SKU: HL.14020965

ISBN 9780711936959.

The story centres on the English princess Caroline Mathilde (1751-1775), sister of George III, who at the age of 15 was sent to Denmark to marry the 17-year-old eccentric and schizophrenic Danish King, Christian VII. The ballet portrays her unhappy marriage, the King's growing madness and her fatal love-affair with Struensee, the King's influential physician, which leads to their arrest, his execution and her exile, at the age of 20, separated from her two young children. This suite begins with the act's opening number: a boisterous, stamping dance to which the people rudely mock Queen Caroline Mathilde and her lover Struensee. After this comes a dark Adagio, The Conspiracy, in which the theme passes like persuasion from mouth to mouth, its variations suggesting the different attitudes of the conspirators, firmly controlled by the brass-driven gestures of the Queen Dowager. The conspiracy then works itself out at a court masked ball, from which the suite includes two dances: a gavotte, and a slow, lubricious passacaglia that is a pas de deux for Caroline Mathilde and Struensee. The Arrest comes with a gathering rush of music that envelops the King, the Queen and Struensee, leading to a vociferous climax in which they are held apart. In The Execution, slow white music for wordless female voices, harp and low strings is interrupted by pathetic, alienated outbursts from the King. The suite ends, as does the ballet, with a quiet adagio lament for clarinets and alto flute as the Queen goes into exile. Score. Duration c. 33mins.

SKU: HL.48186292

UPC: 888680840358. 9.0x12.0x0.141 inches.

Contemporary Italian-French composer, Armando Ghidoni brings together influences of both Italy and France in his music. Also, as an expert on jazz, the harmonies and rhythms of the composer's works reflect a huge diversity, Jazzy Celtic Suite for Clarinet and Piano or Harp being no exception. Ghidoni is significant within the contemporary French music school and his works are regularly chosen as set pieces for leading national and international competitions. Jazzy Celtic Suite reflects Ghidoni's mastery of a range of instruments, suitable for intermediate players. With a typical performance lasting about thirteen minutes, Jazzy Celtic Suite is an exciting addition to the intermediate clarinet repertoire, with the option of piano or harp accompaniment.

SKU: HL.48182268

UPC: 888680839277. 9.0x12.25x0.099 inches.

”Small Suite for Flute and Piano is a piece written for the Paris Conservatoire contest by Pierre Petit. Really melodious, it lasts eight minutes and is divided into three distinct movements. The first part, ?Gai et allant? is quite fast and has to be played joyfully. It uses the whole range of the instrument with some really high notes and includes a Cadenza. The second part, ?Lent et très chanté?, is slower, slightly lower in range and really melodious. It is quite short compared to the other parts. The third and final movement has the same kind of range as the first one. Fast, it features a part to be played at Marzuka tempo and one to be played at the same tempo than the beginning. The piece ends on a really high trill. Small Suite is really enjoyable to play and to listen to. It however requires some strong skills in terms of technique and sonority that would be acquired by advanced players: the difficulty is therefore rated at 7.“.

SKU: HL.4002362

UPC: 073999376876. 9.0x12.0x0.076 inches.

Hymns by Giovanni de Palestrina pre-date those of Bach by over a century and incorporate the great polyphonic tradition of Renaissance writing. The compositions used in this suite are from a collection published in 1589 titled Hymns of the Entire Year, and incorporate antiphonal choral effects that lend themselves particularly well to instrumental settings. John Moss uses richly contrasting tone colors and textures as well as characteristic modal tonalities in this wonderful setting for band. (3:30).