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  • £113.30

    Moderate Dances - Angelo Sormani

    This piece is a tribute to dance music, especially passionate, intense and meditative dance music. "Moderate Dances" is divided into three movements: a "Tango", a "Slow Waltz" and a "Bossa Nova". Each movement and each dance has its own particular characteristics but, when combined, these different rhythmic beats and times give the piece a feeling of completeness and uniformity. The Tango started to flourish in the suburbs of Buenos Aires in around 1880. There is still some doubt as to its origins, which may be Cuban (Habanera) but are probably African. It was most popular in Argentina and Brazil: here the male protagonist was originally the "gaucho" with his inseparable guitar, later to be replaced by the proud, elegant "compadre". By around 1910 the Tango had spread to Italy and France. New clubs opened, where the upper classes could watch and dance the Tango. Here the dance also underwent some rapid transformations. The exaggerated and extravagant gestures and body movements disappeared. Slow, gliding steps replaced the old rotational movements. The women's red ankle-boots and the partners "staring into each other's eyes" accentuated the erotic nature and sensuality of this dance. So much so that, in 1913, the German government banned soldiers from dancing the Tango. Those who broke the law were immediately discharged from the army. From a strictly musical perspective, the basic instruments were a flute, a harp (the diatonic harp typically played by the Indians of Paraguay) and a violin, or flute, guitar and violin or even clarinet, guitar and violin. These instruments were easy to transport, ideal for playing at parties, in the streets and in courtyards. The musicians played by ear, frequently improvising: there were no scores, no records, which is the main reason why it is impossible to trace the Tango back to its exact origins. However, the Tango's evolution (and growing popularity) was once again fostered by its fundamental ability to absorb "other" cultures, languages and sounds. And it was the arrival of the "bandoneon" (an accordion-like instrument that was invented in Germany and brought to Rio de la Plata by some immigrant), which replaced the flute, that marked the beginning of the Tango's huge success outside Argentina. A number of talented composers, above all the great Astor Piazzola (1921-1992), transformed the bandoneon from a simple accompanying instrument to a solo instrument that was to become the distinguishing feature of the 20th century Tango. The Slow Waltz originated from the Waltz, the typical dance of the Bavarian and Tyrolese peasants in the 1700s. It was composers like Johann Strauss, father and son, who carried the Waltz to its zenith in the 1800s, creating the sensual and melancholy yet joyful and charming dance we are all familiar with. When the Waltz first became popular in Germany, the members of respectable society were shocked at the closeness of the dancing partners, who had always previously danced apart. The main difference between the Waltz and Slow Waltz is that the latter has a slower, more expressive rhythm: the men wear tails and the women wear ball gowns decorated with beads and feathers and couples dance in graceful rotational movements. "Bossa Nova" is the title of the last movement in the piece. Jobim, the great Brazilian musician, described this musical genre as a combination of modern Jazz and Samba. Bossa Nova means "new wave". This was the name of the artistic and musical movement that evolved in Brazil in the late Fifties and was extremely popular throughout the Sixties. The songs are usually about love or social matters, drawing inspiration from the slums of Rio De Janeiro and the lives of their inhabitants. Bossa Nova, with its original compositions and the artistic talent of its musicians, also became hugely popular in the United States and Europe, and top Jazz musicians (Ella Fitzgerald, Stan Getz, Bob Cooper, Charlie Bird, Sonny Rollins, Dexter Gordon, Dizzy Gillespie) started to include Bossa in their repertoires.

    Estimated dispatch 7-14 working days
  • £140.00

    Capriccio (Concert Band - Score and Parts) - Holst, Gustav - Noble, Paul

    The following notes have been excerpted by the arranger from those presented in the Introduction by Imogen Holst, daughter of Gustav Holst: Holst wrote this work in the spring of 1932, while he was guest Lecturer in Composition at Harvard University. He had been asked by Nathaniel Shilkret to write 'a short radio piece, not longer than five or six minutes.' for a composers' series on folk music themes. Holst wrote to me on 13 May 1932, saying: 'On May 1 I started sketching a piece for Shilkret's Radio jazz band in New York. I finished the sketch on the 4th and the full score on the 8th... Shilkret wanted something on American airs but I've left them out because I prefer my own so he may reject the thing.' Shilkret was enthusiastic about the piece, but he was unable to use it for his series. 'I hate to give it up,' he told the composer, 'but I cannot play it because it is not based on a definite English or American folk theme.' Holst never revised his hurriedly-written work, probably because he had too many other things to write during the remaining two years of his life, when he was having to spend a good deal of his time in hospital. The autograph manuscript of his original full score is in the British Library, MS Add.47833. The work had no name: Holst referred to it either as his 'Jazz band piece' or as 'Mr. Shilkret's Maggot.' The score needed editing. There were gaps and patches, with incomplete dynamics and phrase marks. I made the version for orchestra and named it 'Capriccio' in spite of the viola's (now saxophone's) expressive opening, because from the moment of the marimba's first animated remark there can be no doubt about the mood of the music. - Imogen Holst (1968)

