Categories: SOLOS - B♭. Cornet/Trumpet with Piano, Michael Bennett Collection Composer: Michael Bennett
Grade 6 Duration 7.30
The Adagio for trumpet and piano begins with the trumpet playing a Scottish Lament with a minimal of piano accompaniment. This feeling of sparce accompaniment permeats throughout the work.
A short solo on the piano is followed by a new theme in three time. The first three notes of this haunting theme played on the trumpet serve as a leitmotif for the rest of the piece. The piano repeats this waltz - like theme in the higher octave giving the impression of a child’s musical box. The trumpet re-enters with ascending quavers, growing in intensity, which leads to the most exciting part of the piece with the piano having accented octaves in the left hand and dramatic arpeggios in the right. Descending quavers in the trumpet part and the leitmotif being shared by both instruments leads to the waltz theme being played in a slower tempo on the muted trumpet creating a feeling of peacefulness. A short piano solo is then followed by a recapitulation of the Lament before a tierce de picardie draws the work to a close.
Categories: SOLOS - B♭. Cornet/Trumpet with Piano, Michael Bennett Collection Composer: Michael Bennett
"Daisy" is a toy poodle, and a "Diva" !
Andante & Vivo for Daisy Dog was composed for my daughter Marie’s dog, Daisy, who is a toy poodle and a diva. The first three notes the trumpet plays in the Andante, C, Ab and Bb, form the basis for the whole piece. The Vivace, influenced by the French composer Bozza, is a fast version of what we heard in the Andante. The middle section which has the trumpeter playing four groups of triplets, each group higher and louder, is a sort of badinage between the trumpet and piano. A recapitulation of the earlier Vivace theme is followed by ascending and descending passages in the whole tone scale which is shared between the trumpet and piano and which ultimately brings the piece to an exciting end.
Categories: Quintets, Michael Bennett Collection Composer: Marc - Antoine Charpentier Arranger: Michael Bennett
Two of Marc - Antoine's greatest hits, including the Prelude to the Te Deum - the adopted tune for everything European from Champions League Football to the Eurovision Song Contest.
01. Prelude from Judicium Solomonis 02. Prelude from TE DEUM
Scored for standard brass Quintet :
1st. Bb. Trumpetr
2nd. Bb. Trumpet
French Horn - with alternative Eb. Horn part
Trombone in BC with alternative Trombone part in TC
Categories: NEW & RECENT Publications, Quintets, Michael Bennett Collection Composer: Michael Bennett
Composer and trumpet player Michael Bennett performs the opening section of his lastest work for Brass Quitet, but also available for Bb. Trumpet & Piano - The Declaration of Arbroath.
The composer writes :
I composed this piece for trumpet and piano to celebrate the 700th anniversary of The Declaration of Arbroath, one of Scotland’s most important artefacts. The Declaration is in the form of a letter, in Latin, submitted by the nobles of Scotland to Pope John XXII on 6th April 1320 to confirm Scotland’s status as an independant, sovereign country.
After a short introduction on the piano the trumpet enters with a melody which takes the form of a Scottish Ballad. The accompaniment on the piano is simple chords which grow in intensity as the ballad develops. After the piano repeats the melody in the high register the trumpet enters with a recapitulation of the main theme. The Andante draws to a close with the trumpet being accompanied by simple but effective arpeggios on the piano.
The Allegro Vivo is in the form of a Scottish Jig and is based on the Jacobite song “Oer the Water to Charlie”.The Jig starts in 7/8 and develops through 12/8 and 13/8 giving the feeling of turbulence. After a quiet muted section the Jig returns in its full glory with the trumpeter showing his virtuosity.
Categories: SOLOS - B♭. Cornet/Trumpet with Piano, NEW & RECENT Publications, Michael Bennett Collection Composer: Michael Bennett
Composer and trumpet player Michael Bennett performs the opening section of his lastest work for Bb. Trumpet and Piano - The Declaration of Arbroath.
The composer writes :
I composed this piece for trumpet and piano to celebrate the 700th anniversary of The Declaration of Arbroath, one of Scotland’s most important artefacts. The Declaration is in the form of a letter, in Latin, submitted by the nobles of Scotland to Pope John XXII on 6th April 1320 to confirm Scotland’s status as an independant, sovereign country.
After a short introduction on the piano the trumpet enters with a melody which takes the form of a Scottish Ballad. The accompaniment on the piano is simple chords which grow in intensity as the ballad develops. After the piano repeats the melody in the high register the trumpet enters with a recapitulation of the main theme. The Andante draws to a close with the trumpet being accompanied by simple but effective arpeggios on the piano.
