Bassoon and Piano
SKU:
ST.C130
Composed by
Mark Tanner. Wind & brass
music. Clifton Edition
#C130. Published by
Clifton Edition
(ST.C130).
ISBN
9790570811304.
As I
sit myself down to write
this brief foreword, I
ask myself can there be
music more stirring than
these old Cornish folk
melodies? Though not
Cornish myself (I confess
to being born a little
further up the road, in
Bristol), I feel I have
spent sufficient time in
these 'ere parts to
resonate with the sturdy
brass band tradition that
continues to permeate
this incomparably
beautiful, rugged county.
One can almost detect a
French 'accent' when
listening to the piano
music of Debussy, and
likewise, speaking as a
lapsed brass player,
there is undoubtedly
something of the Cornish
twang about Trelawny when
played on a cornet or
euphonium. Then again,
one gets a different, yet
entirely convincing
effect upon hearing these
melodies rendered on
woodwind instruments;
hence, with a little
gamesmanship on my part,
I am pleased to see my
collection of these
fifteen delectable
ditties come to fruition
in the form of
arrangements for treble
clef brass instruments
(in B flat and E flat),
trombone and tuba (bass
clef), horn in F, flute,
clarinet and bassoon.
While many will find
themselves humming the
likes of Going up
Camborne Hill, Lamorna or
The Helston Furry Dance
even before they have
turned to the first page
- for these are indelibly
intertwined with Cornish
culture – I wonder if I
might draw your attention
to The Cornish Squire,
The Pool of Pilate and
Cold Blows the Wind Today
Sweetheart, which are
quite simply sublime
melodies, perhaps needing
that extra bit of help in
bringing them to mind
nowadays. In the best
tradition of musical
hand-me-downs, Cornish
folk music works equally
ideally sung and played,
and only by doing so on a
regular basis can such
traditions hope to
continue forward with
vigour and authority. A
legitimate way of
achieving this is to
revitalise the harmonic
scheme of these ancient
tunes and bring them up
to date for a modern
audience; after all, it
was such an approach that
fuelled the imagination
of Benjamin Britten and
Ralph Vaughan Williams in
decades past, while
skilfully paying homage
to the underlying charm
and, for want of a better
word, simplicity, of the
original music. But this
is only a start – for
without an energetic
response from younger
generations, Cornish folk
music is destined to
wither on the vine in
much the same way as is
happening with the
Cornish dialect. So, put
your instrument to your
lips and proceed, not
with caution, but with
enthusiasm and a smile,
for your great
grandparents (and perhaps
even their grandparents)
would surely raise a
glass if they could hear
you doing your bit to
ensure the survival of
this splendid
heritage.
Timeless
Cornish melodies, cooked
up for hungry clarinet
players
Grades
1–4
Former Spartan
Press Cat. No.:
SP1219.
Pool