    Estimated dispatch 7-14 working days

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  • £250.00

    The England of Elizabeth,Three Portraits from (Concert Band - Score and Parts) - Williams, Vaughan - Noble, Paul

    This suite was derived from Vaughan Williams' score for the film, The England of Elizabeth, written in 1955. It was the composer's tenth of his 11 cinematic efforts and designed to serve a more descriptive role than other such scores, since the movie was a documentary featuring no action scenes, but lots of images of paintings, buildings, and the like. Composer Muir Matheson adapted this three-movement suite, probably shortly after the composer's death in 1958, though publication of the manuscript would not come until 1964. The first movement is entitled Explorer, and refers to Sir Francis Drake. Its music is mostly festive and colourful, but features interior passages of exotic flavor, similar in style to that of Vaughan Williams' then-recent Symphony No.8. The second movement is entitled Poet and, at about seven minutes, is the longest of the three in this 16 to 17 minute work. It also contains probably the score's best music, hardly a surprising result since the poet in question is Shakespeare, one of the composer's favourites and an inspirational springboard for so many other of his works. The mood is mostly subdued and Vaughan Williams presents lovely, if slightly somber music in the opening, and follows it with a hearty, folk-like dance tune. The latter part of this movement depicts Shakespeare as a noble, heroic figure in English history. The last movement, Queen, is devoted to Queen Elizabeth. It has a regal yet muscular manner at the outset, and features a gentle but somewhat disengaged middle section. It returns to the splendor and colour of the opening to close the work. This suite is important because it distills some of the best music from the film into a logically assembled structure. Program notes extracted from those of Robert Cummings.

    Estimated dispatch 7-14 working days

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  • £420.99

    Four Earth Songs (Concert Band - Score and Parts) - Putz, Marco

    The hymn Nun ruhen alle Wlder (Now All Forests Rest), arranged by J.S. Bach (No. 6, So sei nun, Seele, deine, from Cantata BWV 13), is a guiding light throughout this four-movement composition. Pu?tz wrote this work as a musical outcry against the wilful, profit-driven destruction of our environment. When Bach used the word "ruhen" (to rest) over 350 years ago, it probably had a different nuance from the meaning it has today. At the beginning of the 21st century - the so-called age of progress - "nun ruhen alle Wlder" should mean "now all forests die" . Massive industrialization and globalization, coupled with pure greed, corruption, political scandals, an ever-widening gap between the rich and poor, and other such senseless human actions, are pushing our blue planet closer and closer to the point of no return. This work is not intended to be a ranting accusation. It should remind us of the beauty and harmony that can exist all around us in nature, if we take care of it. Pu?tz hopes that this will, one day, help put a greater emphasis on humanity's survival, and coexistence with nature rather than the exploitation described earlier. All four texts were created by Australian poet Graeme King, whose works were discovered by Pu?tz, by chance on the internet. Pu?tz was especially captivated by King's clarity, and intrigued by the possibilities of adapting and melding the strong rhythmical structure of King's writing with his own musical language. The four movements are as follows: 1. Tears of Nature 2. Grrrevolution 3. Stand up! 4. Tomorrow The world premire of Four Earth Songs took place on 7 July 2009 at the 14th WASBE-Conference in Cincinnati (USA). This work is dedicated in friendship to Jouke Hoekstra, conductor, and the Frysk Fanfare Orkest (the Frisian Fanfare-Orchestra).Duration: 27:30

    Estimated dispatch 7-14 working days

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  • £89.95

    First Blow - Level 1 (Value Set) - Waites, Ernie

    The Value Set includes a score and 1 of each part.The aim of the book is to encourage group-playing in the early stages of learning. To this end, all the parts are deliberately simple and stick strictly to the four parts in the score. In addition there is percussion part (for which instruments should be chosen for each piece) and two learner parts (flute and trombone) for players who have learned only a handful of notes.Dynamics are not given - teachers should allow the players to try the pieces at different levels.The book is suitable for wind of brass bands (of a mixture of both!) and so far as possible, an equal number of players should be allocated to each part. If there is a lack of one of the parts, this part can be reinforced on piano, playing from the score.If clarinet players of a higher standard are available, they may prefer to play the 'upper octave' parts as this will brighten the overall sound of the band.Voices:Part 1 in C, Bb, Bb Upper Octave, EbPart 2 in Bb, Bb Upper Octave, Eb, FPart 3 in Bb, Bb Upper Octave, Eb, F, C BC, Bb BCPart 4 in Bb, Eb, C BC, Bb BC, Eb BCPercussionLerner FluteLerner TrombonePieces include:MarchPolkaShipsHymnCzardasStudy No.1NightfallStudy No.2CharlestonWaltzSlapstick

