ROYAL
NORTHERN COLLEGE OF MUSIC FESTIVAL OF
BRASS,
Celebrating
Vaughan Williams
25-27
January, 2008
Artistic
Director Paul Hindmarsh previews a unique
weekend of the best of the British brass
band tradition
This
is the 13th year in which
I have planned the programmes for Manchester’s
Festival of Brass. It began as a BBC
Radio 3 series in 1991, when I was a
producer for that august radio station.
When the BBC decided to end the studio
series, Edward Gregson, Principal of
the Royal Northern College of Music,
took on the event as a public festival.
Under the umbrella of the RNCM, with
its vibrant brass tradition, I have
been able to expand the artistic agenda,
bring in the finest brass bands, ensembles
and soloists, with British music at
its heart.
Each
year I have tried to keep the diet of
music as fresh and inventive as I can
by looking into the archives to see
what treasures might be lurking there
ready for revival and re-assessment,
tapping into topical themes such as
anniversaries, featuring when appropriate
major new works that have proved successful
elsewhere, especially in the contesting
arenas and seeking out new writing that
I hope will inspire, surprise and sometimes
delight the audience and the musicians.
Celebrating
Vaughan Williams (1872 – 1958)
From
a purely musical point of view the performances
of Holst’s A Moorside Suite at
the National Brass Band Championships
of 1928 was a turning point in the history
of the British brass band movement.
The clarity and precision of the opening
Scherzo was a world away from
the usual test-piece challenges of the
day. Holst devoted considerable time
to writing for amateurs and young people
and after the success of Moorside
he maintained close contacts with
the brass band movement, especially
the Carlisle St. Stephen’s Band. He
encouraged his great friend, composer
and conductor William Gillies Whittaker
(1876 – 1948) to work with the band
when he was planning to write a brass
band work of his own. He never did,
but the fruits of Holst’s influence
can be heard on 26 January, when Brighouse
& Rastrick (Alan Morrison) give
the world premiere of Whittaker’s Suite
of North Country Folk Tunes in Ray
Farr’s realisation.
Holst
may well have influenced his other great
musical friend, Ralph Vaughan Williams
(RVW) to write for brass band. The 50th
anniversary of his death in 1958 affords
a prime opportunity for reviving all
his brass band music and presenting
some new brass band versions of his
orchestral and wind band music. RVW
did not write extensively for brass
band but what he completed is of the
highest quality. The only work which
he scored for band himself was the dramatic
overture Henry the Fifth (Grimethorpe,
27 January). Late in his long life,
RVW was drawn to the brass band again
when he heard the International Staff
Band of the Salvation Army under its
legendary director from the 1950s and
1960s Bernard Adams. At the suggestion
of Philip Catelinet, a Salvationist
and the first soloist in the Tuba Concerto,
RVW wrote the band a sonorous Prelude
on Three Welsh Hymn Tunes (Cory,
26 January). RVW entrusted the scoring
to Catelinet, as he did his masterly
Variations which also features
in the Brighouse concert. Although one
of his last works, it comes across with
a freshness that belies RVW’s great
age. To add a further dimension to this
50th anniversary tribute,
Grimethorpe Colliery will perform Herbert
Howells’ nostalgic suite Three Figures,
composed some years after the Variations.
A number
of new RVW arrangements will also be
premiered, the most substantial being
a 12-minute suite from his music to
the war-time film The 49th
Parallel (Foden’s Richardson, 27
January). This includes one of
his most celebrated patriotic melodies.
Phillip Littlemore and I have, we hope,
created something that will appeal to
brass bands at all levels of expertise.
As part of a course in scoring for brass
band at the RNCM, a group of senior
students have worked with me on another
Prelude on a Welsh Hymn Tune – Rhosymedre
(‘Lovely’). Vaughan Williams’ organ
original has been arranged for many
different combinations. The RNCM students
offer this band version as their anniversary
tribute in the first concert on 27 January.
