A Melodrama Interspersed With Music. Par BENDA GEORG. Georg Anton Benda's melodrama „Medea' (1775) was one of the most successful German musical theatre works of the late 18th century. With a libretto by Friedrich Wilhelm Gotter, the work soon became a great influence within the melodrama genre. For several decades, it was performed all over central Europe, developing an impressive reception history. Between 1775 and about 1790, the melodrama was considered an extremely popular (albeit controversial) part of musical theatre, in particular in German-speaking regions. Consequently, Benda's „Medea' was at the center of many heated debates. Unlike opera, the melodrama does not present the libretto in sung form, but rather, the text is spoken and combined with orchestral music and scenes. The traditional opera forms (aria, recitative, ensemble, chorus) are dissolved and replaced by a new interplay of music, speech, and scenes. A focus on a single protagonist and the quick, delicate alternation between spoken text and music allows for the development of conflicting and contradictory psychological profiles with a heightened intensity within the melodrama. Near the end of his life, Benda revised the work significantly, drawing from his experience of real performances and their effectiveness. The changes leading to the new version of his „Medea' music were quite extensive, affecting almost every single measure: numerous details of the part writing (tempi, voice leading, rhythms, accompanying figures etc.) were revised, the instrumentation was changed, middle voices were led in a more lively manner, and the music as a whole was shortened and effectively compressed. The composer regarded the latter, modified „Medea' as the authorized version of the work. The premiere took place in 1784 in Mannheim, however, the altered work received little attention since then and has become tangible again for the first time with the OPERA Edition. All previous editions of the work - and along with them, all previous recordings - are based on the earlier version of 1775. The third volume of the OPERA series 'Medea” contains a linen-bound book and the edirom on a USB stick in credit card format. The number of users permitted to simultaneously use the digital content of the edition is not limited. For further information regarding the work and the OPERA series, please visit www.opera-edition.com and Takte online/ Répertoire / Récitant et Orchestre

The composer writes:Pilgrim was inspired it will be no surprise to learn by reading Bunyan's Pilgrim's Progress - Vaughan Williams's great opera on the subject had fascinated me from its first performance yet it was a long time before I caught up with this essential item in any well-stocked library of English classics. It made a great impression not least because of its theme of a journey of self-discovery and a rediscovery or renewal of faith. These are ideas which have a strong interest for me not in religious terms but in their application to every aspect of human life (including great journeys) and this piece reflects my response in musical terms to this concern. The tempo of the whole piece which lasts about 18 minutes is basically slow. There are two quick episodes but these act somewhat like the trio sections of a classical scherzo save that the tempo relationships are inverted (the classical trios would have been slower not quicker) and the canvas is much larger being that of a single substantial slow movement. The form of the whole is perhaps fantasia-like rather than having any relationship to classical forms such as sonata or rondo - some motifs and themes are varied as the work develops and the opening chords are of primary importance throughout the work. There has been no attempt to convey any pictorial elements deriving from Bunyan's great book. There is however one feature which upon completion of the score struck me with some force which is that almost all the thematic material is essentially striving upwards - there is a constant upward movement (sometimes over a lengthy period) throughout the work. Pilgrim was commissioned by the Luton Music Club for the Raphael Ensemble with funds provided by the Eastern Arts Board and Bedfordshire County Council and is dedicated to the Luton Music Club. The first performance was given in Luton on February 10th 1997 and followed as part of a joint scheme by performances in the same week at the Music Clubs of Bedford and Leighton Buzzard.

