Par BOSVELD JAN. Shortly after the Second World War, a combative movement of Danish, Belgian and Dutch artists chose the cobra snake - extremely dangerous yet considered sacred - as a symbol of their resistance to strict guideliness of form. The name 'Cobra' also happens to contain the first letters of the cities Copenhagen, Brussels ans Amsterdam, from where most of the movement's members came. The Cobra movement, which existed from November 1948 until November 1951, can with some justicication be called the last major avant-garde movement of the 20th century. The source of inspiration for the composition Cobra comes from four paintings: 'Obhobning' by the Dane Egill Jacobsen; 'La jeune fille et lamort' by the Belgian Pierre Alechinsky; 'Orgeldraaier' and 'Le rythme joyeux de la ville' by the Dutch artists Karel Appel and Corneille. Obhobning means 'pile-up', which is represented musically in the first part by a melodic and harmonic pilling up of perfect fourth's. The first part is also characterized by a rhythmic feeling, which the painting gives through its use of numerous black stripes. In the painting La jeune fille et la mort, Pierre Alechinsky places a young girl opposite Death. The second part features the constantly pulsating motion of live while a creeping, dark, melodic line develops. The tension between life and death is tangible as a battle reveals itself. In part three, one hears the Orgeldraaier by Karel Appel, as cheerful and playful as an organ grinder's music. The painting Le rythme joyeux de la ville by Corneille is busy and extremely dynamic, a perfect source of inspiration for a powerful, rhythmic ending to this composition. / Niveau : 4 / Pièce de concert / Répertoire / Concert Band ou Harmonie

Anton Bruckner (1824-1896). Par BRUCKNER ANTON / DOSS THOMAS (Arr.). Anton Bruckner (b. 4.9.1824, Ansfelden, d. 11.10.1896, Vienna) didn?t have it easy. Throughout his life, the Austrian composer was plagued by self-doubt. Anton Bruckner came from a simple, rural background. After the death of his father, he was accepted as a choirboy at the monastery of Sankt Florian in 1837. After several years as a school assistant and his own organ and piano studies, he first worked as organist in St. Florian, then from 1855 as cathedral organist in Linz. Introduced to music theory and instrumentation by Simon Sechter and Otto Kitzler, he discovered Richard Wagner as an artistic role model, whom he admired throughout his life and also visited several times in Bayreuth. In 1868 Anton Bruckner became professor of basso continuo, counterpoint and organ at the Vienna Conservatory; ten years later court organist; and in 1891 finally honorary doctor of the University of Vienna. He was considered an important organ virtuoso of his era, but had to wait a long time for recognition as a composer. It was not until Symphony No.7 in E major, composed between 1881 and 1883, with the famous Adagio written under the effects of Wagner's death, that he achieved the recognition he had hoped for, even if he was reluctant to accept it given his inclination towards scepticism and self-criticism. Anton Bruckner was a loner who did not want to follow a particular school or doctrine. He composed numerous sacred vocal works, such as his three masses, the Missa Solemnis in B flat minor (1854), the Te Deum (1881-84) and numerous motets. As a symphonic composer, he wrote a total of nine symphonies and many symphonic studies from 1863 onwards, tending to revise completed versions several times over. Bruckner's orchestral works were long considered unplayable, but in fact were merely exceptionally bold for the tonal language of their time, uniting traditions from Beethoven through Wagner to folk music, on the threshold between late Romanticism and Modernism. Anton Bruckner composed about 40 motets during his lifetime, the earliest a setting of Pange lingua around 1835, and the last, Vexilla regis, in 1892. Thomas Doss has compiled some of these motets in this volume for symphonic wind orchestra. These motets show many characteristics of personal expression, especially Bruckner's colourful harmony in the earlier works, which is in places aligned with Franz Schubert (changes between major and minor; and movements in thirds). Later works are characterised by many components which, in addition to the expanded stature of the movements, include above all a sense of the instrumentation as an outward phenomenon and the harmony as a compositional feature that works more internally. Some aspects of Bruckner's work are the result of his long period of study, which familiarised him not only with the tradition of his craft, but also gave him insights into the 'modernity' of his time in such composers as Wagner, Liszt and Berlioz. From this developed his personal standpoint, which always pursues the connection between the old and the new. / Date parution : 2023-08-12/ Répertoire / Concert Band/Harmonie