The Leyland Band will be featuring a
brand new version of the effervescent
overture The Wasps, premiered
especially by one of the band’s resident
arrangers, and the band manager, Gary
Westwood.
Lloyd’s
brass symphony
George
Lloyd was a generation younger than
Vaughan Williams. Born in 1913, he was
an exact contemporary of Benjamin Britten.
His musical idiom was unashamedly old-fashioned
and romantic. Lloyd loved writing tunes
on a large scale. During his long life,
he completed 12 symphonies, the tenth
of which, subtitled November Journeys
is for symphonic brass. The second movement
reveals something of the source of Lloyd’s
inspiration – the devotional calm of
some of England’s great Gothic cathedrals
which Lloyd and his wife visited one
November. Symphony No. 10 has never
really found its niche in the repertoire,
so Luc Vertommen’s impressive brass
band version, which receives its world
premiere on 26 January in the Cory Band’s
concert is to be welcomed. Lloyd always
retained great affection for his Diversions
on a Bass Theme, which he considered
to be his best brass band work. Black
Dyke include this favourite work in
the opening concert of the festival
on Friday 25 January.
A
Philip Sparke retrospective
The
dynamic sound and consummate craftsmanship
of Philip Sparke’s music provides the
connecting thread of the RNCM Festival
of Brass next month. His work is present
in every concert as a tribute to the
substantial contribution to the whole
brass band repertory over some 35 years.
Sparke once said that he didn’t regard
himself so much as a composer as a provider
of music. How true that is depends entirely
on your interpretation of what being
a composer is all about and I have never
taken the remark that seriously. There
is an element of gebrauchsmusik,
or writing to order, about any professional
composer from the great J.S. Bach through
to the providers of film and stage music
today. The 2008 festival offers a varied
retrospective, including examples of
his lighter concert music – the haunting
Mountain Song from the Leyland
Band (27 January) and the bright and
breezy Jubilee Overture from
Foden’s Richardson (27 January) – to
some of his major test pieces. Philip
has developed a virtuoso technique as
a composer – the final section of Variations
on an Enigma, with its intricate
web of counterpoint and reprise, is
a tour-de-force. The energy, power and
ingenuity of Harmony Music (Brighouse
& Rastrick, 26 January) is a magnificent
compositional achievement. Year of
the Dragon (Cory, 26 January), now
a popular own choice selection for first
section bands in competition, is one
of his most engaging earlier works,
revealing his affection for American
music, especially the vitality of Leonard
Bernstein. Tallis Variations
(RNCM Band, 26 January) blends that
transatlantic idiom with a melody so
timelessly English, that I have programmed
it alongside other essays in English
pastoral landscape. In his talk on his
latest and in the opinion of many one
of his finest works, Music for Battle
Creek (Grimethorpe, 27 January),
Sparke revealed how instinctive his
approach to writing has now become.
This is absolute music – with no external
expressive agenda or programme – and
governing its progress is an emotional
journey born directly out of the musical
material. It shows the composer at the
height of his creative powers and will
be a fitting climax to the festival.
Out
of the depths
The
brass world is blessed with an unrivalled
depth of ‘low brass’ talent at the moment.
We are living through golden ages of
the euphonium and tuba – and along with
that a timely realisation of the full
potential of the baritone horn as a
solo instrument. Much of that is down
to the skill and artistry of Katrina
Marzella, current British Open Solo
Champion. David Childs (Cory) and David
Thornton (guesting with the RNCM) have
chosen euphonium works by Carl Rütti
and Peter Meechan, Joseph Cooke (Black
Dyke) is the soloist in Phillip Littlemore’s
arrangement of the RVW Tuba Concerto,
with its haunting slow movement, whilst
Leslie Neish (Foden’s Richardson) has
commissioned a brand new concert piece
for tuba from British Composers’ Award
winner Andy Scott.
