Results
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£40.00The Unfortunate Traveller (Brass Band - Score only)
Imogen Holst (1907-1984) submitted The Unfortunate Traveller (1929) as her final work as a student portfolio at the Royal College of Music, where her composition teacher was Gordon Jacob. The title was taken from Thomas Nashe's famous 1594 picaresque novel of the same title. The Suite was first performed on 12 February 1933 at her Majesty's Theatre, Carlisle, by the St. Stephen's Band, with the composer conducting. Te concert was given in memory of Holst's uncle, Dr. H.A. Lediard. Holst had been impressed with the band's performance of his A Moorside Suite at the 1928 National Brass Band Championships (The Crystal Palace, South London) and was keen to work with them. Writing in Imogen Holst, a life in music, Christopher Grogan indicates that it was Gustav Holst's suggestion to include his daughter's work in the programme, quoting Imogen Holst's remarks made in interview to The Daily Mail as follows: "....it is the first time, so far as I know, that a woman has conducted a brass band at a public concert....It has been a delight to rehearse the St. Stephen's Band. It was their performance at the Crystal Palace Festival that inspired me to write this Suite, which I have dedicated to them."Imogen Holst accompanied her father to the Crystal Palace in 1928 to hear the performances of A Moorside Suite, and was so excited by the played and, audibly, by her father's music that she decided to write a brass band piece for her final examination. Te result was The Unfortunate Traveller (1929). However, it was not possible for her to present a brass band work for examination. She arranged it for string orchestra so that it could be played before she left the RCM in July 1930. Following the premiere of the original in 1933, the manuscripts did not resurface until 1969 Imogen found them among her late mother's effects. Although she requested score and parts be destroyed, they ended up in the possession of Manchester composer John Golland, who marked up the score presumably with the intention of creating a new performing edition. The original scoring reveals a lack of experience with what can be a tricky medium.With the agreement of the Holst Foundation, a revised edition, with additional percussion, was prepared in 2011 since when the work has been fortunate to travel round the world as a concert and contest piece. The original includes drums in the March only. The title was taken from Tomas Nashe's famous 1594 picaresque novel of the same title. Several Morris Dance tunes are introduced during the course of the four short movements, including Bonnie Green Garters, Shepherd's Hey, The Rose and The Wind Blaws Cauld. Quirky twists and turns of harmony and spirited rhythms that remind us how much Imogen Holst loved tradition English dance music.In September 2025, I made a performing edition of the composer's arrangement for string orchestra. The manuscript lacks the final movement, which I arranged in a similar style, ie. without extending the upper ranges. Making this edition raised some issues regarding the accuracy of my band version and some of the solutions I used to smooth out the voicing. I have used the composer's second thoughts to refine my performing edition and to correct a textual errors.- Paul HindmarshDuration: 10.00
Estimated dispatch 7-14 working days
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£57.95Diary of a Madman (Twenty-Fourth February) (Brass Band - Score only) - Clarke, Nigel
From the beginning of history, warlords, emperors and dictators have risen up, some benign but many of them a scourge on humanity. Names that resonate to this day include Julius Caesar, Caligula, Genghis Khan, Ivan IV (The Terrible), Attila the Hun, Vlad IV (The Impaler), Hitler, Stalin, Mao Zedong, Pol Pot, all of whom were responsible for wanton destruction and the torture and death of millions of victims, either citizens of invaded countries and territories and or indeed, their own peoples.Diary of a Madman starts with a light-hearted march that gives the impression of toy tin soldiers parading in a brightly-coloured ceremonial pageant from a fairy tale, conveying peace and innocence. This spectacle is abruptly interrupted by a 'shock and awe' fanfare-like march, symbolising aggression and war. This theme grinds slowly to a halt, and an atmosphere of introspection, sadness and despair takes over. Rising above the smoky theatre of war, we then hear a distant cornet give a rendition of the Ukrainian Nation Anthem (The glory and freedom of Ukraine has not yet perished. Luck will still smile on us brother-Ukrainians). The solo cornet soon enters a fragile duet with a second cornet accompanied by dark undertones. One by one, we hear short shards of aggressive fanfare-like figures from various instruments in the band. The mood breaks - we hear strident fortissimo whole-tone scales representing pealing church bells, warning of danger. In contrast, we also hear pianissimo whole-tone scales announcing that the enemy's troops are falling back. A counter-offensive soon takes centre stage, and battles and skirmishes are heard, with short quotations from Mussorgsky's `Great Gates of Kyiv' symbolising the defenders' heroic struggle.All sides are victims of the Dictator's ambition! The slow central section offer us moments of melancholic beauty and utilises Henry Purcell's `When I am laid in earth' (`Dido's Lament' from Dido and Aeneas 1688). This music represents the loss of homes, dignity and loved ones. There are occasional hints at better times as the theme of the parading toy tin soldiers is heard from afar, like a distant memory.To announce the final push, we hear a church bell strike and an air raid siren signalling a ferocious musical counter-attack. After one final rendition of the Purcell theme, Diary of a Madman closes with a mood of triumph over tyranny.- Nigel Clarke
