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£164.99Music of the Spheres (Brass Band - Score and Parts)
Music of the Spheres was commissioned by the Yorkshire Building Society Band and first performed by them at the European Brass Band Championships in Glasgow, May 2004. The piece reflects the composers fascination with the origins of the universe and deep space in general. The title comes from a theory, formulated by Pythagoras, that the cosmos was ruled by the same laws he had discovered that govern the ratios of note frequencies of the musical scale. ('Harmonia' in Ancient Greek, which means scale or tuning rather than harmony - Greek music was monophonic). He also believed that these ratios corresponded to the distances of the six known planets from the sun and thatthe planets each produced a musical note which combined to weave a continuous heavenly melody (which, unfortunately, we humans cannot hear). In this work, these six notes form the basis of the sections Music of the Spheres and Harmonia. The pieces opens with a horn solo called t = 0, a name given by some scientists to the moment of the Big Bang when time and space were created, and this is followed by a depiction of the Big Bang itself, as the entire universe bursts out from a single point. A slower section follows called The Lonely Planet which is a meditation on the incredible and unlikely set of circumstances which led to the creation of the Earth as a planet that can support life, and the constant search for other civilisations elsewhere in the universe. Asteroids and Shooting Stars depicts both the benign and dangerous objects that are flying through space and which constantly threaten our planet, and the piece ends with The Unknown, leaving in question whether our continually expanding exploration of the universe will eventually lead to enlightenment or destruction.Duration: 18:00
Estimated dispatch 7-14 working days
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£34.95The Puffing Devil (Vocal Solo)
For Children's Choir and Brass BandThe Puffing Devil (2013) was commissioned by Camborne Trevithick Day Committee on the occasion of Camborne's 30th Trevithick Day celebration. The premiere performance of the work, written for brass band and children's choir, saw a massed performance by six brass bands and children from nine local schools. With the intention of being an educational work as well as a musical work, The Puffing Devil reflects the story of Richard Trevithick both in the lyrics and the musical material. A mysterious opening sees running semiquavers in the euphoniums as the flugel horn introduces the work with a solo, before the entry of the horns playing rhythmic quavers. The addition of the voices at the outset is for effect - working with the instruments to create the sound of a steam engine gathering pace simply to the words 'Trevithick'. Once a steady tempo is reached, themes are introduced and sung by the choir, where the vocal writing is a very simple singular-melody; easy for any primary school aged children to learn. An ending of grandeur in a majestic nature is presented, to create a big finish to a feel-good educational work.
Estimated dispatch 7-14 working days
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£80.00
From the Sea - Geert Jan Kroon
From the Sea is a three-part work with the theme of land reclamation. The first part (The New Land) expresses the feelings of expectation and tension that come with the brand-new land. The second part (The Old Sea) is a nostalgic look back at the (old) sea. A sea that was sometimes turbulent, but also a source of life. The third part (The Future Land) captures the joy of living on the new land up to the present day. The work was commissioned by the joint music associations of the Noordoostpolder.
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£30.00The Sword and the Star
DescriptionThe Sword and the Star was written in 2006 for the Middleton Band at the request of their Musical Director, Carl Whiteoak. The inspiration for the work was the band's badge, which features a medieval archer. The town of Middeton's historical link with the symbol of the Archer came from the English victory at the Battle of Flodden in September 1513, where bowmen from Middleton and Heywood under the command of Sir Richard Assheton played a vital part in crushing the invading Scottish army. Sir Richard captured one of the Scottish commanders and presented the prisoner's sword to the St Leonard's church in Middleton in recognition of the town's contribution. As long time Lords of the Manor, the Assheton family crest was for centuries featured in the coat of arms of Middleton council, and when Middleton became part of the Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale the black star from the Assheton crest was used to represent Middleton in the new borough's coat of arms. Hence the title The Sword and the Star, for a piece which attempts to give an impression of the town as it was then and as it is now.The music is in three short sections - a fanfare, a lament and a bright scherzo - and simply aims to contrast the medieval hamlet of Middleton with the bustling urban centre it has now become. The central lament features a Scottish song called "The Flowers of the Forest", written to mourn the loss of so many of Scotland's young men on the field of Flodden; the song returns in a much more positive form at the end of the piece.