The Allegro Vivo is in the form of a Scottish Jig and is based on the Jacobite song “Oer the Water to Charlie”.The Jig starts in 7/8 and develops through 12/8 and 13/8 giving the feeling of turbulence. After a quiet muted section the Jig returns in its full glory with the trumpeter showing his virtuosity.
Categories: Duets, Michael Bennett Collection Composer: Georges Bizet Arranger: Michael Bennett
Scored for two trombones with piano accompaniment. Parts included for trombones in TC and BC.
"Au fond du temple saint" ("At the back of the holy temple") is a duet from Georges Bizet's 1863 opera Les pêcheurs de perles. The libretto was written by Eugène Cormon and Michel Carré. Generally known as "The Pearl Fishers' Duet", it is one of the best-known numbers in Western opera.[not verified in body] It is sung by Nadir (tenor) and Zurga (baritone) in act 1.
Georges Bizet (French: ) 25 October 1838 – 3 June 1875), registered at birth as Alexandre César Léopold Bizet, was a French composer of the romantic era. Best known for his operas in a career cut short by his early death, Bizet achieved few successes before his final work, Carmen, which has become one of the most popular and frequently performed works in the entire opera repertoire.
During a brilliant student career at the Conservatoire de Paris, Bizet won many prizes, including the prestigious Prix de Rome in 1857. He was recognised as an outstanding pianist, though he chose not to capitalise on this skill and rarely performed in public. Returning to Paris after almost three years in Italy, he found that the main Parisian opera theatres preferred the established classical repertoire to the works of newcomers. His keyboard and orchestral compositions were likewise largely ignored; as a result, his career stalled, and he earned his living mainly by arranging and transcribing the music of others. Restless for success, he began many theatrical projects during the 1860s, most of which were abandoned. Neither of his two operas that reached the stage in this time—Les pêcheurs de perles and La jolie fille de Perth—were immediately successful.
Categories: SOLOS - ANY B♭. Inst., NEW & RECENT Publications, Michael Bennett Collection Composer: Michael Bennett
Written for unaccompanied Bb. Trumpet.
Elegy for McCrae
Elegy for McCrae was composed and dedicated to fellow Aberdonian, cellist and composer Kevin McCrae whose sudden and tragic death in April 2005 stunned the musical community of Scotland.
The piece for unaccompanied solo trumpet takes the form of a Scottish lament in which the interval of a diminished twelve permeates. There is also in the lower register a repeated figure similar to that of a leitmotif and echoes are also a feature of the piece.
After the initial lament there is an agitato section where the original theme is developed technically with cascading semiquavers and octave leaps. There is then a recapitulation of the original lament followed by a short Adagio which quotes in the minor “The Northern Lights of Old Aberdeen”.
As Michael Tumelty wrote in “The ( Glasgow) Herald” “Kevin was a Musician in a million. He was a joker, a great companion and a master of his art”.
Categories: NEW & RECENT Publications, SOLOS - B♭. Cornet/Trumpet with Piano, Michael Bennett Collection Composer: Frederic Chopin Arranger: Michael Bennett
Categories: SOLOS for Horn in F, Michael Bennett Collection Composer: Michael Bennett
In the 1960s Malcolm Arnold wrote a series of unaccompanied fantasies for the trumpet, horn,trombone and tuba. The pieces became very popular with generations of brass players. It was a great pleasure to meet Sir Malcolm a few years before he died and present him with copies of my Fantasies, telling him his own compositions were a great influence on me.
The Horn Fantasy is the third in a set of fantasies for brass instruments, and was first performed by Alison Murray ( RSNO ) on 3rd. of February 2003 at the Robertson Music Centre, St. Georges School for Girls, Edinburgh.
In memory of Cecil Kidd.
The opening of the horn fantasy owes much to the fantastic horn writing at the beginning of Richard Strauss’s ‘’Der Rosenkavalier’’.
The Andante that follows has the feel of a Scottish lament.
The Vivace which is a challenge to the players range and technique has in the middle section the unusual marking of ‘’alla drunk’’ which should be no problem to any self-respecting brass player.
Categories: SOLOS - Trombone, Michael Bennett Collection Composer: Michael Bennett
Difficulty - Advanced
Bass Clef & Treble Clef parts included.
In the 1960s Malcolm Arnold wrote a series of unaccompanied fantasies for the trumpet, horn,trombone and tuba. The pieces became very popular with generations of brass players. It was a great pleasure to meet Sir Malcolm a few years before he died and present him with copies of my Fantasies, telling him his own compositions were a great influence on me.
