-clef lower brass. A recording of the original composition can be found here: www.youtube.com/watch?v=a8xfwJyFq2E. Duration: Approx. 5.40 minutes Difficulty Level: 1st Section + PDF download includes parts and score. Sheet music available from www.brassband.co.uk 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 BbTimpani Percussion 1-2
In Stock: Estimated dispatch 1-3 working days
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£33.09Bagatelle No.25 in A Minor - Fur Elise (Brass Band) Beethoven arr. Olaf Ritman
Perhaps the most well-known piano piece by Ludwig van Beethoven, Bagatelle No. 25 in A Minor (written around 1810) is better known under its subtitle 'Fur Elise'. Even to this day it is still unknown who Elise was, with at least four theories claiming to tell the story. It might have been one of Beethoven's students or Therese Malfatti, a young lady who got much attention from him. The theory is that Beethoven's autograph Ludwig Nohl could not decipher his handwriting and might have read Elise instead of Therese. Nevertheless the piece has become extremely popular over the last two centuries and is often the very first real classical piece a beginner pianist goes to. Many classical pieces have been transcribed in contemporary fashion for brass bands in recent times, with Toccata in D Minor by J.S. Bach arranged by Ray Farr being the most popular and more recently Vivaldi's first part of Winter from The Four Seasons arranged by Philip Harper. This arrangement of Fur Elise fits in this series perfectly and seeks to bring a smile to its listeners. The last two bars are a direct tribute to Ray Farr's aforementioned arrangement of Toccata. To view a video of the Amsterdam Staff Band performing the work please visit https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sdLI7U-aplw Duration: 3.15 minutes approx. Difficulty Level: 2nd Section + PDF download includes parts and score. Sheet music available from www.brassband.co.uk 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 BbTimpani Percussion 1-3
In Stock: Estimated dispatch 1-3 working days
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£79.95Amundsen - Jonathan Bates
DURATION: 14'00". DIFFICULTY: 1st+. 'Amundsen' was commissioned by rskog Brass, Norway for their winning performance at the 2020 Norwegian National Championships held at the Grieghallen in Bergen. In December 1911, Norwegian Roald Amundsen gained global fame by becoming the first explorer to lead a team to the geographic South Pole. Amundsen and 4 other members of his team arrived 5 weeks ahead of a rival team from the UK led by Robert Falcon Scott, all of which perished on their attempted return from the pole. Initially when Amundsen's team set out in 1910, they were under the impression that they would be making the far shorter journey to the arctic drift to attempt to reach the North Pole, but Amundsen had received news that American explorers Peary and Cook had beaten them to this goal, and so Amundsen's focus changed southward. 'Fram, Forward' - 'Fram' (translating to English as "forward") was the name of the ship Amundsen used for this particular polar expedition. Amundsen had only informed 2 people of his real intentions of conquering the South Pole when the ship first left port in Kristiansand before heading south to the Portuguese island of Madeira in the Atlantic Ocean. After weeks at sea - causing the uninformed members of the crew to raise a number of questions and produce a general feel of uncertainty and low spirits - it was here that Amundsen announced his true plans to the rest of his crew. They were asked whether they wished to continue with their expedition, to which all - some begrudgingly - agreed to sail on to the South Pole, through the great Ice Barrier before docking in the Bay of Whales on the Ross Ice Shelf. 'Ross Ice Shelf' - Upon Amundsen's arrival in the Bay of Whales, the team were greeted by the sight of the enormous ice plateau's and glaciers, towering into the Antarctic sky. In 1907, Ernest Shackleton had attempted - and failed - to reach the South Pole, but his route and mapping was by now well documented. Scott and the UK team were to follow this route, whereas Amundsen and his men forged their own way to the pole through unchartered territory and deadly terrain littered with deep crevasses and canyons. The music here though, is a picture of tranquility. The eerie silence of total emptiness with only the heavy snow falling around Amundsen as Fram and the Bay of Whales disappears into the distance, faced by the maginute of the expedition ahead. 'Advance to Polheim' - The first new challenge Amundsen discovered on this route was a rough, sharp and extremely steep glacier (which was later named the Axel heiberg Glacier after the Norwegian monarch who funded much of the expedition), which would take his team up from sea level to an altitude of over 9,000ft in just 20 miles, with most of this over just 7 miles. Once scaled, only the vast Antarctic Plateau stood between Amundsen and the pole. Here the race began, with only one aim - victory for himself, his team, and for the whole of Norway. .
