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£30.00Janacek's 'Taras Bulba' - Janacek
Comments from Tim Paton, the arranger of Janacek's 'Taras Bulba': "I will never forget the day in 1967 when I was introduced to the music of Leos Janacek, a Czech composer born in 1854, who died in 1928. Janacek was little known in Britain until the 1960's, when the conductor Charles Macherras introduced his unique music. I heard a recording of Macherras conducting the Pro Arte Orchestra in a performance of Janacek's "Sinfonietta".It was in 1969 that I first heard Janacek's Symphonic Rhapsody, "Taras Bulba".Janacek's music is exciting, powerful, emotive, impassioned and unpredictable.I have taken the first and third movements of this piece, and adapted them for Brass Band, which was at times extremely difficult, but rewarding. It sometimes took up to an hour to be satisfied that a mere several bars had been reproduced to convey the composer's intentions.The Death of AndriThe Cossaks, under the leadership of Taras Bulba, are fighting against the Poles in the 17th century. Taras's son Andri seeks to rescue his love, a Polish princess, from a city which is being besieged by the Cossaks. Having found her, he throws in his lot with the Poles, but is finally captured by his father, who executes him as a traitor before riding off again to battle.Prophesy and Death of Taras BulbaTaras himself is finally captured and condemned to be nailed to a tree and burned alive. As the flames creep around him, Taras has the satisfaction of seeing histroops escape, and as he dies, sees a vision of his country freed at last.This is incredibly descriptive music. The mood is constantly changing, creating feelings of love and anger, celebration and melancholy, despair and triumph.This Brass Band EditionThe duration of the original symphonic rhapsody, three movements, is approximately 23 minutes. I chose the first and third movements, so the Brass Band edition is approximately 14 minutes. The main reason is twofold: Being realistic about the demands this music would place on the stamina of the brass player; Keeping the piece less than 15 minutes, so that, if desired, it could be used on the contest platform.Two unique qualities of Janacek's music had to be taken into account when preparing this brass band version. His compositional technique was individual, at times not sticking to traditional expectations, in both form and orchestration. I imagined what the genius himself would have said looking at my work, and how to tackle a particular section to emulate his original intentions. This was particularly the case when dealing with high woodwind and violin parts, the use of tremolo in string parts, and the orchestral harp.Percussion: Janacek included timpani, side drum, cymbals, triangle and tubular bells. For reasons stated previously, I have also included xylophone and glockenspiel. I have also added the gong in a couple of places to enhance the dramatic effect of the music.
In Stock: Estimated dispatch 3-5 working days
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Galloping Home (The theme from TV's Black Beauty) - Dennis King - Len Jenkins
"The Adventures of Black Beauty" was a British children's television drama series produced by London Weekend Television and shown by ITV in the United Kingdom between 1972 and 1974. The theme tune, "Galloping Home", written by Denis King and performed by the London String Chorale, was released as a single and peaked at number 31 in the UK charts in the week of 2 February 1974. It was later used at the climax of the first series of Absolutely Fabulous, with Edina Monsoon dreaming of running through a field as Black Beauty does in the series' title sequence. The piece has been arranged for both Full Brass Band and Brass Ensemble, in this case a Quintet with optional percussion. Both arrangements are well within the capabilities of most bands.
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Off Duty - John Dankworth - Len Jenkins
The late John Dankworth (1927-2010) made a string of recordings in the 1960s that have since come to be regarded as some of the finest British jazz of their time. Amongst these is his composition 'Off Duty' which was recorded in the 1960s when the influence of pop and rock on jazz was at its height and instruments such as the bass guitar were beginning to be incorporated into jazz's vocabulary. At this time and almost subconsciously, a Dankworth 'pop' style also evolved. This was a balanced marriage between jazz and pop which is here demonstrated in 'Off Duty' thanks to the ingenious and original orchestration by John Dankworth, and the faithful arrangement for Brass Band by one of his fans, Len Jenkins. The title is interesting as John loved to play with words. 'Off Duty' could mean relaxing away from work, but could also carry the implication of something not attracting taxation.... a sort of 'duty-free'. About the same time, the Dave Brubeck Quartet produced the seminal 'Take Five'... so could this be John's take on that title, suggesting a short break? Which meaning fits best for you? The piece would best suit the capabilities of a brass band playing at the standard of Third Section or above.