Arr. Otto M. Schwarz. Par PRAETORIUS MICHAEL. The many sided and productive Michael Praetorius (1571-1621) is knwon as a composer of dance music, sacred music and music for the advent and Christmas time. He worked as Kapelmeister to the court at Wolffenbuttel, but he was also asked to serve in other places, includin Dresden. Praetorius was valued for the new impulses he gave to music by means of his use of instrumental accompaniment. His main contribution is his theoretical work 'Syntagma Musicum', one of the most important musical refernce books, in connection with instruments and instrumentation in the early 17th Century. 'Es ist ein ros entsprungen' is a well known ancient melody which has inspired numerous composers andarrangers througout the Centuries. Otto M. Schwarz has made a choral arrangement. / Niveau : 2 / Musique religieuse / Répertoire / Concert Band ou Harmonie

Arr. Otto M. Schwarz. Par PRAETORIUS MICHAEL. The many sided and productive Michael Praetorius (1571-1621) is knwon as a composer of dance music, sacred music and music for the advent and Christmas time. He worked as Kapelmeister to the court at Wolffenbuttel, but he was also asked to serve in other places, includin Dresden. Praetorius was valued for the new impulses he gave to music by means of his use of instrumental accompaniment. His main contribution is his theoretical work 'Syntagma Musicum', one of the most important musical refernce books, in connection with instruments and instrumentation in the early 17th Century. 'Es ist ein ros entsprungen' is a well known ancient melody which has inspired numerous composers andarrangers througout the Centuries. Otto M. Schwarz has made a choral arrangement. / Niveau : 2 / Musique religieuse / Répertoire / Brass Band

Par VERDI GIUSEPPE. The first critical edition of Verdi's Requiem with complete performance material for sale. The edition is based on the autograph as the primary source and makes accessible one of the most important requiem settings of the 19th century in a modern scholarly edition. In particular, articulation, phrasing and dynamics are often indicated more precisely than in previous, well-known editions. By means of parallel passages, editorial additions attempt to make Verdi's intentions clearer through the judicious use of diacritical markings. A clearly organized disposition of the engraved music makes the full score and vocal score easy to read. Outstanding legibility of the parts. With an excellently playable vocal score by Paul Horn in tried and true quality. As a reasonably-priced alternative, a choral score is also available. With a foreword in three languages and a critical report. Among Verdi's many compositions, as a work of sacred music, the Requiem remains unique. It was composed as a musical memorial for the Italian national poet Alessandro Manzoni, deeply admired by Verdi, and was first performed on the first anniversary of his death on 22 May 1874 in Milan Cathedral. The exploration of many extremes places Verdi's tonal language wholly in the service of a dramatized liturgy./ Répertoire / Choeur Mixte (SATB) et Orchestre

Of Noblest Cities is intended for a choir of between 12 and about 40 voices, although it may also be given by just six singers, one to a part (SSATBB). The piece can be performed unaccompanied, if no suitable organ is available, simply by leaving approximately two crotchet beats of silence between the end of the last note of one verse and the beginning of the next. Underlying the melody is a simple rhythm which is sometimes expanded or contracted. In the first verse the position of the main beats in this rhythm is made clear by the barlines. In the remaining verses, however, the barlines are only there to help the singers to keep together, and for convenience in rehearsal: singers should observe their own strong beats, which fall in different places for each part, and not regard the barlines as indicating downbeats. A few of the strong beats which underlie individual parts and appear to be contradicted by the barlines are marked by the symbol / . The words are a beautiful Victorian translation of a Latin hymn by Prudentius, which meditates on the story of the three wise men. Each verse is set to the same melody, in an increasingly rich counterpoint inspired by the wonderful sound of Tudor choral polyphony. An inspiring selection of new works from a range of contemporary composers, the Novello New Choral Series offers pieces for all types of choirs, including sacred and secular works from simple, four-part settings to more expansive, yet accessible, repertoire in an exciting variety of styles. Jeremy Thurlow is a composer, writer and pianist. His music has been described as 'seductive, innovative, full of freshness' by Henri Dutilleux. It has been performed by the BBC Philharmonic, the Fitzwilliam String Quartet, Rolf Hind, the BBC Singers, Endymion, Carmen Elektra, Peter Sheppard Skaerved, Matthew Schellhorn and Sequitur (New York), among others. In 2007 he won the George Butterworth Award for new composition. As a musicologist he writes on French music in the twentieth century. His book on composer Henri Dutilleux is published in French by Millénaire III, and he has written and broadcast on the music of Messiaen and many other 20th-century composers, frequently appearing on Radio 3's CD Review / Choeur SSATBB Et Orgue