'The Keystone Kops' was a series of silent comedies featuring an incompetent group of policemen. They first appeared in the 1912 film 'Hoffmeyer’s Legacy' but it was the 1913 feature 'The Bangville Police' that confirmed their popularity. 'The Keystone Kops' were renowned for making mistakes particularly with a great deal of energy and activity and all done with a major lack of coordination. Carl Davis's 3 minute tour de force is a fine encore piece!

'The Keystone Kops' was a series of silent comedies featuring an incompetent group of policemen. They first appeared in the 1912 film Hoffmeyer’s Legacy but it was the 1913 feature The Bangville Police that confirmed their popularity. 'The Keystone Kops' were renowned for making mistakes particularly with a great deal of energy and activity and all done with a major lack of coordination. Carl Davis's 3 minute tour de force is a fine encore piece!

A Masque (short for Masquerade) has been defined by Historians as 'A revel in which Mummers or masked folk come with torches blazing into the festive hall and call upon the company to dance and dice'. The chaos of this dramatic dance is depicted in this 'Masque' by Hesketh. The main theme is bravura and is often present in the background. The form of the piece is a simple scherzo-trio-scherzo. Colourful scoring (upper wind solos trumpet and horn solos alternating with full bodied tuttis) with a dash of wildness may tease both player and listener to let their hair down a little! 'Masque' has been transcribed for wind band by Kenneth Hesketh from his 'Scherzo for Orchestra' commissioned by the National Children's Orchestra in 1987.

Written in 1966 Arnold drew on a more personal inspiration for these dances rather than folk music. Transcribed by Ray Farr the music depicts the fishermen farm workers and tin miners native to Cornwall going about their lives - it also includes a brief visit to the local Methodist chapel for a Sunday morning sevice!