Arr. Timothy Johnson. Par HAYDN FRANZ JOSEF. “He alone has the secret of making me smile, and touching me to the bottom of my soul, ” said Mozart about “Papa” Haydn and his music. The “Surprise” Symphony (No. 94), incidentally written during the final year of Mozart’s short life, has become one of Haydn’s most memorable works. Since this symphony was written during the zenith of the Classical period, Timothy Johnson’s skillful arrangement gives you a perfect opportunity to teach your young band “lightness” and control as essentials of Classical style playing. You can introduce the concept of making the staccato notes “separated” instead of just “short” in order to best approximate the sound of the times. It’s a naturalselection for your next festival or concert! Why not give your young band a chance to meet “Papa” Haydn through this charming arrangement? / Niveau : 1 / Répertoire / Concert Band ou Harmonie

To General George Washington. Par CURNOW JAMES. The grand and energetic opening, contrasting styles, careful attention to articulations, and rich harmonies make this one sound more advanced than it actually is. Consider using Heroic Tribute as the opening piece for your young band festival performance. The easy but bright and colorful Percussion, along with excellent use of the Woodwind and Brass sections, make this an ideal contest piece. There are plenty of teaching opportunities packed into this majestic new mini-overture for young bands. In fact, even if your band usually plays higher grade level music you should still give this one serious consideration. Occasionally it’s good idea to rehearse a high-quality easiercomposition, where your entire ensemble can concentrate fully on ensemble playing, phrasing, tone quality, etc. and not worry about just chasing notes. This piece provides great cross-curricular teaching opportunities with history. A great teaching piece as well as a gem in performance! / Niveau : 1.5 / Pièce de concert / Répertoire / Concert Band

To General George Washington. Par CURNOW JAMES. The grand and energetic opening, contrasting styles, careful attention to articulations, and rich harmonies make this one sound more advanced than it actually is. Consider using Heroic Tribute as the opening piece for your young band festival performance. The easy but bright and colorful Percussion, along with excellent use of the Woodwind and Brass sections, make this an ideal contest piece. There are plenty of teaching opportunities packed into this majestic new mini-overture for young bands. In fact, even if your band usually plays higher grade level music you should still give this one serious consideration. Occasionally it’s good idea to rehearse a high-quality easiercomposition, where your entire ensemble can concentrate fully on ensemble playing, phrasing, tone quality, etc. and not worry about just chasing notes. This piece provides great cross-curricular teaching opportunities with history. A great teaching piece as well as a gem in performance! / Niveau : 1.5 / Pièce de concert / Répertoire / Concert Band

Par CURNOW PAUL. Colorful lights, shining candles, sparkling bulbs, gifts beautifully wrapped and friends coming to visit. And with the friends come music, merry singing and joyous carols resounding through the house. When you think about and sing along to Good King Wenceslas and God Rest You Merry, Gentlemen, you can scarcely sit still. Then when Jingle Bells is heard, it seems as though you should stand and dance while singing. It is the Festive Season! / Niveau : 1 / Répertoire / Concert Band

Par VAN DER ROOST JAN. This piece was commissioned by the ‘Concert Band Vlamertinge’ and is a plea for peace: the title translates as ‘Peace on Earth’. This is expressed by means of the vocal contribution expected from the performers. In various places of the piece you can recognize, the words ‘Et In Terra Pax’ - an appeal for peace - at first jumbled together but later more rhythmically structured, developing into synchronized massed voices. The work starts with a pentatonic theme based on the notes D, E, G, A and C (taken from ‘ConCErtbAnD VlAmErtinGE’ and the name of the conductor, NiCk VAnDEnDriessChe). A somewhat sad melody is developed during an orchestral climax which leads to the firstexplosion of sound (measure 62 onwards). Suddenly the opening measures are recaptured, albeit with a differently colored sound: the words ‘Et In Terra Pax’ bring the first movement to a close. A restless Allegro follows which abruptly stops and is replaced by a calming cho-rale-like passage. A narrator reads aloud the poem ‘Sonnet’ by the young poet Charles Hamilton Sorley, who was killed during World War I. This poem fittingly puts into words the cruelty and senselessness of war. After the expanded recapitulation of the allegro, the broad, almost infinite atmosphere of the beginning returns. Clarinet and English horn play the pentatonic opening theme once more, this time broadly, while the words ‘Et In Terra. . . Pax’ are repeated again and again by the rest of the orchestra. The composer has purposely avoided all forms of aggression and bombastic sounds regularly used in works about war. Fear of violence and destruction can be heard and felt during the allegro passages. The charged opening makes way in the end for hope: May peacefulness replace cruelty in everyday life, too. / Niveau : 4 / Répertoire / Concert Band ou Harmonie

