The sisters Ruth Anita and June Pointer from West Oakland in California learned how to sing in the sixties in church where their father was a minister. At the beginning of the 1970s they entered the music business where they proved to have a mastery of many styles - including rhythm & blues jazz and country. However the Pointer Sisters acquired international fame at the beginning of the eighties with their soul-like pop music. A great hit was the up-tempo number I’m So Excited which is still a success on every dance floor. This sparkling arrangement by Peter Kleine Schaars certainly provides the excitement that is suggested in the title.

Danceries Set II arranged for brass band was first commission by Keith Allen for the Birmingham Symphonic Winds. This second set of Danceries continues the format established in the popular Danceries (Set I) of using tunes and dances from Playford s Dancing Master (17th century) to form the basis of an extended dancesuite. In this set the melodies have become more abstracted and project only a distant echo of their original forms. As before each movement is self-contained colourful and direct with its own distinct mood.The outer movements Jennie s Bawbee and Peascod s Galliarda share driving percussion with a military air. Tom Tinker s Toye and Heart s Ease(movements two and three) are both settings of original melodies. All movements are more extended than in the first set with a freer use and approach to the material; melodies now occur in various keys and are supported by a greater variety of harmonic colouring. The result is a richer even more exhilarating set of dances.Brass Band Grade 5.

In Danceries by Kenneth Hesketh the melodies themselves are a mixture of old and new. Where the old occurs it has been adapted in mood and composition and is often interspersed with completely new material. The contemporary harmonies and rhythms bring a breath of new into these themes and add drama to the suite. The first movement Lull Me Beyond Thee is gentle and lilting almost a barcarole this movement is very much a reverie. The original tune had the name Poor Robin’s Maggot a rather disconcerting title. Maggot however in seventeenth-century parlance meant whim or fancy. The second Catching of Quails is acolourful buoyant scherzo on an original melody. The thematic material is shuttled around the band to contrast with full-blooded tuttis. The last few bars fade to almost nothing before a final surprise! My Lady’s Rest is a tender pavane also on an original melody with Moorish leanings. Beautiful solo passages expressive contrapuntal writing and warm tuttis provide an opportunity to show off the most lyrical of playing. The final movement Quodling’s Delight is a clever combination of the 17th century melody Goddesses with an original contrasting melody creating a rousing and exuberant finale to the work.

New London Pictures represents elements of London in the 21st Century. The Millennium Bridge describes the pedestrian’s journey across this wonderful new landmark bridge over the Thames starting at the imposing Tate Modern crossing the busy river and onwards to St. Paul’s Cathedral with its bells ringing out over the great city. London Eye is an incredibly large ferris wheel situated on the South Bank of the River Thames. This movement depicts a ‘flight’ on this riverside wheel at the top of which the panoramic view of London is breath-taking and the expanse of the music is a suitable depiction ofthe view. As with all modern cities London is over-crowded with motor vehicles. London is the first major city in Europe to adopt a Congestion Charge and this piece (with its stop and go traffic lights) is both racy and comical. Here are Londoners attempting to go about their business in the face of overwhelming odds.....Brass Band Grades 4/5: Premier Youth and 2nd Section Duration: 15 minutes

Autumn’s Elegy is a consortium commission in celebration of the 75th birthday of the distinguished wind band conductor Timothy Reynish. The music derives from a youthful symphony written when Hesketh was 16 the same source as his popular Masque. Full of big tunes and bitter-sweet harmonies Autumn’s Elegy is a heartfelt thank you to a conductor who has done more than most to widen the vision of the wind orchestra movement.Brass Band Grade 5: 1st Section. Duration: 7 minutes. Autunm's Elegy has been recorded by the Leyland Band conductedby Jason Katsikaris and is available on the CD Penlee. 

This is the third movement of Nigel Hess’s New London Pictures As with all modern cities London is over-crowded with motor vehicles. London was the first major city in Europe to adopt a Congestion Charge and this lighthearted work includes musical images of frustrated rush hour traffic leading to a freer flowing galop. Brass Band Grade 5: 1st Section Duration: 7 minutes.

Par . Here we present 'Griffenfeldt», a folk-dance in the style of a Norwegian «reinlender». This arrangement can be used as the first item in a concert, or after an interval. The musicians can come on stage as they join in. That is why two of the measures are notated 'repeat till ready', here you have to wait until everyone is in place! If everyone is ready from the start, the repetition can be omitted. Be sure to play with a bouncy but singing style, not with short and harsh articulations. Do the trills on the beat, but these can also be omitted if it makes it too difficult. To bring out the folk music style a little extra, you can ask the musicians to play on the 'backbeat', i.e. emphasize the last half of each quarter-note. In addition, the music will really come to life if all 'solo' places are done standing up. The musician Ånon Egeland tells this story: «This song got its name from a party where it all just got a bit too lively: one of the party-goers started shooting into the ceiling with a gun just as this reinlender was being played. The fiddler - or was it the man with the gun? - was called Griffenfeldt, and that gave the name for the song.» / Date parution : 2023-07-31/ Répertoire / Ensemble de Cuivres