Delta for Saxofon Cello og Piano (2005). Programme note: Some of my works are created in several stages where an earlier work or movement are reborn or recomposed as part of a new work. For instance “Suite for Martin” (1967) for saxophone amplified accordion and prepared piano - used in a Danish documentary film “Kongens Enghave” - was rearranged by me in 2004 in a new instrumentation for saxophone cello and piano and named MELANCOLIA (duration 12 minutes) which became the third movement (with the title MALINCONIA) in an enlarged version from 2005 with the title DELTA (duration around 20minutes). A delta is be nature moving outwards or rather downwards downstream.This movement is characteristic for all three works mentioned. EUFONIA. In the first movement of DELTA the music changes from the light hearted and harmonious towards a darker sound.In the second movement NOSTALGIA this darker colour is intensified dominating the whole movement. MALINCONIA the third and last movement completes the direction downwards – during six shorter sections – going towards a black edged pessimism (and a “black sound”). Per Nørgård (2005)

Musique A Grande Vitesse (MGV ) translates as 'high speed music' and was commissioned by the Festival de Lille for the inauguration of the TGV North European Paris-Lille line in 1993.The piece runs continuously, but was conceived as an abstract, imaginary journey- or rather five inter-connected journeys, each ending with a slow, mainly stepwise melody which is only heard in its 'genuine' form when the piece reaches its destination.Thematic 'transformation' is a key to MGV as a whole. Throughout the piece ideas - rhythmic, melodic, harmonic, motivic, textural - constantly change their identity as they pass through different musical 'environments'.The opening bars establish both a recurrent rhythmic principle - 9, 11, or 13-beat rhythmic cycles heard against a regular 8 - and a harmonic process - chord sequences (mainly over C and E) which have the note E in common. (Coincidentally, MGV begins in C and ends in E). A later scalic, syncopated figure (again first heard over C, E and A) begins the second section, featuring Brass, in D flat.The topography of MGV should be experienced without reference to planning, description or timetables. The piece's tempo changes and unpredictable slowings down bear no logical relation to the high speed of the Paris-Lille journey, while the temptation to treat MGV as a concerto grosso, with the Michael Nyman band as the ripeno, was resisted: more suitably the band (amplified in live performance) lays down the tracks on which MGV runs. / Orchestre

To Henk van Lijnschooten. Par DE HAAN JACOB. This work builds a musical bridge between the nations of the European Union. In this composition each country is represented by a fragment of its national anthem. The listener will continually be surprised by the creative way the national anthems are presented. The national anthems of the nations that have become part of the EU in 2004 have already been included in this piece. Because the fragments follow each other and complement each other in a logical way, this work does not sound like a regular medley but rather like a varied concert work with interesting elements of folklore. For most of the national anthems Jacob de Haan has chosen a minor key, which gives this work an extraemotional, sometimes melancholic overtone. / Niveau : 4 / Pièce de concert / Répertoire / Concert Band ou Harmonie

This pop hit from the British group Clean Bandit won the 2015 Grammy® Award for Best Dance Recording. Tom Wallace has effectively scored Strings Vocals Electronics and Percussion for Marching Band instrumentation. This sophisticated yet familiar song has all the elements needed for an impressive production number that your band will love to perform.

Durkle Bandrydge is the name of the composers imaginary world but it could very well be anyones invisible dream world with a different name. In this very versatile suite by Bruce Fraser 8 characters are featured each with its ownpeculiarities making Durkle Bandrydge such a colourful place. Do these characters differ that much from us? That is for you to find out! In the last part all characters come together in a special way.Durkle Bandrydge exists at the end ofyour street. It is invisible to humans but Durkle Bandrygators can watch us with great interest. The music will introduce you to some of the characters who live in this unusual place. The parts: Somnanbulyss who is a giant trollguarding the entrance to Durkle Bandryde. At least he is supposed to but he tends to sleep most of the time. His music is therefore very slow moving and sleepy. Long Gwysteen is a tall mysterious and somehow sophisticated character who walls around with a shell on his back. His music glides along rather gracefully. Squelfitch is a rather unpleasant and smelly character who lives in a bog which is why his music sounds rather slimy and a bit like trying to walkthrough quicksand. Perfydlia is a meddling old woman who gossips about everybody and squeals with sudden delight at the small exciting bits of tittletattle about others in the village. In the music you can hear her sudden little squealsof delight. Maryann Lovely is a beautiful young lady graceful gorgeous absolutely devine and her music is obviously just the same. Thistledoo Nicely is a lively character who spends and spends and spends with her credit card buying the latest fashion and never worries about having to pay the bills. Her music reflects her excitement when shopping and het ‘happy go lucky’ approach to life. Marsyn Edginton is the Lord of the manor the richest man in town the‘big cheese’ the man with all the power and of course the biggest house. He is very grand and his music like he could be a king. Jimmy McScotsmyn is a red haired scotsman wearing tartan cap. He misses his home country terribly and eatslots of shortbread oatcakes scotch eggs porridge and drinks an enormous amount of Scotch Wisky which helps him to have fond memories of the kind of music he would like to dance to when he was a younger man. His favourite dance is a Jig andthis is the music he remembers. Grand March of the Durkle Bandrydgators. We hope that you have enjoyed meeting these characters from Drukle Bandrydge and would invite you to listen to all the villagers now march along in a grand parade -it is a pity that you can not see them what is a wonderful sight. If you listen carefully you will hear the melodies which belong to the characters as they march past. Oh what a grand spectacle!