Par HIROSE HAYATO. For this work, the Japanese composer Hayato Hirose dug deep into his own imagination to fi nd the right inspiration. It is about a young boy who dreams about reaching paradise (Arcadia) and sets out on a journey to find it. This journey is long and treacherous, but despite the many challenges he faces, the boy finally does reach his Arcadia. The result is a very dramatic work that will take your audience on a breath-taking journey. / Niveau : 3 / Pièce de concert / Répertoire / Concert Band ou Harmonie

Par HANNICKEL MIKE. History! Introduce a bit of good old early-Americana to your audiences this year. GEORGE WASHINGTON SUITE is made up of three tunes known to have been composed for (or about) George and Martha Washington in their own time. Probably the best known of the three is the first movement, WASHINGTON’S GRAND MARCH, which is believed to have been written by Francis Hopkinson. He was one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence. The second movement has the delightful title “Fancy Menuit with figure Dance by Two young Ladies in the presance of Mrs. Washington in 1792. Phila. ” sic (The quaint original spellings and capitalizations are preserved here for historical interest. ) A fife-and-drum style arrangement of the BRANDYWINE QUICKSTEP completes this early American triptych. The stately and moderate tempos that fit the music of this era so well also ensure that the arrangements remain accessible to young bands. Add some good old early-American spirit to your upcoming performance with GEORGE WASHINGTON SUITE! / Niveau : 2 / Répertoire / Concert Band ou Harmonie

Par CURNOW JAMES. Fiddle tunes have been an important part of American music since her earliest days. You’ll enjoy James Curnow’s new suite based on two fiddle tunes from the Revolutionary War period. The first movement uses the flowing melody Lovely Nancy, which is about a beautiful two-masted sailing ship. The second movement comes from a knee-slapping fast paced dance tune called Hay Makers. This will be a wonderful contrast piece to use for that lighter moment in your concert. It’s always fun to explore band music that is a bit out of the ordinary! This one is great fun from beginning to end and carries a marvelous historic connection as well! / Niveau : 4 / Répertoire / Concert Band ou Harmonie

Par VAN DER ROOST JAN. A spectacular dive via an extended chromatic scale immediately submerges us in a charged and somewhat archaic-feeling atmosphere. Trumpets, horns and trombones resound in rhythmic patterns, buttressed by restless motifs in the percussion. A second theme, in the woodwinds, begins much calmer but is quickly pushed aside by that same brass offensive. This introduction is the musical expression of the sometimes tumultuous early history of the town of Peer in Belgium. It closes with a D scale played over two octaves and repeated three times, symbolizing the church steeples that dominate the townscape. Peer has the credentials of a town, and people should know about it. There followsa rhythmic, turbulent passage: in the course of history, Peer has not been spared the ravages of war, arson, occupation, epidemic and other evils. In contrast, a slow, pastoral, lyrical part expresses the periods of peace and prosperity the town has known, as well as the serene geographic setting that still characterizes the place. Various instruments in groups are developed in solo style while the accompaniment displays vast, painterly images of sound. Now and then an exotic intonation is heard: a variety of peoples and cultures have left their mark on the town. This episode of tranquility and peacefulness comes to a sudden end when, via a surprising, almost chaotic transitional passage, we are in effect transported back to our own time. A hopeful, festive march expresses the confidence in the future that the Royal Concert Band of Peer exudes. This confidence is wholly justified: under the direction of conductor Willy Fransen, the 95 members of the concert band have experienced an extended period of good fortune, and the 75 musicians of the youth band - and the 45 little musicians of the mini-band - are involved in thriving operations. / Niveau : 6 / Pièce de concert / Répertoire / Concert Band ou Harmonie