Simon Dobson wrote his 'Four Sketches' at the request of Peter Bossano Head of Brass at the Royal College of Music in recognition of the 25th anniversary of Benjamin Britten’s death. The first movement 'Fanfare' quotes directly from the opening violin melody from Britten’s song cycle Les Illuminations. This melodic line is superimposed upon sonorous Lydian mode chords to project a majestic sound. The second movement 'Prayer' is a definite contrast being and much more reflective and pensive in it’s mood and featuring a dream like euphonium cadenza. The third movement 'Funeral March' builds from a soft chordal opening to a chaotic and confusedfortississimo climax with flourishes in the cornets and pounding tri-tones across the basses before plunging into silence for a flugel cadenza to finish. The final Finale movement is much more positive from the off with its jaunty melodies over a Brittenesque ostinato. The block chordal passages offer a crashing climax making for an exciting conclusion to an excellent new work for the medium. Simon Dobson’s 'Four Sketches' was the winning entry in the European Brass Band Composer Competition held in Brussels in March 2002.
