Through the efforts of BASBWE many leading British composers have been persuaded to write, and then continue to write, for the medium. Equally the programmes of our regional and national conferences demonstrate a total commitment to the writing and performance of new music.

The profile of the movement and of its music is ever on the increase. Many of the leading Conservatoires now boast wind bands or wind ensembles, often deemed amongst the best in the country, whilst more and more groups, young and old are appearing at major concert venues including the Proms, South Bank, Bridgewater Hall and Symphony Hall. Our journal WINDS is a regular champion of music and events together with increasing exposure in other media, including BBC Radio 2, Radio 3 and Classic FM. It is evident also that the influence of BASBWE is felt strongly throughout the country, both through its membership and publications and through its extensive series of workshops, festivals, conferences and concerts.

From the main BASBWE website:

One of BASBWE’s most fundamental activities is to support the creation of new music. Somewhere, somehow, at some point in the early 20th Century. composers and professional musicians lost contact with the concert-going public and “contemporary music” lost its literal meaning – music of its time – and acquired connotations of difficulty, inapproachability, and an inability to connect with audiences.

It is BASBWE’s belief that repairing this link is fundamental to the continued development and success of both our medium, and that of “classical music” in general, in the 21st Century.

Since 1981 BASBWE has commissioned, either individually or in consortia, over 50 works. The College Commission Consortium, founded in 1994 and administered by the BASBWE Education Trust, has contributed a further 19 works.

BASBWE Commissions

1983

Philip Wilby Firestar (Music Sales)
Guy Woolfenden Gallimaufry (Ariel)

1984

Arthur Butterworth Tundra  (Vanderbeek
Joseph Horovitz Bacchus on Blue Ridge (Molenaar)

1985

David Bedford Sea & Sky & Golden Hill  (Novello)

1986

Guy Woolfenden Illyrian Dances (Ariel)

1987

Richard Rodney Bennett Morning Music (Novello)
Michael Ball Omaggio (Novello)

1988

George Lloyd Forest of Arden (Smith/Jenson)

1990

James MacMillan Sowetan Spring (Boosey)
Carl Davis Landscapes (Faber)
Martin Dalby Flight Dreaming (Novello)

1991

Paul Patterson The Mighty Voice (Studio)
Richard Rodney Bennett The Four Seasons (Novello)
John McCabe Canyons (Novello)

1993

Martin Butler Still Breathing (OUP)
Colin Matthews Toccata Meccana (Faber)
Richard Rodney Bennett Trumpet Concerto (Novello)
Michael Ball Chaucer’s Tunes  (Novello)
Michael Hurd   Plaine and Fancie (Novello)
Richard Gordon Smith The Bacchae

1994

David Bedford Susato Variations (Novello)
Allan Bullard Heritage (Da Capo)
Michael Ball Saxophone Concerto (Maecenas)
Martin Ellerby Paris Sketches (Maecenas)
Gary Carpenter Flying God Suite (Camden)

1995

Adam Gorb Bermuda Triangle (Maecenas)
Julian Johnson Breathing Space (Maecenas)

1996

Barry Forgie  Jazzin’ the Community (G & M Brand)
Edward Gregson Concerto for Piano and Wind (Maecenas)
Edward Newell  Sinfonietta (Tomus)
Adam Gorb Bridgewater Breeze (Maecenas)
Adam Gorb   Awayday (Maecenas)
Adam Gorb Euphonium Concerto (Maecenas)

1997

John Casken Distant Variations (Schott)
Samuel Becker Dances of Puck (Bandleader)
Philip Wilby A Passion for Our Time (Maecenas)
Aulis Sallinen  The Palace Rhapsody (Novello)

1998

Adam Gorb Yiddish Dances  (Maecenas)
Martin Ellerby New England Dances (Studio)
Timothy Ewers Concerto Grosso
Adam Gorb The Elements (Maecenas)

1999

Stephen Montague Deep in the Vaults of Earch  
Brian Wilshere Chaconne

2001

Judith Bingham Bright Spirit (Maecenas)
Philip Sparke 4 Norfolk Dances (Studio)
Paul Harris Ally Pally

2002

James Rae Two Cinematic Impressions  
Guy Woolfenden Firedance (Ariel)
Andy Pearce Circus Music

2003

Andy Pearce The Heroes Rise
Dave Smith Fractures
Kenneth Hesketh Whirlegigg (Faber)

2004

John Reeman Wind Mass  
Adam Gorb Burlesque (Maecenas)
Jim Pywell Yellow Stripe  

2009

Mark Francis New work

College Commissioning Consortium

1994

Thea Musgrave Journey through a Japanese Landscape (Novello)

1995

Robert Saxton Ring, Time (Chester)