It was only after I had finished and heard the Trombone Fantasy performed that I realised the influence the Gordon Jacob Trombone Concerto had on the opening. The opening Brilliante is followed by a slower melodic theme very Celtic in style. This ends with the player having to hold a long F major chord.The Scerzando tests the agility of the performer with its range, flutter tongueing and glissandos. The piece finishes with a short recapitulation of the main theme.
Categories: SOLOS - B♭. Cornet/Trumpet with Piano, Michael Bennett Collection Composer: Michael Bennett
In the 1960s Malcolm Arnold wrote a series of unaccompanied fantasies for the trumpet, horn,trombone and tuba. The pieces became very popular with generations of brass players. It was a great pleasure to meet Sir Malcolm a few years before he died and present him with copies of my Fantasies, telling him his own compositions were a great influence on me.
The Fantasy for Trumpet opens with a call in C major but immediately rises a semitone to Db major. This move perpetuates throughout.
The slower section in five time includes calls using ‘’half-cocked valves’’ which gives the effect of being played off stage.
The Scherzando is based on the opening bars of the piece , there is then a short recapitulation of the main theme followed by two octave harmonic leaps which brings us to a close.
Categories: SOLOS - Tuba in BC, Michael Bennett Collection Composer: Michael Bennett
Dedicated to Eddie Paley. Solo parts included in TC and BC.
In the 1960s Malcolm Arnold wrote a series of unaccompanied fantasies for the trumpet, horn,trombone and tuba. The pieces became very popular with generations of brass players. It was a great pleasure to meet Sir Malcolm a few years before he died and present him with copies of my Fantasies, telling him his own compositions were a great influence on me.
The pioneering work of the late John Fletcher in showing what the tuba could achieve both musically and technically has raised the profile of the instrument enormously in the last forty years. The modern day tuba player has a versatility and range which has attracted many composers to write for the instrument.
The opening theme of the piece goes through various guises, as in the meno mosso,before ending dramatically with a thunderous pedal note. In contrast the Andante is a very peacefull Scottish theme which encompasses the full range of the tuba. The Allegro Vivace, influenced by the French composer Bozza, uses the Burn’s song ‘’ John Anderson my Jo’’ in the middle section. The piece ends with a short recapitulation of the Vivace theme.
Categories: SOLOS - B♭. Cornet/Trumpet with Piano, Michael Bennett Collection Arranger: Michael Bennett
Five classic trumpet tunes for those special occasions. Dedicated to John Gracie
Includes :
01. The Prince of Denmark's March by Jeremiah Clarke 02. Cebel by Henry Purcell 03. Rondeau by Marc-Antoine Charpentier 04. Trumpet Tune by Jeremiah Clarke 05. Trumpet Voluntary by John Stanley
Categories: SOLOS - ANY B♭. Inst., Michael Bennett Collection Composer: Michael Bennett
The Four Maries - dedicated to Maurice Murphy
A suite of four works for solo Bb. Trumpet
Mary Fleming
Mary Seaton
Mary Beaton
Mary Livingston
On the 7th August 1548 the six year old Mary Queen of Scots sailed from Scotland to France. With her were four little girls of noble birth known to prosperity as the ‘Four Maries’, Mary Fleming, Mary Seton, Mary Beaton and Mary Livingston. The word Marie has its etymological derivation in the Icelandic word ‘maer’ a designation given to a virgin or maid. It was used in Scotland for the maids of honour who attendant on the queen. After the death of her husband, the sickly Francis II of France, Mary just eighteen years old returned to Scotland in 1560 with the Four Maries. Just before ten o’clock on Wednesday 8th February 1587 at Fotheringhay Castle in England Mary Queen of Scots then aged forty-four , and in the nineteenth year of her English captivity was executed. Mary’s French personal motto, ‘En ma fin est mon commencement’, ‘In my end is my beginning’ has proved so true. Few lives have been held up to such detailed scrutiny and the Four Maries are part of this fascination that continues to exercise succeeding generations. The Four Maries even have a pub named after them.
I dedicated the piece to the late great Maurice Murphy and an extract from a letter he wrote to me shows how humble this great man was.
"Dear Mike
Thank you so much for the dedication of your composition to myself, I’am very honoured to think that I warrant such recognition. It was great to see you in Glasgow and to work again with my old pal John (Gracie). It is rather weird, I don’t know if you are aware of the fact, that the 7th August, the day Mary Queen of Scots sailed is actually my birthday."
To view 