Beating a drum is fun. Beating a big drum is even more fun. Being a soloist and beating a bass drum is best of all. In 'Big Fun on the Bass Drum' the dream of every starter percussionist is realized. He/she is soloist and is allowed to really beat the drum hard without the conductor putting a stop to it but beware: a new skin is rather expensive. 'Big Fun on the Bass Drum' is not only about hitting as hard as you can though. A lot of attention is paid to playing the bass drum very softly. And what is more the composer has found room to offer the soloist a real cadenza - at this point in the composition he/she can either play the partprescribed or give the audience an improvisation of his/her own.

Hymnus was commissioned by the Wilhelmina Easterein Fanfare Orchestra in the Autumn of 1999 for their performance at the World Music Contest Kerkrade. The commission was the result of a collaboration between the composer and the thenmusical director Marten van der Wal. The exact meaning of the word Hymnus is not known but it is taken in this presentation to mean hymn or hymn-like. The melodic material is organic and grows from an initial unison tone. Thisinterval is gradually expanded to form the cell F E C F a semitone third fifth. The only other melodic motif is the ascending three-note pattern spanning a major third. This is the second of his compositions to use this ascending motif theother being Fanfare for a Bright New Age for Brass Band and Organ also of 2000. These characteristic intervals appear in many contrasting moods and guises throughout the piece. The opening unison notes are intended to convey as sense ofpower and magnificence like the first sounds at the dawning of the universe. After the immense power a period of stunned silence and reverence. The evolution of the hymn melody incorporates a variety of moods and atmospheres sometimes expressing much joy and celebration whilst also suggesting periods of intense savagery or prayerful contemplation. The hymn builds as the piece progresses and is finally stated in its complete form at letter W. The official worldpremiere of the work was given by Wilhelmina Easterein at the World Music Contest 2001. Whilst the composer was unable to attend in person he was able to enjoy the premier simultaneously transmitted via a mobile phone from the audience! Conductors Note The tempo indications are to be viewed as a guide rather than a literal instruction. Within the music there is an innate sense of pulse and metre lending itself to considerable rubato. Melody is king and all else is mere support and decoration careful attention must therefore be given to balance.

A Wedding Bouquet was the idea of Lord Berners who wanted Frederick Ashton to make a ballet pantomime out of one of Gertrude Stein's plays and who both wrote the music and designed the 'decor' and costumes. The name ofthe play was 'They must be Wedded to Their Wife' but this was thought too long for advertising and was changed to A Wedding Bouquet. Lord Berners went to visit Gertrude Stein in Bilignin and she liked the idea and he foundin her house a carpet which gave him the pattern for the backcloth for the ballet.The ballet was first spoken of as a choral ballet and the opera chorus did sing or chant the words at the early performances but it was entirelyunlike any other choral ballet before or since. The words explained the action introduced the characters made utterly irrelevant comments worked themselves into a frenzied rhythmical accompaniment or injected on occasional aptphrase that devastated dancers and audience alike. Not all of the words have ever been really intelligible but gradually the audience got to know certain phrases by heart and the ballet has a devoted public although inevitably ithas always been a rather special one and to this day there are people who detest the whole affair don't 'understand' it and think it an absurd waste of time and talent.