The
RNCM is also delighted to welcome two
celebrated guest soloists, who will
also be giving Besson-sponsored masterclasses,
Steven Mead (appearing with Grimethorpe
in the final concert) and James Gourlay
(who will feature with Brighouse &
Rastrick). Steven’s major contribution
will be the flamboyant Concerto by Vladimir
Cosma, originally with wind orchestra,
but heard here in the brass version
by John Meredith. Gourlay has also opted
for something new and has invited Bruce
Fraser to write him a 12-minute concerto,
which is still ‘work in progress’. As
a tribute to Leslie Condon, one of the
SA’s most original creative voices,
who sadly died at 55 in 1988, James
will play his fine solo Celestial
Morn.
The
Festival also marks the 80th
birthday of composer Thea Musgrave with
a performance of her Variations,
the 50th birthday of Peter
Graham and the 50th anniversary
of the Scottish Amateur Music Association’s
ground-breaking commissioning policy.
Spooks
and other premieres
No RNCM
Festival of Brass would be complete
without its fair share of world premieres
and I am delighted to reveal that there
will be no fewer than 14 first performances
in January. Heading the list is the
world premiere of Spooks, an outrage
for bass trombone and ensemble by
Elgar Howarth. Commissioned by consortium
of British conservatoires, including
the RNCM, Spooks promises to
be a hugely entertaining work, especially
in the hands of soloist Mark Frost (27
January). Now in his last year
as College Principal, Professor Gregson
will conduct Black Dyke in the premiere
of a new extended version of Edward
Gregson’s Variations on Laudate Dominum
– he has added two new variations to
his much-loved work. Cory and Robert
Childs offer a second first performance
– that of Actaeon, a symphonic
poem by the band’s composer-in-residence
Gareth Wood. Brett Baker is going to
premiere a brand new concert piece for
trombone – Knightmare – from
Derek Bourgeois. Leyland band’s composer-in-residence
Simon Dobson has prepared a full version
of his much talked about European B
test piece from 2007, The Drop.
Choosing
the music is one thing, finding the
bands and conductors to spend time preparing
and then performing is another. Each
year, I am amazed at the commitment
and dedication the great bands and conductors
display in coming to terms with the
musical adventures they are invited
to play. The festival is so fortunate
to be able to call upon the skills of
the country’s leading bands and their
distinguished conductors. The Royal
Northern College of Music provides an
ideal setting, with its intimate performing
spaces and ample facilities. All it
needs is your presence in the audience
to make the 2008 Festival as previous
ones.
The Festival at a
glance
Friday
25 January 7.45 Haden Freeman Concert
Hall
Black
Dyke Band conducted by Nicholas Childs,
with guest conductor Edward Gregson*
Prelude
for an occasion* Edward Gregson
Diversions
on a George Lloyd
Tuba
Concerto Ralph Vaughan Williams
Joseph
Cook, tuba ( arr. Littlemore)
Variations
on an Enigma Philip Sparke
interval
Montage
Peter Graham Knightmare
Derek Bourgeois
First
performance
Brett
Baker, trombone
Variations
on Laudate Dominum* Edward Gregson
New version,
first performance
Saturday
26 January
10.00
– 11.00 Lord Rhodes Room
Besson
Workshop (1) James Gourlay showcases
some recent music for solo tuba
11.30
– 13.15 RNCM Brass Band conducted by
Nicholas Childs and Christopher Houlding
with an Inter-Collegiate Brass Ensemble,
directed by John Miller
RNCM
Brass Band (Nicholas Childs, conductor)
Little
Suite No. 1 Malcolm Arnold
Requiem
