Take on Me

Recorded by Norwegian pop band A-ha in 1985, this familiar tune has taken on a life of its own, becoming one of the top selling singles of all time. Paul’s effective version for concert band provides plenty of variety in scoring and retains the exciting flavour of the original, including the signature half-time feel in the chorus.

A Shaker Gift Song

A Shaker Gift Song is a separate publication of the third song from Simple Gifts: Four Shaker Songs. The idea for separately publishing this movement came from a middle school band director, who thought it ideal for Grade 2 bands. It is based on the Shaker lullaby, “Here Take This Lovely Flower,” found in Dorothy Berliner Commin’s extraordinary collection, Lullabies of the World, and in Daniel W. Patterson’s monumental collection, The Shaker Spiritual.

This song is an example of the phenomenon of the gift song, music received from spirits by Shaker mediums while in trance. Although the Shakers practised celibacy, there were many children in their communities, including the children of recent converts as well as orphans whom they took in. Like many Shaker songs, this lullaby embodies the Shakers’ ideal of childlike simplicity.

The Best of INXS

Australian pop band INXS hit their peak of popularity in the 1980s, yet their distinctive brand of rock and dance music, along with an impressive string of hits, remains popular today. This hard-driving medley of favorites includes Need You Tonight, Devil Inside, Never Tear Us Apart, New Sensation, and What You Need.

Liberty Bell

Washington, D.C. native and legendary bandmaster John Philip Sousa (1854-1932) wrote a dozen operettas, six full-length operas, and over 100 marches, earning the title “March King”.  He enlisted in the United States Marine Corps at an early age and went on to become the conductor of the President’s Own Marine Band at age 26. In 1892 he formed “Sousa and his Band”, which toured the United States and the world under his directorship for the next forty years to great acclaim. Not only was Sousa’s band hugely popular, but it also exposed audiences all over the world to the latest, cutting-edge music, bringing excerpts of Wagner’s Parsifal to New York a decade before the Metropolitan Opera staged it, and introducing ragtime to Europe, helping to spark many a composer’s interest in American music.

Sousa originally wrote Liberty Bell in 1893. It features the chimes, perhaps in homage to the famous American landmark after which it is named. The march is now most famous for its use as the theme song to Monty Python’s Flying Circus.

God Rest Ye Merry Gentleman

The traditional English Christmas carol, God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen, has become a timeless Christmas carol finding its way into most church hymnals.  Additionally, various versions arranged in a variety of musical genres are broadcast throughout the holiday season on radio and television.  Artists from Bing Crosby to the American a cappella group Pentatonix have recorded versions of this ever-popular Christmas carol.

Anvil Polka

Albert Parlow was a German composer. As a military musician, he composed several naval marches. The popular “Amboss Polka” (Anvil Polka) was more of a coincidence. In 1852, Albert Parlow was the first German naval music master to set up the first German naval music corps. His march composition “Mit vollen Segeln” (With full sails) is the first German naval march to be put on record. After his regimental band was relocated to Rastatt in 1859, he often gave concerts in Baden-Baden. There he aroused the interest of Johannes Brahms, who entrusted him with the instrumentation of his Hungarian Dances Nos. 5, 6 and 11-16. Albert Parlow was music director of the Prussian Army until 1880. As an honorary laureate of European military music, he was from Emperor Napoleon III. highly decorated.

Using an anvil as a solo instrument surely is extraordinary. Albert Parlow puts it to the focus and became world-famous through his Amboss-Polka.

Silent Night

“Silent Night” is about a calm and bright silent night, and the wonder of a tender and mild newborn child, words written in 1816 by a young priest in Austria, Joseph Mohr, not long after the Napoleonic wars had taken their toll.

It was Christmas Eve, 1818, when the now-famous carol was first performed as Stille Nacht Heilige Nacht. Joseph Mohr, the young priest who wrote the lyrics, played the guitar and sang along with Franz Xaver Gruber, the choir director who had written the melody.

The composition evolved, and was translated into over 300 languages with many different arrangements for various voices and ensembles. It was sung in churches, in town squares, even on the battlefield during World War I, when, during a temporary truce on Christmas Eve, soldiers sang carols from home. “Silent Night,” by 1914, known around the world, was sung simultaneously in French, German and English.

Themes from 1812 Overture

This well-scored arrangement opens with the slow chorale-like theme from the beginning of the original overture. From there it builds to the familiar dynamic strains and powerful conclusion.

Fanfare for a festival

Fanfare for a Festival is a short fanfare for brass band.

Fanfare for a Festival was commissioned by Mark Bousie for the Sellers International Youth Band who premiered the work at the 2007 National Music for Youth festival in Symphony Hall, Birmingham, UK.

Londonderry Air

The “Londonderry Air” is an Irish air (folk tune) that originated in County Londonderry, first recorded in the nineteenth century. The tune is played as the victory sporting anthem of Northern Ireland at the Commonwealth Games.[1] The song “Danny Boy” written by English lawyer Fred Weatherly uses the tune, with a set of lyrics written in the early 20th century.

This arrangement for solo trombone by Bill Geldard is a well loved version of the melody, faithfully performed by our soloist, Lachlan Monk.

Gonna Fly Now

“Gonna Fly Now”, also known as “Theme from Rocky”, is the theme song from the movie Rocky, composed by Bill Conti with lyrics by Carol Connors and Ayn Robbins, and performed by DeEtta West and Nelson Pigford. Released in 1976 with Rocky, the song became part of 1970s American popular culture, after the film’s main character and namesake Rocky Balboa.

For the love of a Princess (from Braveheart) 

The main love theme from the multi Oscar winning film Braveheart written by James Horner, arranged for brass band by Andrew Duncan.

Pirates of the Caribbean (Soundtrack Highlights)

The atmosphere of the brilliant and successful Walt Disney film Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse Of The Black Pearl was partly defined by the exciting, dramatic and powerful film music of Klaus Badelt. With this excellent medley arrangement of the memorable themes, the adventure comes to life all over again! This set contains the score and a full set of parts for Brass Band, arranged by John Blanken and Ted Ricketts.

Oregon

This fantasy tells the story of Oregon, one of America’s north-western states.  Traveling by train on the Northern Pacific Railroad, the listener is taken through the fascinating Oregon landscape. Indians, cowboys, golddiggers and hooded wagons will file past on this adventurous journey. The piece has some similarities with a soundtrack of a movie. Various melodies, which could be the main themes of a movie, pass the review.

This composition is able to reach out and connect with people in a very strong way: powerful melodic material supported by interesting combinations of chords and rhythmic structures. It begins in a slow movement, introducing the first theme in minor. Then we hear in the following fast movement the trombones imitate the train, whistling the steam-flute. We hear the characteristic minor theme again, but now in different variants (also in major). The rhythmic structure of “western” stile and rock succeed each other. This is leading to the slow movement, where the signals of horns and trumpets introduce a wonderful lyrical melody.

After this characteristic melody, the fast movement appears shortly again, the trombones whistling the steam-flute again (now in major). We hear also some musical elements, that plays a part in the following Presto. Barchanges, jazzy chords, interesting rhytmic patterns (with bongo) and an original theme are the characteristics of this Presto. After this, the horns announce the last section of the piece. Interesting is the fact that we hear in this Allegro section a variant of the lyrical melody in the slow movement. Also the Presto theme returns shortly, followed by the Allargando, which is a grand characteristic end of a quasi-soundtrack. The movie of our travelling fantasy by train has come to an end.