In Stock: Estimated dispatch 1-3 working days
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£34.95Night Flight! - Jonathan Bates
'Night Flight' was composed for the Foden's Band's appearance at the 2021 Brass in Concert Championships held at The Sage, Gateshead. The band's theme encompassed a large range of monsters and creatures and this work depicts one of the most notorious monsters in folklore; Count Dracula. Throughout this short, virtuosic showpiece for Soprano Cornet and Euphonium, you can hear multiple strains of Mussorgsky's 'Night on a Bald Mountain' (with which Foden's Band opened their programme). . .
In Stock: Estimated dispatch 1-3 working days
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£90.00
Fragile Oasis - Peter Meechan
Fragile Oasis is the name of a collective who describe themselves as aaa grass-roots participatory initiative that connects the shared perspective of astronauts from different countries and cultures with people on Earth, encouraging all to work together so that our planet is not only visibly beautiful, but beautiful for alla.Many involved in the project are astronauts on the International Space Station (I.S.S.), who post, on their website (http://www.fragileoasis.org) many different details of their experiments, photos from space, and some incredible video footage of our Earth.One such time lapse video (a video made up many still images) was posted on their website by astronaut Ron Garan (http://www.fragileoasis.org/blog/2011/11/coming-back-down-to-our-fragile-oasis-2/) in 2011. It is made up of images taken from the I.S.S. of what Garan described as aaa couple of laps around our Fragile Oasis before coming back down [to Earth]a and features all kinds of amazing views from space.Each of the five sections of this work relate to an aspect of the video - either something literal or something more metaphorical. The opening section, i: The lights from Above, is a musical description of the view of the Aurora Australis from above the lights. The second section, ii: The Storm from Above (part i), is also a musical portrayal of portions of the video clip - in this case the many lightning storms we see from above. The storms that are so powerful on Earth appear as small bolts of electricity dancing through the clouds.The third section, iii: Freya, has its roots in personal family tragedy. The name Freya derives from a Norse goddess who was associated with both beauty and love, and in this central section I wanted to write music that not only acknowledged how fragile life itself is, but that every day of it counts and should be celebrated.iv: The Storm from Above (part ii) is a again a reference to the lightning storms, but also to the huge hurricanes we see in the video. It leads us to the final section, v: The Oasis from Above - a description of the size and grandeur of Earth, our Fragile Oasis.Fragile Oasis was commissioned by Leyland Brass Band and Michael Bach, and partly funded by The John Golland Trust, for their appearance at the 2013 European Brass Band Championships in Oslo, Norway. It is dedicated to Natalie Youson, in friendship
Estimated dispatch 12-14 working days
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£35.00Cranborne Chase - Philip Harper
Cranborne Chase was commissioned by the Charles Church Camberley Band in 2011 in memory of solo horn player and life-long member Libby Godden.Libby joined the band in 1966 which marked the start of a long association, during which she progressed to the solo horn position, recruited four family members to play with the band, and had spells on the committee as publicity officer and chairman. Most recently she led the Training Ensemble in her role as Assistant Bandmaster. Libby continued to be active with the band despite a diagnosis of cancer, which finally claimed her life in February 2011.Programme notes from the composer, Philip Harper:The Music: As well as invoking the joyous spirit befitting Libby's approach to life, there are several musical ideas woven into the score. After a brief introduction, the main theme uses the musical letters of Libby's surname: G, O(A), D, D, E, N(G), whilst the harmonic progression here is based on that of the slow movement of Edward Gregson's Partita for Brass Band, one of Libby's favourite passages of music.To further imbue the piece with Libby's persona, the lyrical theme is first introduced as a traditional brass band quartet (two cornets, horn and euphonium), one of her favourite musical genres.After the first rehearsal of the piece the band members, with the composer's blessing, decided on the name Cranborne Chase, which is the name of a place in Dorset with which Libby Godden had a great affinity.Raising Funds for Cancer Research UK. The Music Company (UK) Ltd has been involved in charitable work for many years both nationally and internationally. Through publishing Cranborne Chase, The Music Company is extending its charitable support by helping to raise funds for the Cancer Research UK charity, in memory of Libby Godden (a band-friend since childhood of Clair Tomalin, Business Director of The Music Company (UK) Ltd).A donation will therefore be made by The Music Company (UK) Ltd for every purchased set of this piece. There is a hope that every band in the UK will have Cranborne Chase as part of their library and included in their concert programmes, enabling a significant amount of money to be raised for Cancer Research UK through the enjoyment of music.