    Estimated dispatch 7-14 working days

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  • £85.00

    MOCKBEGGAR VARIATIONS (Concert Band) - Woolfenden, Guy

    Includes: Prelude, Theme and Five VariationsUnlike my other pieces for concert band, Mockbeggar Variations has no roots in any of my work for the Royal Shakespeare Company, but resulted from a commission by Robert Roscoe for the Berkshire Youth Wind Orchestra, with funds provided by the Berkshire Young Musicians Trust. Robert, on learning that I was stuck for a suitable title, and noting my penchant for the unusual, suggested the address of the Trust - Mockbeggar House - might take my fancy.The Prelude hints at the melodic and harmonic material of the Theme, which appears in the thirty-first bar, distributed between various solo instruments and small groups of players. The five succeeding variations are contrasted in mood, tempo, style and instrumentation.A large part of the score was written in a chalet high in the Swiss Alps with a continual clangour of sixteen different pitches of cow bell constantly ringing in my ears. There is no Mahlerian hint of this in the music, nor was my wife, Jane, successful in shooing the cows away or muffling their bells.....! - GW

    Estimated dispatch 7-14 working days
  • £407.00

    Symphony Nr. 3 Urban Landscapes Op. 55 - Franco Cesarini

    Fascinated by the beauty of Chicago, Franco Cesarini has translated his emotions into music: this is how Symphony No. 3 "Urban Landscapes" Op. 55, was born, a musical portrait of this metropolis overlooking Lake Michigan. The composition is divided into three movements: The Wrigley Building from Dawn to Noon, Blue Silhouette and Cloud Gates, which by sharing the same thematic material arranged in cyclical form, strengthen the overall cohesion of the piece. The first movement, preceded by a short slow introduction in which the main theme is presented in an almost dreamlike form, metaphorically represents the city at dawn. The sudden change of time symbolizes the start of activities with all its noises and sounds: you can hear the bell that announces the closing of the subway doors, the sound of cars speeding by, the siren of a patrol car. If the first movement represents the day, the second introduces a nocturnal environment: a melancholic melody played by the English horn anticipates a more animated tempo depicting melodies coming from jazz clubs. Powerful fanfares that take up the second theme of the first movement introduce the third movement. In this finale, the role of the two themes is reversed compared to the first movement and one takes the place of the other in a kind of games of mirrors. Symphony No. 3 "Urban Landscapes" Op. 55: a sumptuous musical portrait of the "Windy City".

    Estimated dispatch 7-14 working days
  • £41.50

    Rite of Passage - Brian Balmages

    A beginning band piece limited to a 6-note range, Rite of Passage will have your band playing together in very little time. Utilizing smaller chamber sections as well as the full band, this is an excellent teaching piece. With no clarinets over the break and no trumpets higher than a written A, this is a very easy Grade 1 concert march.

    Estimated dispatch 7-14 working days
  • £60.00 £60.00
    Buy from Peter Meechan Music

    Forgotten Children - Peter Meechan

    Forgotten Children is a short work for wind orchestra and electronic accompaniment. Adapted from it's original form (for brass quartet and CD, Forgotten Children was written for The Desert Winds and their conductor Chuck Maguire, to whom the piece is dedicated.Whilst conceiving the piece, the subject of the war in Syria dominated news headlines, specifically the refusal by Western nations to intervene. There were, of course, political reasons at the heart of the decision, complicated by a situation that no one understood in a country no one understands. The harrowing images of chemical weapons being used on children was seemingly not enough to persuade the West that their help was needed, but those silent voices fell on even deafer ears. They were, and still are, the Forgotten Children.Please download the electronic accompaniment below.

    Estimated dispatch 5-14 working days

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  • £43.00

    Integrity

    Larry Clark's music reflects a strong belief in the discipline and power of playing music as a means of encouraging character development in young people. With their strong melodic profile and the care taken in giving every section a chance to play the principal ideas, it is no wonder that even his easiest pieces have great appeal to young performers. Integrity is no exception and is an outstanding example of the Clark style at its best.

    Estimated dispatch 12-14 working days