Par HESKETH KENNETH. 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 a colourful, 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. / Niveau : Assez Facile / Répertoire / Brass Band

Par MANTOVANI BRUNO. Contrary to what one might think, it is particularly difficult to write a solo or concertante work for an instrument that a person is very familiar with. Whenever I encounter this situation, I always feel a certain reserve or prudence, or even apprehension about leaning toward facility, in terms of gestures. Lack of objectivity can result in the imagination being more instrumental than purely musical. However, when Benoît Cambreling came to me proposing that I write a concerto for timpani, I did not hesitate for an instant because this instrument possesses extraordinary and often under exploited musical potential. This percussion instrument often provides a type of harmonic and rhythmic base in the orchestra, but can also assume the role of a soloist. I began by writing an etude for solo timpani making use of glissandi, rhythmic inflections, as well as the melodic potential. Once this first step was completed, I began to 'orchestrate' the etude, or rather to extend the instrumental material into the orchestra by creating illusions of resonance, doublings, and echoes. Sometimes, the timpani also become a reservoir of ideas for the orchestra capable of triggering textures (as in instrumental electronic music). Here however, the instrument is above all treated in a melodic manner, reinforced, or not, by orchestral instruments that create a backdrop and the illusion of extension./ Répertoire / Timbales et Orchestre

‘Circus Delight’ is a five-part suite which is set how could it be otherwise in a big circus tent. The suite starts with a part called ‘Entrance’. The orchestra positioned above the entrance of the ring asks for the attention of the audience and then the ring announcer enters. The show can begin! The elephants play a central role in the first act. These colossal grey animals are rather slow and perform their tricks in a moderate tempo. (‘Elephant Blues’) How different are ‘The Acrobats’. At high speed they run jump and fly through the ring until ....... It gets very exciting. Fortunately all’s well that ends well and they take their leave of the audienceat a trot. Everyone knows and yet it is mostly not spoken about that when a clown has taken off his red nose and rubbed off his make-up his face off-stage is not always a happy one. (‘Tears of the Clown’) The piece ends on a cheerful note with ‘The Parade’ in which all the artists make their entrance in the ring once again to gratefully acknowledge the audience’s overwhelming applause.

Richard Rodney Bennet’s Symphony No. 3 commissioned for the 1987 Three Choirs Festival by the Elgar Foundation with additional funds from West Midlands Arts is now published in a facsimile study score.In contrast with his first two symphonies which were rather extrovert display pieces Symphony No. 3 is quite thoughtful and lyrical in nature more or less monothematic and has a strong feeling of tonality particularly at the opening and closing of the score. The more moderate orchestration (2 Flutes Oboe Cor Anglais 2 Clarinets in B flat Bassoon 2 Horns in F Percussion 1 (small Triangle Tam-tam 3 suspendedCymbals) Percussion 2 (side Drum tubular Bells) Timpani Piano Harp and Strings) also reflects this. Performance time of the three movements is ca. 22 minutes.Sir Richard Rodney Bennett was an English composer of film TV and concert music and also a jazz pianist. He was based in New York City from 1979 until his death there in 2012.

Par ANDERSON LEROY. Like most of Leroy Anderson\'s efforts, Belle of the Ball is light, effervescent, and devoid of conflict or disharmony. Anderson looked upon the piece as a modern-day American revival -- or revitalization -- of the Viennese waltz tradition. Having said that, the main theme sounds rather unlike a Strauss waltz, but the voice of Tchaikovsky is evident in its playful, fantasy-like character. The melody is rhythmic and comes in short groups of notes, beginning with two notes, then three, then expanding further; the music skates along elegantly. The middle section features a delightful variation on the theme, in which Anderson\'s gentle-belled sonorities impart a playful innocence. This exclusive Southern band edition by Mark Rogers reintroduces Anderson\'s enchanting work to new generations of audiences. / Date parution : 2022-09-20/ Répertoire / Concert Band