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Diamonds - Jerry Lordan - Len Jenkins
In November 1962, ex-Shadows members Jet Harris and Tony Meehan decided to work as a duo and went to No 1 with a Jerry Lordan composition, "Diamonds". Harris, a bass player, took an ordinary Fender guitar and detuned every string a whole tone to enable him to hit notes which were lower than an ordinary guitar. However, it was apparently difficult to work with on stage since once the strings were slackened they would go out of tune very easily. The duo went on to have a second Top 10 hit with "Scarlett O'Hara" which is also available from Wobbleco Music in an arrangement for brass band. Both arrangements seek to capture the characteristic style of 60's rock music and retain the signature drum solos for which they are rightly remembered. But in addition, both pieces also appeal to a younger generation who may not have heard the originals. Our young kit drummer in Woburn Sands 'A' Band commented "...the (drum) part has the slightest shuffle feel to it, which improves the groove of the song, and to replicate the vintage snare-drum sound, I have heard that you can place a towel or a cloth over the head of the drum. I think it would work well...(otherwise) the drum part stays relatively simple and repetitive"...Chance to re-create the sound of the 60's.....Go for it!
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Introduction & Allegro Spiritoso - Jean Baptiste Senaille - Len Jenkins
Introduction and Allegro Spiritoso appears in many forms within the music compendium, frequently as a piece demonstrating a solo string, woodwind or brass instrument with Piano or other accompaniment. It was originally composed by the baroque composer Jean Baptiste Senaille, and includes the fast 2/4 movement from one of his 50 or so violin sonatas. It is probably one of his most recognised pieces. This arrangement for a brass quintet with optional Glockenspiel is presented in two formats. One is for Brass Band instruments, the other for Orchestral Brass, both with appropriate Parts to match that genre.
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£91.99Hermitage - Jan de Haan
Jan de Haan drew inspiration for this work from five paintings exhibited in The Hermitage in Saint Petersburg, one of the largest and most versatile museums in the world. He used the melodious Andante cantabile from the String Quartet Op. 11 by the Russian composer Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky as its starting point. Thus, he created his own musical painting, which is just as varied as the underlying canvases - from Cheerful Company by Dirck Hals to Dance II by Henri Matisse. A true work of art!
Estimated dispatch 5-14 working days
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£82.30What a Difference a Day Made - Stanley Adams
The Mexican songwriter Maria Grever, wrote the melody in 1934 ("Cuando vuelva a tu lado") and it became a big hit for jazz-singer Diana Washington. Since that, it has been recognized as a jazz-standard and also featured in several movies. This arrangement was originally written for young, Norwegian singer Angelina Jordan. In this version, the level of difficulty and instrumentation are customized to fit our Young Band-series. Included in the set is parts for both string bass and vocals, but they are not compulsory to perform the piece. In this style, the accompaniment will have a slight swinging feel, while some of the contrasting elements has to be performed without swing(Even).
Estimated dispatch 5-14 working days
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£53.50Soweto Swing - Peter Martin
The sparkling music from Soweto (South Africa) has a long history. The rhythmic dances of Kwela, the 'syncopated guitars' of Mbaqanga, the saxophones and trumpets with their supple African jazz sounds as well as the infectious and sometimes gripping choir singing. All these elements can be recognized when listening to the 'Soweto String Quartet', which in its turn inspired Peter Martin to write 'Soweto Swing'.
Estimated dispatch 5-14 working days
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£90.90Milonga del Angel - Astor Piazzolla
This arrangement was made after hearing Astor Piazzolla's 1986 recording of his own work written in 1965.The original instrumentation of bandoneon, violin and string bass is here arranged for three wind soloists with Concert Band.The Eb Cornet is the main soloist (filling the bandoneon role), while the trombone and Solo Bb Cornet shares the violin part as a kind of flirting undertone to the Eb Cornet.It's not possible to make a 100% correct notation of the solo parts, so it's recommended to listen to the record album "Zero Hour" from 1986 to get the best impression of the work.Enjoy "Milonga Del Angel" and imagine a small, dark cafe in Buenos Aires!
Estimated dispatch 5-14 working days
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£54.99
Studio-Pop - Kees Vlak
Studio-Pop consists of five movements. The first movement, entitled Marching on a String, is an energetic rock march in a modern rhythm. Next, the charming Dreaming of Summer has been composed in three-four time - which is quite unusual in modern pop music. The inspiration for the third movement, Chicken-Charley was a youngman selling chicken legs from a stall. His supple, dancing movements can be recognised in the music. The fourth movement, Candlelight is a modern, attractive ballad. Finally, Discoteca takes us along on a night visit to a Spanish discotheque. The typically Spanish chords and the stirring, high-spirited rhythm provide an exuberant closing to Studio-Pop.
Estimated dispatch 5-14 working days
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