Estimated dispatch 7-14 working days
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£27.50Sand and Stars (Brass Band - Score only) - Deleruyelle, Thierry
Sand and Stars illustrates the journey of the aviator-writer Antoine de Saint-Exupery when he attempted to break the record for a Paris-Saigon flight. Having started as planned, the journey ended prematurely in the heart of the Sahara with a broken plane and the rescue, just in time, of the pilot and his navigator. Written in six parts, this highly colourful piece varies between a mysterious atmosphere, the deafening noise of a plane hitting the ground and the vivacity of an Arabic dance, punctuated with cornet and euphonium solos, before concluding with spectacular musical fireworks.Duration: 17.45
Estimated dispatch 7-14 working days
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£44.95Trombone Concerto (Trombone Solo with Brass Band - Score only) - Wiffin, Rob
My Trombone Concerto was commissioned by Brett Baker following an earlier piece I had written for him called Shout! It was composed in Spain in the summer of 2010. Once I started writing I realised that this concerto was inevitably going to draw on my own experiences as a trombone player. The first movement was really a matter of getting the right thematic ideas and balancing the tutti and solo passages so, for formal structure, I studied the Gordon Jacob Trombone Concerto. There is a lyrical section preceding the first Allegro that owes much in spirit (but not in the actual music) to The Eternal Quest, Ray Steadman-Allen's Salvation Army solo. The slow movement seemed determined to come out in the vein of a Richard Strauss song. I wanted to write something ineluctably 'cantabile' as we trombone players rarely get a chance to play the melody. There is a brief allusion to that wonderful moment when the trombone gets to sing above the orchestra in Sibelius' seventh symphony. Arthur Wilson, that great exponent of the singing style in trombone-playing and my teacher at college died in the summer of 2010 so it seemed appropriate to dedicate this movement to him. The last movement is the lightest of the three in style and is slightly jazz-inflected, hopefully providing some fun for the soloist. While wanting to test the instrument I did not set out with the intention of making the concerto difficult but there are undoubtedly challenges of technique, range and style to be met by the soloist.- Rob Wiffin
Estimated dispatch 7-14 working days
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£40.00The World Rejoicing (Brass Band - Score only) - Gregson, Edward
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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£0.99Christmas Collection - Words only
Christmas Collection is a newly revised carol book with original, additional and rearranged carols from New Christmas Praise as well as 10 extended pieces. Parts are now also available in large print A4 size!Titles:A child this day is bornA Christmas lullabyA great and mighty wonderAll my heart this night rejoicesAngels, from the realms of Glory (Come and worship)Angels, from the realms of Glory (Iris)Angels we have heard on highA starry nightAs with gladness men of oldA virgin most pureAway in a manger (The manger scene)Away in a manger (Traditional)BethlehemBrightest and best (Spean)Brightest and best (Traditional)Calypso CarolCarol for the NativityCarol of the drumChild of MaryChristians AwakeChrist is born (Il est n)Christ was born on Christmas DayCome and join the celebrationCome, children, come quicklyCoventry CarolDing dong! merrily on highDo you hear what I hear?Gabriel's MessageGaudeteGlory in the highestGlory in the highest HeavenGod of God, the uncreatedGod rest you merry, gentlemenGood Christian men, rejoiceGood King WenceslasGo, tell it on the mountain!Hark the glad sound!Hark! the herald angels singHow far is it to Bethlehem?Huron CarolInfant HolyIn the bleak midwinter (Cranham)In the bleak midwinter (Darke)I saw three ships come sailing inIt came upon the midnight clear (Traditional)It came upon the midnight clear (Willis)I wonder as I wanderJesus, good above all otherJoy to the world!Little baby JesusLittle children, wake and listenLittle DonkeyLittle Jesus, sweetly sleepLo! he comes with clouds descendingLong, long agoLove came down at ChristmasMary's boy childMary's ChildMasters in this hallNoelO come, all ye faithfulO come, ImmanuelO Heaven-sent KingO holy night!O little town of Bethlehem (Christmas Carol)O little town of Bethlehem (Forest Green)O little town of Bethlehem (St Louis)Once in royal David's cityPast three o'clockPersonent HodiePraise ye the LordRing the bellsRise up, shepherd!Sans day carolSaviour's DaySee, amid the winter's snowSilent Night!Softly the night is sleepingStars are shiningStill, still, stillSussex CarolSweet chiming bellsSweet chiming Christmas bellsThe candle songThe cherry tree carolThe first NowellThe holly and the ivyThe infant KingThe light has comeThe shepherds' farewellThe stable doorThe star in the eastThe virgin Mary had a baby boyThey all were looking for a kingThou didst leave thy throneThree kings' marchUnto us a boy is bornWe gather round the manger-bedWe three kings of Orient areWhat child is this?Whence is that goodly fragrance flowing?When wise men came seekingWhile shepherds watched (Cranbrook)While shepherds watched (Handel)While shepherds watched (Winchester Old)Who is he?Zither Carol
