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Discuss the evolution of British wind band music from the work of Holst and Vaughan Williams to the present. Refer to a variety of composers and works.

From its humble beginnings as town watchmen sending out signals and messages on trumpets as well as the court minstrels turning their hand to any instrument, through to the 17th century European court Stadtpfiefer bands and the Oboe bands of the Foot Guards, developing to the chamber ensembles playing the harmonie musik of Mozart, Hummel and Beethoven to name but a few; even before Holst and Vaughan Williams, wind band music had shifted and evolved radically, in both the sacred and secular spheres. However, it was mainly the secular sphere in which the wind band really changed. Initially the early wind band can be split into two distinct genres; those of the military band and the civilian band. The military band can be traced back to 1333 at the Battle of Halidon, where the sound of pipes and clarinets along side the trumpets, which were used for signaling,1 is documented. This then developed slowly until the late 17th century when, with the invention of the double reed,

The Trumpets with sound, Gordon Turner, Parapress 1996

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the oboe became a large feature within the military music of the time, with the Horse Grenadiers hiring 6 oboists and the British Dragroons allowing one oboist per company, along with two side drummers. In 1684 the Foot Guards adopted the use of oboe bands, succumbing to the practice that had spread around France and Western Europe. In 1716 the Band of the Royal Regiment of Artillery was formed, the first military band slightly resembling what it is today. The band consisted of eight men who could play a combination of violincello, bass, violin and flute as common instruments, this was supported by the regiment musik; which contained two trumpets, two french horns, two bassoons and four oboes/clarinets.2 The Band of the Royal Artillery developed as more strings were added, become predominantly an orchestra, which during the nineteenth century became world famous, with their reputation across Europe on a par with that of the Philharmonic.3 Within the civilian side of wind band music the earliest wind groups were consorts of shawms or two cornets and three sackbuts. These ensembles

2 3

The Beginnings of Wind Music, Renaissance and Baroque, Timothy Reynish p.6. ibid

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date back to 11504 and were known as Stadtpfeifer or Waits in English. These ensembles quickly became popular and spread across Europe. The responsibilities of these bands grew from occasional performances to daily shows, as well as celebrations of patron saints, feast days and regional celebrations. The Stadtpfeifer in Venice were particularly known for leading the elaborate parades around St. Marks plaza.5 These groups stayed popular until the 1800s when revolution and legislation along with instrumental development led to the decline of the waits. The 18th century saw the start of the classical period and with it the development of Harmoniemusik, which in short is a form of chamber music written for wind instruments. Composers experimented with different combinations to determine the best combinations to write for; it soon became common to write for winds instruments in pairs as this would provide harmonic support, thus the term Harmoniemusik became the accepted name for an ensemble of wind instruments, which, whilst they did vary in size, mostly consisted of eight players. At this time two forms of military bands also
4

A Short History of Western Music, Arthur Jacobs, Penguin Books, 1972, p. 17-19. Proceedings of the Royal Musical Association, p.53.
5 Ceremonial Music in Venice at the Time of the Gabrielis, Denis Arnold,

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developed, one being the small band, such as that of the Royal Artillery, as previously mentioned, playing Harmoniemusik, whilst the other contained heavier bass, percussion, clarinets and piccolos, as well as the basic octet.6 Although, the term Harmonie became general term for describing wind music as a whole, Harmoniemusik was an aspect separate from the military band. In the most part it is music written during the classical period of which its function was to provide entertainment,7 as shown in this expert from a letter Mozart wrote to his father in November 1781. At eleven o'clock at night I was treated to a serenade performed by two

clarinets, two horns and two bassoons--and that of my own composition . . . These musicians asked that the street door might be opened and, placing themselves in the center of the courtyard, surprised me, just as I was about to undress, in the most pleasant fashion imaginable with the first chord in Eflat.8
The climax of this style was in the great masterpieces of Mozart, his three
6

Harmoniemusik and the Classical Wind Band, Stephen L.Rhodes, http://www.lipscomb.edu/windbandhistory/RhodesWindBand_04_Classical.htm , 2007, Date Accessed: 15/04/2011 7 ibid
8

The Letters of Mozart and His Family, Vol. II, Emily Anderson, 1966, p. 776

.
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Serenades in C Min, E-Flat, and B-Flat, these works were composed for the
Viennese Harmonie, whilst Mozart was under patronage there. It was this kind of patronage that enabled this style to develop, with the composer writing to entertain the court.9 Harmoniemusik continued into the early 19th century, with composers such as Haydn, Beethoven, Krommer and Hummel all composing prolific works, before it died out with the entry of radical political reform in France, which transformed the wind band into a base of model of the modern concert band. The 19th century concert band became a vehicle for many transcriptions of orchestral repertoire, as the symphony orchestral had now become the main focus for large compositions, due to the development of the woodwind systems by Boehm and the brass piston valve, meaning that the brass and woodwind were now almost as versatile as the string section. Other than light popular music, marches and dances there was not much serious music written for wind band in the early 1800s. One work written was the

Commemoration Symphony, by Antonio Reicha in 1808, this was written for

The Classical Harmonie to the Present Day, Timothy Reynish, http://www.basbwe.org/articles/99summer_history.pdf , Date Accessed 15/04/2011

