Results
-
£30.00The St Louis Blues - Sandy Coffin, W C Handy
Two-Step MarchCommissioned by John Wallace, this arrangement of The St Louis Blues has been crafted by Sandy Coffin through close listening of the available recordings of the Harlem Hellfighters Band. Sandy had been heavily involved with the Historic Brass Society symposium 2017 held in New York and assisted John with his research on this fascinating band and the style of music it generated.Eye-witness accounts refer to the 369th band 'dancing' rather than 'marching'. Above all, in modern performance, finding a 'dancing beat' is crucial to a successful performance of this Ragtime march in order to do justice to the great pioneering work of James Reese Europe.Note the flutter-tonguing and use of muting, the counter-melody in soprano cornet, and the wilder and yet wilder nature of each repetition of the Chorus.Look and Listen:Background to the Harlem HellfightersThe US Army 369th Regiment, made up largely of African-Americans from New York, became known as the Harlem Hellfighters because of the heroic reputation which accrued to them during the actions they engaged in during the First World War in Europe.James Reese Europe was one of the most active African-American composer/musical directors in the pre-war American music scene. The legendary Harlem Hellfighters Band, which he assembled in 1917 from African-American and Puerto Rican musicians, came at an important transitional point in musical history. A new form of music called jazz was emerging from Ragtime and the performing style of Europe's band was immersed in the flow of this new direction.Europe's Harlem Hellfighters influenced and inspired everyone who heard them, including the welcoming crowd when they disembarked in France, bowled over by their swinging rendition of La Marseillaise. Reese Europe became a war hero, commanding a machine-gun unit as well as the band.On return from War in 1919 the band led a ticker-tape parade along Fifth Avenue in New York and soon made about 30 shellac recordings. These recordings display some of the fingerprints of their performing style: ragging, improvising, muting, wailing, smearing (their word for glissando) - and from the evidence of their recordings they took the printed page as a blueprint for individuality.In May 1919 during the Hellfighters' triumphant coast-to-coast tour after their return, James Reese Europe was tragically murdered, bringing to premature close, at the age of 39, the work of a great musical innovator.
In Stock: Estimated dispatch 3-5 working days
-
£35.00The Witches' Sabbath - Berlioz
An effective arrangement of the exciting finale from Berlioz's greatest masterpiece 'Symphonie Fantastique'.This new 'finisher' is all about an opium induced fantasy Berlioz had about rescuing a woman he was madly in love with from a group of evil witches and other assorted ghouls.After many brilliant musical descriptions of the eerie scenes, Berlioz triumphantly rescues his beloved narrowly saving her from being sacrificed by the witches!First performed by Whitburn Band at Spennymoor 24 and recorded by them on the 'Live from Spennymoor 24' CD.
In Stock: Estimated dispatch 3-5 working days
-
£20.00What's The Matter Horn? - Steve Robson
Composed by Steve Robson and scored specifically for our Flexi-Collection World Tour Series. Steve has been inspired by fond memories of hearing Alpine Bands and seeing knee slapping dancers performing in Switzerland for this piece. It starts with some off-stage calls (which could even be from an Alpine Horn if one is available), and moves into a lively dance section, ending with a little yodeling! There are various ways to convey the yodeling through instruments, but a bit of vocal yodel practice could be a novel new addition to the band's warm-up routine!Our Flexi-Collection Series:Flexible scoring tailored to your needs - a perfect solution for expanding the repertoire of Junior/Youth brass bands and ensembles. The Flexi-Collection currently offers two series and these will be regularly expanded to offer groups an even wider variation of music. Based on four-part harmony, these collections provide brass groups with the advantage of complete flexibility when may not be balanced.Added Extras:Each part of The World Tour Series also includes rudimentary theory reference sheet andLearn Together Moments(warm-up passages which relate to each of the styles of pieces included in the whole series). The score also includes background/programme notes andCheck It Outideas to encourage the players to find out more about the music style and/or inspiration behind the piece.If players or instruments are missing, the show can still go on! The thoughtful scoring and arranging by Steve Robson now means that groups of all abilities have access to a truly flexible set of music for their needs.Available for Brass Band (with world parts included), pieces included in our World Tour Series offer flexibility in every sense of the word.(Available individually or as part of the completeFlexi-Collection World Tour Series Album).
