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£59.99
Conzensus - Jan Van der Roost
This stately concert opener was originally written by Jan Van der Roost for a special event in which six respected wind orchestras (two Belgian and four Dutch) of different composition (two symphonic bands, two fanfare bands and two brass bands) were featured during six concerts. Each evening brought forth a performance by a symphonic band, a fanfare, and brass band, so that the audience could experience all three types of ensembles. This was indeed an original concept.The name, ConZEnSus, comes from a combination of the words, 'Concert Cyclus' (concert series) and 'zes' (Dutch for 'six'). This leads to a new word, which refers to 'consensus'. The general tenor of the cycle isthus immediately indicated. The richness of color of the various ensembles is revealed through an open and friendly atmosphere. During all six concerts (over a span of three years), ConZEnSus functioned as a permanent opening number for each orchestra. Thus the same musical story was portrayed in three different packages.
Estimated dispatch 5-14 working days
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£10.00Perseverance
DescriptionPerseverance was commissioned by Middleton Band to mark their 140th anniversary in 2016, supported using public funding by the National Lottery through Arts Council England, and featured on Middleton Band's CD of the same name.The title is taken from the original name of the 1876 band, the Middleton Perseverance Drum and Fife Band. According to the band's historical records, the Drum and Fife band was formed by six Middleton youngsters eager to learn music but short of funds. Following a whip round, they visited a music shop in Oldham where they purchased a 'one key flute' for six shillings and sixpence, and ('later on') a drum.This determination to make music despite the odds has been a characteristic of the band ever since; at the end of the second world war the band was again down to six players, who rebuilt the 'Middleton Borough Band' back to twenty-six players. After a period of some considerable success throughout the sixties and seventies culminating in winning the National Third Section title in 1983 the band hit hard times again in the late eighties and was down to only four members in 1987 before again being brought back to life. In recent decades the band has built a strong relationship with the East Lancashire Railway, another organisation which has battled sometimes mighty obstacles in its struggle to survive, and has maintained a thriving and successful youth band.The band's will to survive through adversity is reflected in the music, which builds from a sextet of four brass and two percussion players three times, only to fall back to the sextet twice. In the central slow movement the bass drum plays a 'heartbeat' rhythm as the remaining players remember those lost in the war. The relentless pace of the final section culminates in the band triumphing over the adversity which has curtailed the previous two sections. As a former member of Middleton Band (and one of the team that regained the National Third Section title in 2007) it is my pleasure to dedicate this work to the 'Pop and Ale Boys', Middleton Band.You can read more about the piece here.To view the accompanying video by Andy Marshall, designed to precede the piece, clickhereand find out more about the link between the video and the music here.Recording with Score VideoPerformance NotesIn performance the four brass members of the sextet (soprano, solo horn, solo trombone and solo euphonium) should stand at the sides of the band - soprano and horn behind the cornets, trombone and euphonium behind the trombones. Percussion may stand with them at the conductor's discretion, but only if the band has TWO snare drums and TWO concert bass drums available, as these are also needed at the back of the band in the tutti sections. In the second sextet snare drum should be muffled with a heavy cloth OR have the snares turned off (not both).Percussion and mutesPercussion required:snare drum (muffled with a heavy cloth at one point)concert bass drum, kit bass drum, hi-hat, suspended (crash) cymbal2 x tom-tomswood blockclash cymbals3 x timpanitam-tamglockenspielSoprano cornet, repiano and 2nd cornets, flugel and all trombones require metal straight mutes. Soprano, Solo Cornet 3/4, Repiano 2nd and 3rd cornets require cup mutes. Solo Cornet 1/2, Repiano, 2nd and 3rd cornets require harmon mutes.
