Results
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£40.00Mars, The Bringer of War - Gustav Holst arr. Phillip Littlemore
Holst first became interested in astrology around 1912/13 and so began the gestation for a series of pieces that would ultimately become the suite The Planets.The suite itself was written between 1914 and 1916 and with the exception of Mercury, which was written last, Holst wrote the music in the sequence we now know them, and thus did not present the inner planets of Mercury, Venus and Mars in their planetary order. So, in 1914, came the insistent rhythmic tread of Mars, The Bringer of War. It is widely known that the sketches were completed prior to the outbreak of the First World War, so the music is less a reaction the the declaration of war itself, but more an impending sense of inevitability of a war to unfold. Even though Holst would not have known whether war would be declared as he wrote the music, it is almost certain that the news at the time would have had some influence on the music itself. Its insistent 5/4 rhythm, coupled with the winding melody line, the juxtaposition of keys such as D flat and C major all point to a sense of foreboding.Duration: 7'20"Difficulty: 2nd Section and above
Estimated dispatch 5-7 working days
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£30.00Nimrod - Edward Elgar arr. Phillip Littlemore
Elgar wrote his Enigma Variations between 1898 and 1899. It is without a doubt Elgar's best-known large scale composition, and is dedicated to 'my friends within', as each variation is an affectionate portrayal of one of his circle of close acquaintances. The ninth variation, Nimrod, is dedicated to Augustus J. Jaeger, Elgar's publisher at Novello & Co. and also his editor and close friend.The name of the variation refers to 'the mighty hunter before the Lord' and can be found in the Book of Genesis. The name Jager is German for hunter. Often used for solemn occasions, it is the most poignant and beautiful pieces of British music.A video of this arrangement can be found here: NimrodDuration: c.3'00"Dofficulty: Suitable for all grades
Estimated dispatch 5-7 working days
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£30.00Os Justi - Anton Bruckner arr. Phillip Littlemore
Bruckner's four-part setting Os Justi was completed in 1879, the same year that he began work on the sixth symphony. He created an extraordinary motet in the Lydian mode, which achieves striking harmonic effects without using either a sharp or a flat. It concludes with a plainchant Alleluia.Duration: c.3'40"Difficulty: Suitable for all grades
Estimated dispatch 5-7 working days
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£30.00Pavane - Gabriel FaurA(c) arr. Phillip Littlemore
It is believed that Gabriel Faure wrote his Pavane as a piano piece in 1887, describing it as 'elegant, but not otherwise important'. He began work on the orchestral version a few months later, and scored it for modest forces, with the intention of performing it at a series of light Summer concerts that same year. At the behest of his benefactor, Elisabeth Greffulhe, he added a four-part choir, but it is rarely heard with the chorus these days. From the outset, the Pavane enjoyed great popularity. The music flows delicately and gracefully. A pulse beats gently and constantly beneath the arching melody lines, with elegant harmonic shifts and turns before the briefest of dramatic episodes. Calm is restored and the work draws to a tranquil conclusion.Duration: 5'30"Difficulty: Suitable for all grades
Estimated dispatch 5-7 working days
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£35.00Pomp & CIrcumstance March No.1 - Edward Elgar arr. Phillip Littlemore
Elgar's Pomp & Circumstance March No. 1 was completed in July 1901 although the 'big tune' actually dates from earlier in that same year. It was premiered in Liverpool by its dedicatees, the Liverpool Orchestral Society, on the 19th October. It was repeated in London a few days later by Henry Wood at the Promenade concerts and the result was sensational, the audience roared its applause, and refused to allow the concert to continue. In order to restore order, Wood conducted the march three times - the only time in the history of the Promenade concerts that an orchestral item was accorded a double encore in Wood's lifetime.Now a staple of the 'Last Night of the Proms', where it always manages a partial encore, and a fitting item for any such themed concerts. This new arrangement recreates the colour from the original orchestral version.A video of this arrangement can be found here: Pomp & Circumstance March No.1Duration: c.6''00"Diffculty: 3rd Section and above
Estimated dispatch 5-7 working days
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£35.00William Tell Overture - Finale
The overture to Rossini's opera William Tell is a fairly large scale work in four sections and lasting some twelve minutes. However, it is the Finale of the overture which is one of the most iconic pieces of music. This March of the Swiss Soldiers is a dynamic cavalry charge and galop often used in popular media to denote galloping horses, a race, or a hero riding to the rescue. Its most famous use in that respect is as the theme music for the radio and TV show The Lone Ranger! It was also used to great comic effect by Spike Jones and his City Slickers and it also finds it's way into the first movement of Shostakovich's 15th Symphony.Duration: c.3'20"Difficulty: 2md Section and above