In Theme Park Fun! your orchestra pays a visit to an amusement park. During your visit you will experience some spectacular rides and attractions this theme park offers. The uniqueness of Theme Park Fun! is the interplay between music and(moving) images. Animations and illustrations support the visual composition (downloadable after ordering a set on www.gobelinmusic.com).Part 1: The Entrance & Parade [with animation]The opening of the park is a fact. A day fullof fun and pleasure awaits! You and the other visitors will be confronted with all the rides attractions and adventures the theme park has to offer. Which ride shall we do first?! There is so much to do and experience on this day in the park! Aparade of colorful floats and park figures is passing by.Let the fun begin!Part 2: The Haunted House [with animation]The only ride in the park that is not related to fun is the Haunted House. Here visitors will be challengedto visit a house full of ghosts creepy figures and other ominous things. The clock strikes twelve there is no turning back. Ghosts are whispering yelling screaming... Fortunately it is almost one oclock so we can leave this creepy placequickly.Part 3: The Swinging Galleon [with illustrations]What a huge pirate ship! Each time you swing back and forth you will feel that weird feeling in your stomach. When you are thrown completely into the top you will have afantastic view over the park but you can not enjoy it for long. Before you know the ship swings back the other way.Part 4: The Fairy Tale Ride [with illustrations]After all those exciting and spectacular rides and attractions it is time for a peaceful tour in The Fairy Tale Ride. Surrounded by a fairytale setting you will discover fable figures talking animals and colorful designs. Such a beauty and tranquility. Having had this experience we are ready again for thebig rides in the park!Part 5: The Bumper Cars [with illustrations]Now its time to crawl behind the wheel of the Bumper Cars! Shall we all chase the conductor?! Before you know you are hit by another visitor or you will bumpagainst someone else. In this tough ride you can prove yourself as a real driver or perhaps as a really bad one.Part 6: The Roller Coaster [with illustrations]The largest fastest and scariest ride in the park ... we shoulddefinitely do the Roller Coaster! All together in the train the over-the-shoulder restraints are lowering... be ready to ride. The train leaves the station and is heading for the big lift hill. It will be very scary when the train reaches the topand the train will be plunged down the first drop! Loops corkscrews and other spectacular coaster elements will follow... Before you know it the ride of your life is over. Shall we ride it again?!Part 7: Leaving the Park [withanimation]Unfortunately everything comes to an end.

David Raksin was active in the music business for so many decades that he was thought by many to be the Grandfather of film music. Raksin created notable scores for films such as Forever Amber and The Bad and the Beautiful though he is best known for the soundtrack to Laura where the lead character is always represented by the same theme an ?idée fixe?. This haunting melody gets under your skin and stays there. It is totally suited to the plot where the investigating detective is haunted by the subject of his investigations. Here is a chance to feature your flugel soloist in this jazz ballad which has been given the ?Freeh treatment?.

According to his teachers Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (1840-1893) was not particularly gifted. His special talents were acknowledged only in 1865 when he had been working for the Ministry of Finances for some years. In 1866 he was appointed teacher at the Conservatory and applied himself to composing. His oeuvre is fairly extensive and many of his compositions receive a high ranking on the international list of classical music including his six symphonies solo concertos (violin concerto and piano concertos) ballets (The Nut Cracker Swan Lake) and his overtures (1812 and Romeo and Juliette). In 1893 Tchaikovsky died of Cholera after drinking a glass of infectedwater. His Slavonic March is a popular concert piece for symphonic orchestra that is still frequently performed in concert halls. David Well arranged the theme and created a contemporary march in rock style. Tchaikovsky once said to an unsatisfied teacher: ‘I will be a great composer within 10 years time.’

Jamaica is an island in the Caribbean. In 1494 it was discovered by Christopher Columbus who used it as private property until 1509. After some skirmishes it fell under British rule and the sugar trade on the island flourished. After the abolition of slavery in 1834 it was only granted Home Rule in 1944 but it remained a member of the British Commonwealth of Nations. Whereas the export of cane sugar used to be Jamaica’s main export product for many years nowadays music has taken over this role. At first American music used to be very popular on the island. Later however Jamaican musicians started to experiment and thus in the end created their ownmusical style called Reggae. Well-known Reggae musicians are Bob Marley and Peter Tosh. The most important instruments used in Reggae are the bass and the drums. Together they form the base for the style: the riddim. A bass drum accent on the second and fourth beat are characteristic of a typically reggae drum beat. To this syncopic patterns are often added. The rhythm guitarist plays chords in a characteristic Reggae rhythm not on but between the beats.

The inspiration for this piece commissioned by the United States Army Band came from the Gulf and its constant presentation to the world as a media event on television. The composer wanted to capture the colour and events of war as they were played out on the television screen. Composed as a single movement rhapsody the work is framed by the riveting sounds of airborne bombing raids with brass and percussion combining to create a gripping sense of tension.