Estimated dispatch 7-14 working days
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£99.95ROCOCO VARIATIONS (Gregson) (Brass Band - Score and Parts) - Gregson, Edward
Rococo Variations was commissioned by the British Open Championships for their 2008 contest in Symphony Hall, Birmingham, and co-commissioned by the Norwegian Band Federation, for their National Championship in Bergen in 2009.The title of the work has been used before, of course, most notably by Tchaikovsky in his work for cello and orchestra. My set of variations follows the Tchaikovskian model in that it is based on a quasi-Baroque original theme, and has certain 'dance-like' characteristics in the variations, but beyond that all comparisons end.There are six variations: Toccata, Siciliana, Waltz, Moto Perpetuo, Lament, and Fugal Scherzo, followed by a triumphant re-statement of the theme. Throughout, there is considerable contrast in the music, with the fast variations being rather virtuoso in character, sometimes with constantly changing time patterns, whilst the two slow variations (Siciliana and Lament) are in turn lyrical and pensive in mood with prominent solos and duets for a number of instruments.Although the work overall is dedicated by my brother, each of the six variations pays tribute to a different composer whose contribution to the brass band repertoire during the second half of the twentieth century has been of great significance. To this end, all six composers have their own 'musical signature' embraced within the particular variation, a process which reaches its zenith, contrapuntally speaking, during the final variation and reprise of the theme.- Edward Gregson
Estimated dispatch 7-14 working days
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£49.95
ROCOCO VARIATIONS (Gregson) (Brass Band - Score only) - Gregson, Edward
Rococo Variations was commissioned by the British Open Championships for their 2008 contest in Symphony Hall, Birmingham, and co-commissioned by the Norwegian Band Federation, for their National Championship in Bergen in 2009.The title of the work has been used before, of course, most notably by Tchaikovsky in his work for cello and orchestra. My set of variations follows the Tchaikovskian model in that it is based on a quasi-Baroque original theme, and has certain 'dance-like' characteristics in the variations, but beyond that all comparisons end.There are six variations: Toccata, Siciliana, Waltz, Moto Perpetuo, Lament, and Fugal Scherzo, followed by a triumphant re-statement of the theme. Throughout, there is considerable contrast in the music, with the fast variations being rather virtuoso in character, sometimes with constantly changing time patterns, whilst the two slow variations (Siciliana and Lament) are in turn lyrical and pensive in mood with prominent solos and duets for a number of instruments.Although the work overall is dedicated by my brother, each of the six variations pays tribute to a different composer whose contribution to the brass band repertoire during the second half of the twentieth century has been of great significance. To this end, all six composers have their own 'musical signature' embraced within the particular variation, a process which reaches its zenith, contrapuntally speaking, during the final variation and reprise of the theme.- Edward Gregson
Estimated dispatch 7-14 working days
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£12.50
ROCOCO VARIATIONS (Gregson) (Study Score) - Gregson, Edward
Rococo Variations was commissioned by the British Open Championships for their 2008 contest in Symphony Hall, Birmingham, and co-commissioned by the Norwegian Band Federation, for their National Championship in Bergen in 2009.The title of the work has been used before, of course, most notably by Tchaikovsky in his work for cello and orchestra. My set of variations follows the Tchaikovskian model in that it is based on a quasi-Baroque original theme, and has certain 'dance-like' characteristics in the variations, but beyond that all comparisons end.There are six variations: Toccata, Siciliana, Waltz, Moto Perpetuo, Lament, and Fugal Scherzo, followed by a triumphant re-statement of the theme. Throughout, there is considerable contrast in the music, with the fast variations being rather virtuoso in character, sometimes with constantly changing time patterns, whilst the two slow variations (Siciliana and Lament) are in turn lyrical and pensive in mood with prominent solos and duets for a number of instruments.Although the work overall is dedicated by my brother, each of the six variations pays tribute to a different composer whose contribution to the brass band repertoire during the second half of the twentieth century has been of great significance. To this end, all six composers have their own 'musical signature' embraced within the particular variation, a process which reaches its zenith, contrapuntally speaking, during the final variation and reprise of the theme.- Edward Gregson
Estimated dispatch 7-14 working days
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£63.78We Seven (Brass Band) Derek Jenkins
