This is the fifth and
latest instalment in a series which
aims to record Sousa’s complete works
for wind band, including 136 marches.
Previous issues in the series have been
well-received by MusicWeb reviewers
(see below for links). In addition to
a good selection of short marches, this
disc contains some variety in form of
the three-movement suite Cubaland
and the Charlatan Waltzes.
Personally I don’t take this composer’s
music very seriously but, on the right
occasion, it can be great fun.
Cubaland was
written following a holiday Sousa took
in Havana in 1924. Each movement depicts
the rule of a different government (I
– Spain; II – USA; III – Cuba) and quotes
themes drawn from the relevant country
(e.g. Swanee River in the second
movement). The work is generally light-hearted
and, if played blind, I suspect it might
not be immediately obvious who composed
it (unlike the rest of the disc).
The waltzes derive
from The Charlatan, an operetta
produced in Montreal, New York and London
(where it was known as The Mystical
Miss) around the turn of the 20th
century. Sousa in triple, rather than
common, time is just as mercurial as
ever.
Three of the marches
were familiar to me from a Mercury disc
recorded at least 20 years ago and featuring
the Eastman Wind Ensemble under Frederick
Fennell, i.e. The Thunderer,
Pride of the Wolverines and Sabre
and Spurs. Other highlights are
The Diplomat (said to be one
of Sousa’s favourites) and The Atlantic
City Pageant, written in 1927 for
a beauty contest. This piece concludes
the disc in rousing fashion and spawned
the amusing photograph on the booklet
cover. This depicts Sousa waving his
baton, apparently at several contestants
who were elegantly arranged on the deck
of a ship.
As in previous issues
in this series, Keith Brion conducts
the Royal Artillery Band, whose playing
is both euphonious and mellow. They
tend to play down the potential brashness
in the music, certainly by comparison
with the Eastman Wind Ensemble in the
pieces mentioned above. It is notable
that, in all three, Brion adopts slower
tempi than Fennell. Preference between
the two is a matter of taste and might
also be a question of mood.
I have no criticisms
of the recorded sound, nor the documentation,
which provides valuable short notes
on each piece by the conductor.
Collectors of this
series should not be disappointed. If
you already have recordings of Sousa’s
most famous marches (e.g. Stars and
Stripes Forever, Liberty Bell, Washington
Post etc.), this disc would be an
excellent way of sampling some less
familiar fare.
Patrick C Waller
Links to reviews of
previous issues in the series :
Volume 1 : http://www.musicweb-international.com/classrev/2001/Apr01/sousa.htm
Volume 2 : http://www.musicweb-international.com/classrev/2001/Oct01/Sousa2.htm
Volume 3 : http://www.musicweb-international.com/classrev/2003/Apr03/sousa3.htm
Volume 4 : http://www.musicweb-international.com/classrev/2004/Feb04/sousa4.htm
Royal Artillery Band/Keith Brion 