1996

Dominic Muldowney Dance Suite (Ariel)

1997

Ilona Sekacz Let the Magpie Dream

1998

John Woolrich Sennets and Tuckets (Faber)

1999

Elena Firsova Captivity

2000

John Dankworth Hemming Way (Studio)

2001

Kit Turnbull Tetrasemic Interventions
Allessandro Timossi Commedia
Julia Gomelskaya The Riot
Guy Woolfenden Serenade for Sophia (Ariel)
Rodney Newton The Four Elements
Alun Hoddinott Bagatelles
John Metcalf Wind Quintet

2002

Martin Ellerby Meditations (Studio)

2003

Kenneth Hesketh Diaghilev Dances (Faber)

2004

Timothy Raymond Ave Regina Caelorum (Edition HH)

2005

Andy Scott Saxophone Double Concerto “Dark Rain” (Astute Music)

2006

Simon Wills Horn Concerto

2007

Giles Swayne Agnes Wisley’s Chillout Fantasy (Gonzaga Music)

2009

Stephen McNeff New work (Peters Edition)

Don’t forget to tune in for what promises to be a fascinating late night prom tomorrow evening, Friday 28th August, at 10.15pm on Radio 3.

The superb Netherlands Wind Ensemble presents an interesting and challenging programme of contemporary wind music:

The Netherlands Wind Ensemble, 50 this year, marks the 70th birthday of radical Dutch Minimalist Louis Andriessen and the 50th of his leading British pupil Steve Martland with performances of Andriessen’s classic polemic De staat and Martland’s jazz-rock ‘dance fantasia’ Beat the Retreat, commissioned by the BBC for its 1995 Purcell tercentenary celebrations.

Another former pupil of Andriessen, Cornelis de Bondt creates an idiosyncratic death ritual in Doors Closed out of a fusion between the funeral march from Beethoven’s ‘Eroica’ and Dido’s Lament from Purcell’s Dido and Aeneas.

Two of tonight’s works call for two or more pianos, in a nod to our Multiple Pianos celebration.

• Louis Andriessen De staat (35 mins)
• Steve Martland Beat the Retreat (13 mins)
• Cornelis de Bondt Doors Closed* (London premiere) (23 mins)

• Netherlands Wind Ensemble
• Lucas Vis conductor
• Bart Schneemann 2nd conductor*

Also, please do add your support to the discussions regarding wind music at the Proms on the BBC Radio 3 messageboards, and who knows, maybe one year there will be a Wind Day at the Proms…well, they have had Brass Day, Folk Day, Multiple Pianos Day, Indian Music Day…

For fans of the BBC’s new MaestroCam service, you can now watch Daniel Barenboim in action with the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra:

• Liszt Les préludes
• Wagner Tristan and Isolde – Prelude and Liebestod
• Berlioz Symphonie fantastique

All four MaestroCam broadcasts will continue to be made available (to UK viewers only) until the end of the Proms season.

Following my earlier post regarding some of the amazing music apps that are now available for the iPhone, I received today an email from the developers of iBone. I would urge any trombonists  (or aspiring trombonists!) reading this to take a look, and let us know your thoughts…

Hi Phil,
We’re the developer of iBone — great to see you found it and thanks for featuring it!

You may have seen this already, but one feature I wanted to mention is the iBone Songbook which shows one how to play and can even play for them.  This way, while the skilled Trombonist can play iBone along with their iPod music,  even the aspiring Trombonist can play with a band right out of the box.  It currently includes six songs, each with different accompaniment.  You can see a demo of it on our site:  http://playibone.com.   

Ultimately a key goal of iBone is to provide both a useful and fun tool for trombonists which they can play and practice when they don’t have access to the real thing, and a fun introduction for non-trombonists.  

Looking forward to keeping in touch! Thanks again!
-Tom

—
Tom A. Scharfeld
Founder
Spoonjack LLC
www.spoonjack.com

Let us know what you think via the comments form below. Is this a genuinely useful tool or just a gimmick? Either way, it’s certainly good fun!

[...]Kind of Blue is a one-shot deal, so dreamily perfect you can hardly believe someone created it. Which is why it remains so deeply satisfying, on whatever level you experience it, as moody background music or as the center of your existence. Listen to it 100 times or so, and you still marvel at its spontaneous inventions; now and then, you’ll even hear something new.

There are also some fantastic clips on YouTube that have been released to mark the anniversary:

Enjoy!

Track Listing

• The Duke of Marlborough Fanfare
• Lincolnshire Posy
• The Merry King
• Children’s March
• Colonial Song
• Mock Morris
• The Gum-Suckers March
• Molly on the Shore
• Spoon River
• After-Word
• Lads of Wamphray
• Irish Tune from County Derry
• Shepherd’s Hey

BASBWE trade members, Maecenas Music, has recently launched an impressive new website – http://www.maecenasmusic.co.uk. You can view a PDF score extract and listen to recordings of most of their published works.