In Stock: Estimated dispatch 3-5 working days
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£44.95Desire (Brass Band - Score and Parts)
The premise of this piece is the portrayal of the contrasting nature of our desires. The emotions and images depicted within the music reflect the imperfections of humanity - each one of us.The piece opens with the 'desire' theme, the middle section is prayerfully and almost silently with Move, Holy Spirit! Move in my life! (S.A.S.B. 325) quietly referenced in the closing moments of this section. The piece closes with a united proclamation of this powerful chorus, 'Lord, I give you my heart, I give you my soul; I live for you alone' (S.A.S.B. 397).
Estimated dispatch 7-14 working days
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£55.00Triumph Series Brass Band Journal, Numbers 1339 - 1342, July 2022
1339: Fanfare on 'O come, all ye faithful' (Steve Kellner)The music follow the story of the shepherds as told in Luke 2: 8-20. It first portrays the majestic announcement of Jesus' birth by the heavenly host, then the hushed mystery of the manger scene, followed by the shepherds boisterously glorifying and praising God.1340: In his light (Niels Silfverberg)This is a Bozza Nova setting of the song O soul, are you weary and troubled? by Helen Howarth Lemmel..1341: Merrily on high (Craig Stevens)This bright and energetic setting of the well-know and widely used carol will be well-received by many groups who need an attractive and relatively easy piece to prepare for the festive season.1342: March - Promises (William Gordon)This march features two well-known hymns, Standing on the promises of Christ my King (S.A.S.B. 522) and Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty! (S.A.S.B. 31) set to John Bacchus Dykes' melody Nicaea.
Estimated dispatch 7-14 working days
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£50.00Triumph Series Band Journal November 2016 Numbers 1279-1282
No. 1279 March - In the fellowship (Stephen Bulla)This march was written at the request of Bandmaster Jamie Hood who commissioned the piece for the 125th Anniversary of his home corps band at Basel 1 Corps. Within the march are two well-loved songs from the SA's Swiss song book, both of which are still sund frequently at the corps.No. 1280 Shout and sing! (Steven Ponsford)This light-hearted, lively piece of music is based on David Fellingham's song 'Shout for joy and sing your praises to the King'.No. 1281 (1) Sweet hour of prayer (trs. Doug Engle)Prayer offers us an opportunity to communicate with the Lord. The words of this hymn invite us to bring our concerns to a God who listens. As you listen to this arrangement, take time to reflect on how God has remained faithful through times of peace and distress.No. 1281 (2) The Lord bless you and keep you (arr. Andrew Wainwright)Peter Lutkin's beloved choral benediction is well known in vocal circles. Here it is given a simple treatment that it is hoped will inspire prayer reflection and renewed confidence in God's protection and guidance.No. 1282 March - I serve a risen Saviour (Noel Jones)This Easter march features the following songs: 'Look, ye saints! the sight is glorious' and 'I serve a risen Saviour'. The motif 'I serve a risen Saviour' is used throughout the first section of this march.
Estimated dispatch 7-14 working days
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