In Stock: Estimated dispatch 3-5 working days
-
£40.00FAtes - Claude Debussy arr. Phillip Littlemore
Debussy's Nocturnes are a set of three orchestral pieces inspired by three paintings by the American James McNeill Whistler from the 1870s. These three paintings, also entitled Nocturnes, were studies in light and shade offering an impression of landscapes and objects. The second movement, Fetes (Festivals) offers a dancing, vibrating rhythm with sudden flashes of ight. There is also a procession, described by Debussy as a dazzling fantastic vision, which passes through the festive scene and becomes merged in it (letter J in the score). However the background remains the same driving dance-like work.Debussy wrote the Nocturnes between 1897 and 1899 and the first two movements, the first being Clouds, received their premiere in Paris in 1900. The first performance met with a cool critical reception and Debussy made many revisions thereafter to all three movements.Duration: 6'00"Difficulty: 2nd section and above
Estimated dispatch 5-7 working days
-
£30.00Carol of the Bells - Mykola Leontovych arr. Phillip Littlemore
This popular Christmas piece was composed by Mykola Leontovych around 1916. It is based on a Ukrainian folk chant known as 'Shchedryk', a New Year's carol. However, it was not until after the composer's death in 1921 that it was first introduced to Western audiences, when the Ukrainian National Choir included it on their tour of Europe and the Americas that same year. The film composer John Williams incorporated it into the score for the 1990 film Home Alone and he is credited for bringing it to a wider audience still, although it had been released on Christmas albums by a number of popular artists before that.This transcription for brass band has been adapted from the version created by Robert Prizeman, who arranged it for Libera, the world famous boys choir that he founded. Their unique, enchanting and, some say, heavenly sound delights audiences throughout the world through extensive concerts, recording and TV broadcasts. This brass band transcription introduces this skilled arrangement to a new genre and a whole new audience as well. A video of this arrangement can be found here: Carol of the BellsDuration: 3'00"Difficulty: Suitable for all
Estimated dispatch 5-7 working days
-
£30.00Pure Imagination - Leslie Bricusse/Anthony Newley arr. Phillip Littlemore
The 1971 film musical Willy Wonka and The Chocolate Factory starred Gene Wilder in the title role. The music was written by composer/actor Anthony Newley, with lyrics provided by Leslie Bricusse, for which it received an Oscar nomination for Original Song Score.There are several well-known songs from the film, but perhaps the most famous is Pure Imagination, which is sung by Willy Wonka as the five children and their parents enter the Chocolate Room in Wonka's factory. It has been arranged as a trombone solo and has a simple jazz-like accompaniment.Duration: c. 3'00"Difficulty: Suitable for all (band accompaniment)
Estimated dispatch 5-7 working days
-
Walk, Don't Run - Johnny Smith - Len Jenkins
"Walk, Don't Run" is an instrumental composition written and first recorded by jazz guitarist Johnny Smith in 1954. Chet Atkins also recorded it. However, the most well-known version is by a rock band called The Ventures from Tacoma (near Seattle) who released their version of the tune as a single in spring 1960. It was an instant success. In 1964, The Ventures released an updated version called "Walk Don't Run '64," which also made the Top 10 in the US, and there were 4 further editions up until 2000. In the UK, the tune was covered by the John Barry Seven. Rolling Stone magazine rated the Ventures' version of "Walk, Don't Run" as number 82 on their list of the 100 Greatest Guitar Songs of All Time.
-
Peterborough Mass - Jeremy Cladd - Len Jenkins
Peterborough Mass comprises 5 Movements, Kyrie, Gloria, Sanctus, Benedictus and Agnus Dei. It was composed by Jeremy Cladd who became Head Chorister during his teenage yearsat Peterborough Cathedral. Total immersion in the music within such an inspiring building caused Jeremy to look deeper into the liturgical aspects of the Mass in order to understand the origins of the literary text being sung, so that he could paint a musical landscape based upon his interpretation of the text. From a musical perspective, Jeremy's Kyrie takes its inspiration from Philippians 2 vv1-11 (NIV) "Imitating Christ's Humility", and is structured AB where A refers to humility and submission "lord have mercy" and B relates to "united with Christ", with the latter evoking feelings of salvation and joy. In sympathy with the literary text, the Kyrie has a short introduction, and then a ternary form ABA structure where A is influenced by polyphonic choral writing and B by homophonic choral writing. This is the first of the five Movements to be arranged for Brass Band with Choir and comprises a full brass band score, parts for all instruments and a choral practice score.
-
£42.95Little Suite (Brass Band - Score and Parts)
Trevor Duncan (1924 - 2005) was an English composer, particularly noted for his light music compositions. Born in London, and largely self-taught, he originally composed as a side line while working for the BBC. In the UK, he is well known for pieces such as High Heels and the March from A Little Suite, all of which gained fame as television and radio themes.Composed in 1959, and remembered by most for TV's Dr Finlay's Casebook fame, 'A Little Suite', was not necessarily inspired by Scotland, in fact it was more English in inspiration according to the composer. The piece was described by the composer as 'absolute music', and taking the three movements into account, this is not far from the mark.
Estimated dispatch 7-14 working days
-
£44.95Road to Run
The piece starts with a simple rhythmic pulse which is the basis of the entire work. This cell provides a platform for the piece to grow and develop starting with the first theme played by the euphoniums, all the way through to the conclusion performed in full gusto by the whole ensemble. The various motifs introduced throughout the opening of the piece are passed between the ensemble before the introduction of the three soloists.The central section of the piece features the Solo Trombone, Cornet and Euphonium as they take turns to play a jazz fusion solo whilst having some musical interplay with each other at the front of the stage. After this solo passage, the music then features the various sections within the ensemble, which pays homage to Weather Reports' famous "Birdland". In a jazz fused cannon, each new independent musical phrase is performed by the various sections standing. Starting with the Horns then Solo Cornets, Back Row and Flugal and finally the Baritones and Trombones.Once the different sections of the ensemble are featured, the piece then moves into the final stages. This section sees a reprieve of the opening material heard at the beginning, but further developed with the various melodic motifs passed around the ensemble. The ending builds on this material towards a rousing conclusion."Road to Run" is an up tempo, high energy concert work that has that 'feel-good factor' from start to finish. The idea behind the title is based on the feel and structure of the piece which takes the listener on a musical journey. And at 150 beats per minute - you could put it in your headphones and find your own 'Road to Run'.
Estimated dispatch 7-14 working days