Cat No. JM36259
Price £104.99
Composer: Stephen Bulla
Category: TEST PIECES (Major Works)

Grade 5.0
Duration 11.10

Set as the Second Section test piece for the 2018 National Finals of the British Brass Band Championships of Great Britain - The Centaur, Cheltenham Saturday and Sunday 15th. & 16th. September.


Firestorm was composed by Stephen Bulla on the occasion of the tenth anniversary of the "United States Army Brass Band" and had its first performance at the Gala Concert of the North-American Brass Band Championships on 27th April 1991. The inspiration for this composition was the recent war in the Persian Gulf and its continuous presentation to the world through the medium of television. Bulla wanted to capture the emotion and color of the events of war as they were played out on the television screen. Composed as a single movement rhapsody, the work is framed by the riveting sounds of airborne bombing raids; brass and percussion combining to create a gripping sense of tension. The interior of the work is cast in flashback sequences The first features the comet section in a frenetic melody that captures the free spirited antics of a Baghdad market scene. Following is a poignant soliloquy depicting the calm, unspoiled beauty of the Iraqi countryside before its siege. These beautiful melodies are presented by the four "cornerstone" of the brass band: solo B-flat comet, E-flat soprano cornet, E-flat alto horn and euphonium. Stephen Bulla noted that his sense of inner creativity surrounding this project was directly related to the emotional impact of the war upon him. The final page of his score bears the following poignant inscription: "Completed February 26 1991, Kuwait liberated today".