Category: TEST PIECES (Major Works) Composer: Eric Ball
The 1st. Section test piece for the 2007 Regional Brass Band Championships of Great Britain. Last used in 1976 as the National Finals Championship test piece.
This work has three continuous movements subtitled : 1. Adventure 2. Exile 3. Homeward Journey Performance time 12.56
Short mp3 audio extracts are provided here to give you a sample of each movement. Access them by clicking on the "MORE DETAILS" button. You can buy the full recording of this work on the CD section of our site.
The recording is REGIONALS 2007 on Doyen DOY CD217
Categories: TEST PIECES (Major Works), NEW & RECENT Publications Composer: Philip Sparke
Grade 4.0 Duration 13.40
Sinfonietta: The Town Beneath the Cliff was commissioned by Holmestrand Ungdomskorps from Vestfold in Norway. The work is in four movements: a spectacular fanfare followed by a ‘moto perpetuo’-like toccata. The third movement Hymn is a beautiful piece of music allowing the band to show its musicality and sound. The last movement Scherzo Finale opens with a short phrase from Holmestrand’s own ‘town song’ – Holmestrandsangen, which comes again in full at the end of the piece, accompanied by a florid passage based on the opening theme.
Categories: TEST PIECES (Major Works), NEW & RECENT Publications Composer: Philip Sparke
Grade 4.0 Duration 13.40
Sinfonietta: The Town Beneath the Cliff was commissioned by Holmestrand Ungdomskorps from Vestfold in Norway. The work is in four movements: a spectacular fanfare followed by a ‘moto perpetuo’-like toccata. The third movement Hymn is a beautiful piece of music allowing the band to show its musicality and sound. The last movement Scherzo Finale opens with a short phrase from Holmestrand’s own ‘town song’ – Holmestrandsangen, which comes again in full at the end of the piece, accompanied by a florid passage based on the opening theme.
Categories: TEST PIECES (Major Works), NEW & RECENT Publications Composer: Etienne Crausaz
Duration 9.00 Level of Difficulty = 3
Set as the 4th. Section Test Piece for the 2019 Dutch National Championships
The work was originally composed for the 2018 Fête Cantonale Festival in Switzerland, and opens with a simple fanfare consisting of five consecutive rising notes. The central section touches on renaissance music but with modern harmonies before ending in a festive climax
Instrumentation :
1 x Eb Soprano Cornet 2 x Solo Bb Cornet 1 & 2 2 x Solo Bb Cornet 3 & 4 1 x Repiano Bb Cornet 2 x 2nd Bb Cornet 2 x 3rd Bb Cornet 1 x Bb Flugel Horn 1 x Solo Eb Horn 1 x 1st Eb Horn 1 x 2nd Eb Horn 1 x 1st Bb Baritone 1 x 2nd Bb Baritone 1 x 1st Bb Trombone 1 x 2nd Bb Trombone 2 x Bass Trombone 2 x Bb Euphonium 2 x Eb Bass 2 x Bb Bass 1 x Timpani 1 x Mallet Percussion 1 x Percussion 1 1 x Percussion 2
Category: TEST PIECES (Major Works) Composer: Etienne Crausaz
Grade 5.0 Duration 13.23
Sinfonietta No. 3 was commissioned by the Association Suisse des Musiques (ASM) for the Fête Fédérale des Musiques in Montreux in 2016. It’s a challenging and energetic piece in which lyrical material is altered by rhythmical patterns, jazzy elements and several cadenzas for different instruments.
Categories: NEW & RECENT Publications, TEST PIECES (Major Works) Composer: Etienne Crausaz
SINFONIETTA NO. 4
This work was composed for the occasion of the 28. Fête Cantonale des Musiques Vaudoises (28th Music Festival of the Canton Vaud), taking place in the Valley of Joux in June 2018. The music begins with a very simple fanfare consisting of five ascending legato notes which constitute the fundamental framework of the piece. This contrasts with the more cantabile sounding theme we hear after. The following Allegro section uses the sequence in a contrapuntal style reminding us of the Renaissance period, but with more modern day harmonies. Two solo cadenzas played by cornet and euphonium initiate the middle section, in which a theme also based on the sequence builds uptowards the climax of the piece. The sequence in the last section is played in ¾ time but gives the feeling of a “one to the bar” beat. Shortly before the festive finale, the music heard in the middle part resumes.
Category: TEST PIECES (Major Works) Composer: Johan de Meij
Sinfonietta No. 1, written for brass band, was commissioned by the Dutch National Championships 2011 in Groningen. It also served as the test piece for the Swiss National Championships 2011 in Montreux, Switzerland. Unlike most of Johan de Meij's compositions, Sinfonietta No. 1 is an abstract, non-programmatic work. It consists of three movements, in which the thematic material of the opening measures - an upward fifth jump - returns in various shapes and forms throughout the piece. The slow middle section features solo passages by cello, English horn and bassoon, all starting with the same fifth jump. The final movement presents an Elgar-like march theme,interspersed with quotes from the second movement, and ending with the opening theme of movement I.
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