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£94.95Of Men and Mountains - Edward Gregson
Of Men and Mountains was commissioned by the Netherlands Brass Band Championships for their tenth anniversary contest in Drachten in December 1990. In July the previous year, Edward Gregson and his wife took the Trans Canadian Railway from Toronto to Vancouver. The journey through the Rocky Mountains was the starting point for Of Men and Mountains. Gregson writes that: 'its high peaks and shafts of sunlight breaking through the clouds, its canyons and ferocious rapids made me understand a little more about the majesty of nature and the fragility of humanity. The eternal struggle between man and nature was personified in the building of this incredible railway... hence my title (after Blake).' The work is dedicated to the memory of Eric Ball, who died shortly before the writing of the work was commenced. Of Men and Mountains is in one continuous movement with a duration of approximately 17 minutes. Its form is difficult to describe because of its motivic and accumulative nature, but it is essentially a symphonic tone poem in search of a theme, which eventually comes in its final and complete state in the majestic ending after an ever-increasing paced scherzo. Of Men and Mountains has been selected as the test pieces for the 2023 National Brass Championships of Great Britain at the Albert Hall.
Estimated dispatch 5-14 working days
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£54.95Sonata - Derek Bourgeois
This work, composed in 1998, was commissioned by the American trombonist Don Lucas as a work for trombone and piano and first performed by him in Birmingham on 19th May 2000. Subsequently, I arranged the music for both solo trombone and brass band and solo trombone and wind band so that it now exists in three formats. The first movement, in B flat major, is brisk and energetic, and is cast in sonata form. The second subject is gentler and more lyrical. The second movement, a scherzo in C major, is the most complex of the four. Basically the structure is a rond. For a long time the music remains in the opening 5/8 time until a new theme introduces more broken rhythms in a more jazzy idiom. After a return of the opening theme the following episode is more tonally ambiguous. Finally, the main theme returns to round off the movement. The third movement, a lyrical adagio, is really one long extended melodic flow. The harmonies are lush and the textures simple and direct. The tonal center is A minor, but the music meanders through so many keys, that this key centre is heavily disguised. The finale is a fiery affair. G minor is really its home key, but throughout the movement the music moves about a lot and the second subject is first heard in A flat minor. The movement's underlying sonata structure is masked not only by its loose tonality but also by its frequently changing time signatures. Like the first movement the second subject is more lyrical in nature and for a while it seems that the music will end peacefully, but a final flurry heralds a triple forte unison on the home note of the first movement - B flat. Derek Bourgeois
Estimated dispatch 5-14 working days
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£66.00Ballet for Band - Joseph Horovitz
Composer Joseph Horovitz will celebrate his 90th birthday in May, with 2016 already seeing a welcome retrospective of some his finest works at the RNCM Brass Band Festival in Manchester in January.It included Ballet for Band, written in 1983 at the set-work for the National Final at the Royal Albert Hall, and which has since become one his most popular major test-pieces - played on numerous occasions throughout the banding world. It is a wonderfully elegant, mischievous composition - a brass band ballet, not of programmatic intent but of fertile imagination; beautifully crafted with a delicacy of touch as light on its feet as any arabesque.The composer has admitted that he had a clear vision of the characters that inhabit his score, yet has never divulged any details - leaving the bands and listeners, as he says, "...to exercise their own imaginations rather than being influenced bymine!"
Estimated dispatch 5-14 working days
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£68.99
European Overture - Bertrand Moren
With its unique structure, European Overture brings out the vast potential of the concert band. The work opens with a magnificent fanfare followed by a lively allegro section. The lento of the middle section gracefully meanders bringing several soloists into the spotlight. Following another pulsating allegro section the work comes to a close with a final restatement of the central melody. A fantastic opener for any concert.