Paraphrases Peter Meechan
David
Thornton (euphonium)
Variations
Thea Musgrave
Intercollegiate
Brass Ensemble
Spooks
An outrage for bass trombone and
brass ensemble Elgar Howarth
Inter-Collegiate
Commission by members of Conservatoires
UK, first performance
Mark Frost
(bass trombone)
Interval
RNCM
Brass Band (Christopher Houlding, conductor)
A Forest
Symphony Gavin Higgins
Prelude
on Rhosymedre Ralph Vaughan
Williams
First
performance of this version (arr. Hindmarsh)
Tallis
Variations Sparke
14.00
– 19.00 Lord Rhodes Room
Inter-Collegiate
brass quintet competition
Test piece:
Mean Time Op.53 by Paul Patterson
14.00
Studio Theatre
Junior
RNCM showcase
15.00
– 17.00 Haden Freeman Concert Hall
Cory
Band conducted by Robert Childs
Prelude
on three Welsh Hymn Tunes Ralph
Vaughan Williams
Symphony
No.10 (November Journeys) George
Lloyd
First
performance in this version (arr. Vertommen):
Interval
Actaeon
Gareth Wood
First
performance
Metamorphosis
Carl Rütti
David
Childs (euphonium)
Year
of the Dragon Sparke
18.30
Lecture Theatre
The brass
music of Vaughan Williams and his composing
friends, with Ray Farr and Paul Hindmarsh
19.30
Haden Freeman Concert Hall
Brighouse
& Rastrick Band conducted by Alan
Morrison, with guest soloist James Gourlay*
Comedy
Overture John Ireland
Concerto
for tuba and brass band* Bruce Fraser
First performance
Macbeth
Peter Meechan
Interval
Variations
Vaughan Williams
Suite
of North Country Folk Tunes, II
(1933) W.G.Whittaker
First
performance (realised Farr)
Celestial
Morn* Leslie Condon Harmony
Music Philip Sparke
Sunday
27 January
10.00
– 11.00 Lord Rhodes Room
Besson
Workshop II Steven Mead’s euphonium
masterclass
11.30
– 13.15: Leyland Band conducted by Russell
Gray
Overture
The Wasps Vaughan Williams
First
performance of this version (arr. Westwood)
Vintage
David Gillingham Katrina Marzella
(baritone horn)
Infernal
Ride Kenneth Hesketh
Interval
Concert
March Arthur Denis Wright
First
performance
The
Drop Simon Dobson
First
performance of full version
Mountain
Song Philip Sparke
Titan’s
Progress Hermann Pallhuber
14.00
Lord Rhodes Room
Spotlight
Scherzo Brass Quartet (British
Open Quartet Champions, 2007)
15.00
– 17.00 Haden Freeman Concert Hall
Foden’s
Richardson Band conducted by Garry Cutt
and Bramwell Tovey
March Salome
William Rimmer
Jubilee
Overture Sparke
New Work
for tuba and band Andy Scott First performance
Leslie
Neish (tuba)
Suite from
49th Parallel Ralph
Vaughan Williams
First
performance (arr. Littlemore and Hindmarsh)
Interval
Life
Divine Cyril Jenkins
Masters
of Space and Time Bruce Broughton
A Moorside
Suite Gustav Holst
18.30
Lecture Theatre
Composer
Q & As with Philip Sparke
19.30
Haden Freeman Concert Hall
Grimethorpe
Colliery Band conducted by Allan Withington
with guest soloist Steven Mead*
Overture
Henry V Ralph Vaughan Williams
Euphonium
Concerto* Vladimir Cosma
(arr.
Meredith)
Three
Figures Herbert Howells
Interval
March Sea
Songs Ralph Vaughan Williams
Vocalise,
Fanfare and Rondo Gary Petersen
First
performance
Song
(In memoriam Bengt Eklund)* Frode
Ryland
Music
for Battle Creek Philip Sparke
BOOKING DETAILS
Concert tickets are
£12, Masterclasses £5. full festival
and day tickets which are discounted,
are also available, with concessions.
By phone
0161 907 5555
By post/in person
Box Office, RNCM, 124 Oxford Rd, Manchester
M13 9RD
By fax
0161 907 5330
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Opening times
Monday > Saturday
11am to 6pm or until 8.30pm on performance
nights and Sunday 1hour before the performances
between September and June.
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