Par VAN DER ROOST JAN. Since most of the bands competing in the 4th Section of the Dutch National Championships have many young players, this piece is stylistically youthful especially in the opening and closing sections. An arpeggio pattern appears numerous times in all registers and is the basic musical element of the main melody, alternating with a second theme that has a slightly different melodic character. The middle section is conceived like a chorale, introduced and developed stepwise: firstly with short patterns and gradually in increasingly long snippets, until it’s played in its glorious entirety at measure 216. No real solo passages are included but rather small chambercombinations, thus offering the opportunity to various players to display their technical and performance skills. The finale recaptures musical material from the first section of the piece and provides a majestic conclusion. / Niveau : 4 / Pièce de concert / Répertoire / Brass Band

Par BULLA STEPHEN. Stephen Bullas highly descriptive work was written to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Battle of Iwo Jima, which took place between the 19th February and 26th March 1945. Casualties on both the American and Japanese sides were horrendously high before the famous image of the raising of the flag on top of Mount Suribachi signalled the end of one of the most significant and terrifying Pacific conflicts of the SecondWorld War. The work received its first performance by the brass choir of the U. S. Marine Band at the National Cathedral in Washington D. C. and is divided into four programmatic sections. The first portrays the sense of anticipation before conflict (Prologue), before the arduous journey to the scene of the battle (Approach by Sea) is followed by introspection and prayer featuring the hymn tune Melita (Chorale Prayer), andfinally, the hostile confrontation itself (Engagement). There are frequent references to the Marines Hymn and the US National Anthem, particularly in the closing bars, depicting the ultimate raising of the American flag. / Niveau : 4 / Pièce de concert / Répertoire / Brass Band