Estimated dispatch 7-14 working days
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£24.95Prelude- The truth from above - Ralph Vaughan Williams
In hisPrelude - The Truth from Above, outstanding arranger and curator Paul Hindmarsh has distilled the essence of a timeless Christmas classic by Ralph Vaughan Williams into five minutes of ravishingly unforgettable music for brass band. The variants of the Herefordshire tune popular from theFantasia on Christmas CarolsandThe Oxford Book of Carolsare skilfully and stylishly woven together, from an evocative opening to an ecstatic, multi-layered coda. Unerringly true to the timeless spirit of the original, with the added beauty of the brass-band sound at its most sonorously grave and haunting,Prelude - The Truth from Abovemay be performed separately, or as the first of two preludes, preceding Paul's arrangement ofRhosymedre from the Three Preludes Founded on Welsh Hymn Tunes, also available from Stainer & Bell.
Estimated dispatch 5-14 working days
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£119.99The Patriots - Jan de Haan
The Dutch patriottentijd (literally 'Time of the Patriots') was a period of political instability in the 1780s. The country was led by regents who were occupied with their own personal interests rather than dedicating themselves to the needs of the people. In this revolutionary period, the devoted republican Patriots were in conflict with the Orangists. A civil war followed, in which the Patriots were beaten and driven away by a Prussian army. This composition is an abstract piece inspired by the Patriots. The thematic material is based on the Dutch war song 'Merck toch hoe sterck'. Its powerful minor melody, which has its origins in the Eighty Years' War, is recognizablethroughout the work, presented in variations of constantly shifting character.
Estimated dispatch 5-14 working days
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£94.99
The Devil's Bridge - Bertrand Moren
The "Teufelsbrucke" (devil's bridge) is a very old bridge connecting the Goschenen and Andermatt valleys in the canton of Uri, central Switzerland. Legend has it that in the 13th century the people of Uri made a pact with the devil to build a bridge across the canyon. When the people only delivered a goat in payment of the soul demanded by the devil he was angry and decided to knock down the bridge. An old woman painted the sign of a cross on the rock the devil was intending to destroy the bridge with and the devil, unable to lift it, disappeared forever. The rock remains to this day at the northern entry of the Gotthard tunnel.
Estimated dispatch 5-14 working days
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£102.99The African Connection - Carl Wittrock
Carl Wittrock's wide interest in global folk-music resulted in this concert-piece based on original African rhythms. Obviously, the percussion section has a conspicious role to play, but the band too may indulge itself in moments of thoroughly delightful excitement. The introduction depicts the awakening of nature, and develops into a dance. The (main) motif of this dance is from a dance entitled Apollo and comes from Gambia. Its accompaniment consists of an ostinato pattern by balaphon-master Maudo Susa. The quiet middle movement is based on the rhythm of the 'gigbo' : a traditional dance from Ghana. In the final movement -which also bears a slight resemblanceto a theme from 'The Lion King'- the so-called 'Kono' rhythm is used. The work is played most advantageously using djembes. Challenge and please your percussion section with 'The African Connection'.
Estimated dispatch 5-14 working days
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£118.99The Graces of Love - Oliver Waespi
The Graces of Love (Le Gratie d'Amore) is the title of a book published in 1602 by Cesare Negri, the famous dance master of the Milan court in the Renaissance.It contains numerous dance tunes and precise descriptions of courtly dances. It also includes the tune Il bianco fior (The White Flower) on which the first movement of the present piece is based. A vigorous dance in three-four, it leads to an acceleration and a sudden shift to an even meter towards the end.The second movement, calm and contemplative in character, features the tune Vaghe bellezze ... (Veiled Beauty ...). Widely spacedmelodic parts surround two solos during which the tune is varied and developed. Finally, the third movement contains a saltarello with a hypnotic rhythm, ending the work with flair and gusto.
Estimated dispatch 5-14 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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