Here are some recent highlights from their extensive catalogue:

Just Released

Stephen McNeff Image in Stone for Mezzo Soprano and Wind Ensemble
Piano Reduction by the composer

Philip Wilby A Passion for Our Times for Narrator, Mixed Chorus, Youth Choir, BRASS BAND and Organ
Set of parts and score, POA

Emily Howard (recipient – Paul Hamlyn Foundation composers Award 2008) Deep Soul Diving for Wind Orchestra
Set of parts and score

News from the Dallas Wind Symphony:

The Dallas Wind Symphony would like to announce the winners of the 2009-2010 Brass Fanfares Competition. Presented by the Star Community Newspapers, performances begin this September at the Meyerson Symphony Center in Dallas, Texas.

This year, 96 fanfares were submitted from all over the United States, United Kingdom, China, South Korea, New Zealand, Norway, Australia, Brazil and the Czech Republic. Thanks to everyone who submitted their music and hearty congratulations to those selected. Please look for our 2010-2011 Call for Fanfares in the spring and encourage your composer friends and colleagues to submit their music.

September 14, 15, 2009

Fanfare Antiphonal Vox Gabrieli by Jim Colonna, Eau Claire, WI

October 13, 2009

Foozle by Hermes Camacho, Austin, TX

November 17, 2009

Fanfare Royale by Kevin L. Gibbs, Minnetonka, MN

January 26, 2010

Water Fanfare by Joseph Spaniola, Pensacola, FL

February 16, 2010

Heroic Fanfare by Scott M. Copeland, Ann Arbor, MI

March 16, 2010

Pavillons en l air by J. M. David, Fort Collins, CO

April 13, 2010

Fanfare to Hells Angels by Kevin Scott, Middletown, NY

More recently, I have discovered several other apps that might be of interest. The first was iBone – a trombone simulation that allows you to control the slide position and harmonic via the touch screen, and (optionally) the volume by using your breath on the microphone.

Here is a video that shows iBone in action in an interesting Stairway to Heaven solo!

(there are plenty more of these on YouTube…)

…and you can even use it to practise your band parts(!)…

One other app worth investigating is Wivi Band. This is a selection of 15 wind and brass simulations which can all be played using the microphone breath input. The main difference here is that control of pitch is via a picture of a keyboard on the touch screen, so you play all the ‘instruments’ in the same way.

The Wivi Band software is developed by the Swedish-based Wallander Software, who are experts in the field of physical modelling synthesis. Their main products are PC and Mac based high quality physical modelling synthesizers. I recommend having a look round their website – http://www.wallanderinstruments.com – and have a listen to the mp3 examples of what their software can do.

Strauss – Serenade Op. 7

Mozart – Serenade in Bb ‘Gran Partita’ – Adagio

The app features the following virtual instruments:

• Piccolo
• Flute
• Alto Flute
• Clarinet
• Bass Clarinet
• Oboe
• English Horn
• Bassoon
• Contrabassoon
• Alto Saxophone
• Tenor Saxophone
• French Horn
• Trumpet
• Trombone
• Tuba

Here is a demonstration video of the Wivi Band app by Jordan Rudess that shows exactly how the software works - I was particularly impressed by the woodwind quartet performance at 8’17”.

Finally, another bit of split-screen action – using just Wivi Band, plus two more iPhone apps – pianist and guitarist – here is a clever version of the iPhone TV advert music:

STUDIO MUSIC OPEN WEEKEND

5th September 2009 (9am to 5pm)
6th September 2009 (10am to 4pm)

• Over 10,000 titles on our shelves at any one time!
• Easy links by Road, Rail and Air
• M1 – Junction 10 under 5 minutes (map available on request)
• Luton Parkway Station – 3 minutes
• Luton Airport – 2 minutes

Complimentary taxi service from Station & Airport – contact us for details

COME AND BROWSE . . .

WIND BAND

JAZZ ENSEMBLE

FULL and STRING ORCHESTRA

FLEXIBLE ENSEMBLE

BRASS BAND

PIANO ADVENTURES

Over 10,000 titles in stock!

Please let us know if you plan to attend.  If you have any particular repertoire requirements, do contact us in advance and we will be happy to reserve these for your perusal.

Can’t come to our Open Weekend? – log onto our website for all the latest publications! Updated daily.

Cadence House, Eaton Green Road, Luton, Beds. LU2 9LD  England

Tel: 01582 432139    Fax: 01582 731989

e-mail: sales@studio-music.co.uk

www.studio-music.co.uk