Cat No. JM44191
Price £14.95
Composer / arranger: Rodney Newton
Category: SOLOS - Tuba in BC

This work was commissioned by the tuba virtuoso James Gourlay in celebration of the new Millennium and may be regarded as a musical journey from darkness to light. There are four sections played without a break: Into the Unknown (Lento) two dark chords are answered by a rising phrase from the soloist. Material is passed from the band to the soloist and back, rising and falling in emotional intensity. The atmosphere of this opening section is questioning and uneasy and, after a powerful central climax, subsides and leads directly to the second section Hazards (Allegro agitato). The music is fast and edgy with the use of odd metres giving the music a frantic, awkward feel. Eventually, after two short cadenzas for the soloist, the atmosphere becomes calmer and the third section, Reflections (Adagio ma con moto), is reached. This passage is of a lyrical nature and the harmonic landscape more consonant. A warm climax brings a sense of relief and from here onwards the mood lightens until we reach the final section, Into the Light (Allegro con brio). The soloist plays a broad, lydian mode melody surrounded by swirling figures in the accompaniment. This gives way to a central fugal section of a slightly capricious nature before the main theme reappears. The fugal material is reprised and the work ends with the primary material stated in a triumphant blaze of sound.