We Seven, the title of this work, comes from a book by the same name written by the United States's first astronauts. The composer writes: 'In 1959, the United States entered the space race by starting a programme whose main aims included sending a solo astronaut into space and recovering him safely. Project Mercury, as this programme was so called, recruited the first seven American astronauts and successfully sent six of them into space. These men were Scott Carpenter, Gordon Cooper, John Glenn, Gus Grissom, Wally Schirra, Alan Shepard, and Deke Slayton, and collectively they became known as the 'Mercury Seven.' Through their efforts and those of countless others, the United States Space Program accomplished much with these six flights, including successfully sending an astronaut into space, putting a man in orbit, and keeping him up there for more than 24 hours. In 1962, shortly after Glenn and Carpenter's orbital flights, the 'Mercury Seven' co-wrote the book We Seven and throughout it, the astronauts discuss the events leading from their selection into the programme up through Carpenter's flight in May of 1962. The primary material for the work comes from two sources: the use of musical cryptograms to encode the astronauts names and initials into pitches and the aria 'Un bel di vedremo' from Giacomo Puccini's opera, Madame Butterfly. The inclusion of the latter comes directly from one of Glenn's chapters in the book. Together with a couple of the other astronauts, he would often listen to the opera to unwind from a long day of training. I would like to think that as he was orbiting the Earth that this opera, particularly this aria, would be running through his mind.' This work commemorates the Project Mercury on the 50th anniversary of its conclusion and was written for Joseph Parisi and the University of Missouri-Kansas City Wind Ensemble. This version for brass band has been prepared by the composer for the Fountain City Brass Band. To view a video of Fountain City Brass Band performing the work please visit: www.youtube.com/watch?v=yD3sBWhGkOo Sheet music available from: UK - www.brassband.co.uk USA - www.solidbrassmusic.com Difficulty Level: 1st Section + Instrumentation: 1 Soprano Cornet (Eb) 9 Cornets (Bb) [Both 3rd Cornets double Crystal Glasses] 1 Flugelhorn 3 Tenor Horns (Eb) [2nd Horn doubles Crystal Glasses] 2 Baritones (Bb) 2 Trombones (Bb) 1 Bass Trombone 2 Euphoniums (Bb) 2 Basses (Eb) 2 Basses (Bb) 4 Percussion
In Stock: Estimated dispatch 1-3 working days
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£168.50Music of the Spheres (Brass Band - Score and Parts) - Sparke, Philip
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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£85.00Alchymist's Journal. - Kenneth Hesketh
'The Alchymist's Journal' gets its title from the book of the same name by American author Evan S. Connell. The book fictionalises a number of famous Alchemist's writings, each one developing another's thoughts thuscontinuing one idea but changing it subtly to provide a new view point or way of thinking. This process is, in fact, alchemical as one idea transmutes into another. This idea is parallel to the processes at work within thesevariants. The whole work is constructed from 6 notes (C, A, B flat, E flat, F sharp, E) and is presented in nine different sections, each individual in mood but still based upon the original pitches. This is not a thematic setofvariations, as the themes are developed one at a time from small segments of the six notes. For example, the opening theme is the complete number of pitches, the second theme uses three notes transposed then repeated at theoriginal level, and so on. Harmonically, the six notes can be divided into two triads, A minor and E flat minor - each key beginning and ending the piece respectively. Whilst this is essentially abstract music with noprogramme there is an introduction, menacing scherzo, slow reflective section followed by a recap of the scherzo and final coda. 'The Alchymist's Journal' was commissioned by the Brass Band Heritage Trust at the suggestionof Paul Hindmarsh, to whom the work is dedicated.
Estimated dispatch 5-14 working days
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£84.99Christmas Brass - Richard Peaslee
Christmas Brass is a fantasy on six carols, originally commissioned by Mark Freeh for the Manhattan Brass Choir. Duration: 16:30The well-known tune, O Come, O Come Emmanuel, a hymn originally based on a plainsong melody, is here set in 5/4 meter. Modal harmonies are combined with big band style as the piece gains momentum, greatly accentuating the mood of the words, "Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel." The opening 5/4 statement of the theme returns, and the piece ends quietly.In Beautiful Savior (also known by the title Fairest Lord Jesus), a hushed beginning featuring horns, euphoniums, and a muted trumpet, leads through a key change to a satisfying, chorale-likeclosing passage.In Away in a Manger, Peaslee sets two tunes, Cradle Song and Away in a Manger. Following a straightforward presentation of each melody, Peaslee plays them against one another. The music swells to a full climax followed by a hushed ending.Peaslee employs a gentle hand in It Came Upon a Midnight Clear, using flugelhorn solos and duets in a jazz-waltz style.In Silent Night, the traditional carol gets an untraditional harmonization, propelled forward by give-and-take between the two groups of brass instruments in the brass choir: trumpets and trombones versus horns, euphoniums, and tuba.Hark! The Herald Angels Sing begins with a humorous blast of discordant harmonies as multiple carols are sounded at the same time. An up-tempo 4/4 announcement of the melody in the trombone is followed by a metrical modulation in 6/8-3/4 time. An additional metrical modulation bring the music back into 4/4, but at a slower tempo and in a pronounced jazz style. Tempo I returns, and the set of six pieces closes with a big ending.Instrumentation: 4 Trumpets, 2 Horns in F, 4 Trombones, 2 Euphoniums, Tuba, Guitar, Bass, Percussion
Estimated dispatch 5-14 working days
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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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