Estimated dispatch 7-14 working days
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£0.99
Christmas Collection - Words only - Large Print
Christmas Collection is a newly revised carol book with original, additional and rearranged carols from New Christmas Praise as well as 10 extended pieces. Parts are now also available in large print A4 size!Titles:A child this day is bornA Christmas lullabyA great and mighty wonderAll my heart this night rejoicesAngels, from the realms of Glory (Come and worship)Angels, from the realms of Glory (Iris)Angels we have heard on highA starry nightAs with gladness men of oldA virgin most pureAway in a manger (The manger scene)Away in a manger (Traditional)BethlehemBrightest and best (Spean)Brightest and best (Traditional)Calypso CarolCarol for the NativityCarol of the drumChild of MaryChristians AwakeChrist is born (Il est n)Christ was born on Christmas DayCome and join the celebrationCome, children, come quicklyCoventry CarolDing dong! merrily on highDo you hear what I hear?Gabriel's MessageGaudeteGlory in the highestGlory in the highest HeavenGod of God, the uncreatedGod rest you merry, gentlemenGood Christian men, rejoiceGood King WenceslasGo, tell it on the mountain!Hark the glad sound!Hark! the herald angels singHow far is it to Bethlehem?Huron CarolInfant HolyIn the bleak midwinter (Cranham)In the bleak midwinter (Darke)I saw three ships come sailing inIt came upon the midnight clear (Traditional)It came upon the midnight clear (Willis)I wonder as I wanderJesus, good above all otherJoy to the world!Little baby JesusLittle children, wake and listenLittle DonkeyLittle Jesus, sweetly sleepLo! he comes with clouds descendingLong, long agoLove came down at ChristmasMary's boy childMary's ChildMasters in this hallNoelO come, all ye faithfulO come, ImmanuelO Heaven-sent KingO holy night!O little town of Bethlehem (Christmas Carol)O little town of Bethlehem (Forest Green)O little town of Bethlehem (St Louis)Once in royal David's cityPast three o'clockPersonent HodiePraise ye the LordRing the bellsRise up, shepherd!Sans day carolSaviour's DaySee, amid the winter's snowSilent Night!Softly the night is sleepingStars are shiningStill, still, stillSussex CarolSweet chiming bellsSweet chiming Christmas bellsThe candle songThe cherry tree carolThe first NowellThe holly and the ivyThe infant KingThe light has comeThe shepherds' farewellThe stable doorThe star in the eastThe virgin Mary had a baby boyThey all were looking for a kingThou didst leave thy throneThree kings' marchUnto us a boy is bornWe gather round the manger-bedWe three kings of Orient areWhat child is this?Whence is that goodly fragrance flowing?When wise men came seekingWhile shepherds watched (Cranbrook)While shepherds watched (Handel)While shepherds watched (Winchester Old)Who is he?Zither Carol
Estimated dispatch 7-14 working days
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£22.50Cross-Rhythms (Brass Band - Score only) - Ponsford, Steven
'Cross-rhythms' was commissioned for the 2016 Bolsover International Brass Band Summer School, and tries to portray the contrasting emotions of the Easter story. The music features three Easter-based hymns against various contrasting rhythms. References to the tune 'Rockingham' are heard, to which the words of Isaac Watts are associated 'When I survey the wondrous cross', along with Bramwell Coles' much-loved 'Here at the cross' and John Stainer's triumphant 'Cross of Jesus'.
Estimated dispatch 7-14 working days
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£35.00Concertante (Piano Solo with Brass Band - Score only) - Gregson, Edward
This work was written in 1966, when I was a student at the Royal Academy of Music in London. It was the first major work to be written for this combination. The Concertante is unashamedly romantic in idiom and is cast in three movements: Prelude, Nocturne and Rondo.The Prelude is in sonata form with a contracted recapitulation. There are two main themes, the first announced after the opening flourish on piano. The second theme is lyrical in character and the interplay between these two themes forms the main focus of the movement.The pensive Nocturne opens with an introduction from the band which contains hints of the two main ideas to follow. The solo piano announces the main theme, which has a slightly 'blues' character in its flattened third and seventh notes of the scale. The band enters with the chorale theme already heard in the introduction. Eventually the first theme returns, this time from piano and band and building to a powerful climax before subsiding to a peaceful ending.The Rondo is full of energetic rhythms and changing time patterns. The main theme is 'giocoso' in character and in the first episode there is more than a hint of the tune 'Onward Christian Soldiers' in what amounts to a good humoured parody. Before the final coda there is a long piano cadenza underlying the virtuoso element of the work.The work had a number of public performances leading up to a memorable one in the Royal Albert Hall in 1989 as part of the Gala Concert that used to be held after the National Brass Band Championship in the Royal Albert Hall. That year, the 'centre band' in the massed bands concert were the GUS Band (then known for sponsorship reasons as 'Rigid Containers Group Band'!) conducted by my great friend and champion, Bramwell Tovey, with myself as the soloist.- Edward GregsonDuration: 18.00
Estimated dispatch 7-14 working days
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£12.00Postcard to Grimethorpe (Brass Band - Score only) - Gregson, Edward
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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