Estimated dispatch 5-14 working days
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£54.99Amarillo - Neil Sedaka
(Is This the Way to) Amarillo was first recorded in 1971 by Tony Christie, and was a great hit throughout Europe. In 2005, the re-release of the original Tony Christie version, promoted by the comedian Peter Kaye, was Britain's best-selling single. The catchy melody of the chorus is also widely sung by sports fans and in 2006 it was played at the Football World Cup Final in Berlin. Stefan Schwalgin's expert arrangement will certainly spice up any concert.
Estimated dispatch 5-14 working days
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£118.99Sinfonietta no. 1 - Johan de Meij
Sinfonietta No. 1, written for brass band, was commissioned by the Dutch National Championships 2011 in Groningen. It also served as the test piece for the Swiss National Championships 2011 in Montreux, Switzerland. Unlike most of Johan de Meij's compositions, Sinfonietta No. 1 is an abstract, non-programmatic work. It consists of three movements, in which the thematic material of the opening measures - an upward fifth jump - returns in various shapes and forms throughout the piece. The slow middle section features solo passages by cello, English horn and bassoon, all starting with the same fifth jump. The final movement presents an Elgar-like march theme,interspersed with quotes from the second movement, and ending with the opening theme of movement I.
Estimated dispatch 5-14 working days
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£152.99Suite From Hymn of the Highlands - Philip Sparke
Complete score and full set of parts for Philip Sparke's Suite From Hymn To The Highlands for Brass Band. This work draws three expressive musical pictures of the Scottish highlands. The first movement, Ardross Castle, contains solo passages for horn and baritone and features a fascinating bagpipe melody. The second movement, Alladale, is a trio for tenor horn, flugel horn and baritone with an accompaniment featuring the percussion section. The final movement, Dundonnell,features two highly contrasting melodies, a wild presto and the bagpipe melody first heard in the first movement.
Estimated dispatch 5-14 working days
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£152.99Between the Two Rivers - Philip Sparke
Between the Two Rivers was commissioned by Fanfare 'Prins Hendrik', from Aalst in the Netherlands. The title derives from the fact that the town of Aalst lies between two tributaries of the River Dommel. The community is a highly religious one, so the famous Luther chorale, Ein' Feste Burg, was an obvious choice for Philip Sparke to use as the theme for this new work. It takes the form of a theme with four contrasting variations. Variation 1 is a moto perpetuo, variation 2 has a slower march like feel, variation 3 is a sinister slow movement and the final variation is in the form of a lyrical fugue. Between The Two Rivers is sure to become a major work inmodern brass band repertoire.
Estimated dispatch 5-14 working days
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£159.99Rush Hour - Etienne Crausaz
Rush Hour was commissioned by the Swiss Brass Band Association (SBBV) on the occasion of the 38th Swiss National Brass Band Championships 2012 (Montreux SBBW) as the test piece in the Championship division.Structured in three parts without breaks, the work opens in a heavy, oppressive atmosphere, sometimes even noisy. After a short passage in a lighter mood a quick tempo takes over, the music becomes nervous and unrelenting, with constant twists and turns. The tension builds, leading to a slower movement in which various soloists are highlighted. A few humorous touches are heard in contrast to a majestic, powerful and dramatic chorale. The end of this part is brighter andmore peaceful. This atmosphere is soon replaced by a return of the thematic material heard in the first movement, developing into an oppressive moos. The piece concludes with a last ecstatic tutti, reusing the harmonies of the introduction in a kind of final flurry.Rush Hour attempts to express the range of feelings we may experience when caught in various stressful situations in the middle of the rush hour.
Estimated dispatch 5-14 working days
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£59.99The Last Night of Fall - Etienne Crausaz
This beautiful chorale for Brass Band illustrates the winter solstice, the longest night of the year. Describing the end of nature's cycle, it has a rather melancholic character until the final chord which symbolises the new beginning.This contemplative work is ideal for creating a moment of tranquillity during a concert, and is also suitable as a warm-up piece.
Estimated dispatch 5-14 working days
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