An offbeat collection of music by composers working in the British brass band tradition, this NMC release doesn't have a weak moment. The program opens with an arrangement for brass band of Britten's orchestral Occasional Overture of 1946; the rest of the music is more recent and intended for a band in its original incarnation. The pieces are all linked to the theme of war, some loosely and others quite vividly. Sample Voices (In Memoriam) by contemporary composer Lucie Pankhurst, with its haunting opening text, a letter ...
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An offbeat collection of music by composers working in the British brass band tradition, this NMC release doesn't have a weak moment. The program opens with an arrangement for brass band of Britten's orchestral Occasional Overture of 1946; the rest of the music is more recent and intended for a band in its original incarnation. The pieces are all linked to the theme of war, some loosely and others quite vividly. Sample Voices (In Memoriam) by contemporary composer Lucie Pankhurst, with its haunting opening text, a letter written from the trenches at Christmas of 1914. Another highlight is the final Toccata by Gavin Higgins, a part of the collaborative Divisions after Benjamin Britten, in which Britten's St. Edmundsbury Fanfare is interspersed with music by other composers. The Toccata is one of the most brilliant brass works to come along in some time, and the Tredegar Town Band is entirely equal to its challenges. It's one of two bands heard on the album; both are technically well equipped. This is a...
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