Estimated dispatch 5-7 working days
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£40.00Finale from Symphony No. 5 - Pyotr Tchaikovsky arr. Phillip Littlemore
Tchaikovsky composed his Fifth Symphony in the summer of 1888. He suggested that the opening-and recurrent-theme of the symphony represented "a complete resignation before Fate." The finale begins with a slow introduction of the 'fate' theme which segues into an Allegro Vivace of drive and energy, during which a majestic version of the fate theme periodically emerges. Finally, after a notorious "false" ending, the music courses ahead to a dramatic climax.Duration: c.7'30"Diffculty: 3rd Section and above
Estimated dispatch 5-7 working days
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£55.00Ancient Airs and Dances - Ottorino Respighi arr. Phillip Littlemore
Ancient Airs and Dances is a set of three orchestral suites written in 1917, 1924 and 1932 respectively. In each, Respighi borrows melodic material from the 16th and 17th centuries, and then applies his own distinct voice to create something at once new and old. This arrangement takes four separate movements from two of the three sets. Balletto detto "Il Conte Orlando" by Simone Molinaro, was a popular piece from the beginning of the 17th century. Its noble rhythmic gestures in the opening and closing sections are answered by a more reflective mood in the middle. Gagliarda, by Vincenzo Galilei (father of the famous astronomer) was originally called Polymnia, after one of the muses of song. Arie di Corte (Courtly Airs), is based on a set of songs by Jean-Baptiste Besard, where sprightlier dances are enveloped by a stately dance. The finale is a clever alternation of two anonymous dances of the late 16th century. There are several variations on a passa-mezzo with interjections of a mascherada. The suite arrives at a brilliant finish with the mascherada's fanfare theme.A recording of this work can be found here: Ancient Airs and Dances.Duration: c. 9'30"Grade: 4th Section and above
Estimated dispatch 5-7 working days
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£40.00Carmen Suite - Georges Bizet arr. Phillip Littlemore
Incredible as it seems today, Bizet's opera Carmen was met with a lukewarm reception at its premiere at the Paris Opera-Comique in 1875; critics condemned its subject matter as lurid and its music overly Wagnerian, and it ran for a mere 37 performances. Bizet died with a few days of it opening at the tragically early age of just thirty-six. Now hailed as the composer's supreme achievement, this colourful, passionate work continues to delight listeners around the world with its emotional, atmospheric music and the originality of its conception. Two orchestral suites were created in the latter part of the 19th Century each containing six pieces.This brass band arrangement brings together three of these pieces, the Aragonaise , the Habanera and Les Toreadors .Duration: c.7'00"Difficulty: 3rd Section and above
Estimated dispatch 5-7 working days
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£60.00Music from the Royal Fireworks - G. F. Handel arr. Don Blakeson
Handel's Music For The Royal Fireworks was composed in 1749 to celebrate the signing of the Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle and the end of the War of the Austrian Succession. The site chosen was the fashionable upper part of St. James Park, which was becoming known at that time as Green Park. The Green Park 'Machine', which housed the pyrotechnics was an elaborate affair adorned with "statues and other figures, festoons of flowers, and other lustres".It was announced that there would be some 10,000 rockets and other devices to be let off, all culminating in a grand, burning sun with 'Vivat Rex' at its centre. There were also rumours that the event was to be accompanied by an impressively large band of military music and mention was made of "40 trumpets, 20 french horns, 16 hautboys (oboes), 16 bassoons, 8 pairs of kettle drums, 12 side drums, a proper number of flutes and fifes; with 100 cannon to go off singly at intervals". It is unlikely that Handel had ever conceived such forces and it was merely the promoter's hyberbole, not least because it was unlikely that there were sufficient numbers of extra military musicians available that could read music, as most played from memory. It is also likely that Handel, and his publisher, were conscious that future performances would be hindered by such forces. The autographed score lists the instrumentation as 9 trumpets, 9 french horns, 24 hautboys, 12 bassoons, 3 pairs of kettle drums and up to 4 side drums.The work is in five movements, although Handel's original score did not indicate in which order they should be played. However, in this score they are arranged to be played as follows: Overture, Bouree, La Paix, Minuets I & II and La Rejouissance.Duration: c. 19 minutesDifficulty: Suitable ofr all
Estimated dispatch 5-7 working days