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46 instruments, 10 of which were; 6 army drums and 4 field cannons. This work was written as a celebratory piece following the French Revolution. However there was demise of wind band compositions during this period, in 1830 Hector Berlioz composed his Symphonie Funbre et Triomphale, this work was on a huge scale when compared to that of Reciha 28 years previously. Berlioz wrote for a band consisting of 112 players, with an optional choir of 200 and string orchestra of 70. This shows the huge evolution in instrument, compositional styles and instrumentation from not only a few years previous but also from the start of the wind band era. Even though this work by Berlioz was huge in the wind band sphere, it is still one of his lesser known works, and, although some critics did not feel the composition was the same standard of many of his other works. The work however, has many defenders including a review in the New York Herald Tribune on the premier of the work in America by the Goldman Band, The sound of the thing is

Berlioz at his best. No other composer has ever made a band sound so dark, so rich, so nobly somber. That sound is not only a beautiful and wondrous thing in itself; it is also part of the work's expressivity. It is everything that

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could possibly be meant by the adjectives funereal and triumphal.10 Following

this work, few compositions for wind ensemble of great consequence were written during the Romanic period, however works by Saint-Saens (Occident et Orient), and Rimsky-Korsakovs Concerto for Trombone were among the few notable works written during this period. The birth of Sir Edward Elgar in 1857 saw a resurgence of English composers, for arguably since Henry Purcell there had not been an English composer held international regard.11 Whilst many of the new English composers continued to write in the Germanic style, two new elements led to new compositional styles. The first was that showing the rich musical heritage enjoyed by England during the Elizabethan period, taking lead from the compositions of Gibbons and Tallis, to name but two. The second was the study of the English Folk Song, just as Grieg, Bartok and Kodaly, were researching the folk history of Scandinavia, in Britain there was just as much research going on. The pioneers of this research were Gustav Holst, Cecil

10

The Wind Band: Its Literature and Technique, Richard Franco Goldman,1961, pg.218. Stephen L.Rhodes, http://www.lipscomb.edu/windbandhistory/RhodesWindBand_04_Classical.htm , 2007, Date Accessed: 15/04/2011
11A History of the Wind Band: English Composers and the Military Band,

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Sharpe, Ralph Vaughan-Williams and the Australian Percy Grainger.

This research soon formed the identity of the British sound, a sound that was in complete contrast to the second Viennese School of Schoenberg and Russian nationalist Stravinsky. Throughout the 20th century, music with tonal structuring has never been too far away form the pen of British composers.12 The pen of Gustov Holst was to become that of a cornerstone of British wind band music. It was during his life that British composers were encouraged to write new serious works for wind band, Holst, spurred on by this encouragement wrote the first of his two suites for military band in 1908, relying on his expertise as a trombone player. His daughter Imogen Holst explains the delight of the musicians playing the suite, and also the style in which it was composed;

The First Suite in E-flat was an experiment in form, each movement being founded on a fragment of the opening Chaconne . . . The whole suite is superbly written for military band, especially the scherzando variation in the Intermezzo which exactly suites the brittle texture of the woodwind. It must have been a startling change from the usual operatic selectionsIn spite of its original approach, the Suite never breaks away from the essential
12

ibid

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traditions of the band, and the March is the sort of music that is beloved of bombardons and euphoniums. It was not for nothing that Holst had played trombone on the pier in his student days: when he opens out into an inevitable meno mosso, it is with the assurance if an experienced bandsman who knows exactly what the other players are going to enjoy.13
As written in the quote an original composition of this stature was greeted so warmly because of the difference, compared to the usual repertoire, of operatic selections and overtures. Unlike the Berlioz composition, Symphonie

Funbre et Triomphale, the First Suite in E-flat was written for a regular sized
wind band, not dissimilar to that of a modern wind band. The ensemble contained; 1 piccolo in D-flat, 2 E-flat clarinets, 2 oboes, 4 clarinets, alto and tenor saxophones, 2 bassoons, 4 E-flat horns, 3 Cornets, 2 B-flat Trumpets, 3 trombones, Euphonium, Tubas along with a full compliment of percussion. This soon became the standard size for a wind band. This work was taken seriously within the music world; one account in the Times quoted it in the same sentence as a performance of Brahms Third Symphony following the suites premier in 1920 There were two things of interest to be heard

yesterday -- Holst's Suite for Military Band at Knellar Hall and Brahm's Third

13

The Music of Gustav Holst, 2nd ed, Imogen Holst, 1968, pg. 33.

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Symphony at Queens Hall...14 Holst showed his interest in wind band again
by writing his 2nd Suite in F, this suite was based on Hampshire folk songs. It contained four contrasting movements applied arranging skills to a number of songs, including, Swansea Town, Ill Love My Love, and the Song of the Blacksmith. In the final movement he combines the folks songs Dargason and Greensleeves, this combination of folk tunes were also used in the last movement of his St. Pauls Suite, a refreshing change to see wind band writing being used in an orchestral setting, rather than visa-versa. In 1927 Holst was commissioned to write a new work for military band by the B.B.C., this work was to become his most formidable piece for military band, Hammersmith. The work is by far more technically challenging that the earlier works, due no doubt to the expertise of the commissioning ensemble.15Hammersmith can still taken within the nationalist genre as even though it is not painting a picture of something a picturesque a Smetnas Ma Vlast, as Imogen Holst writes Hammersmith is describing The aloofness of the quiet river, unhurried

and unconcerned, while just round the corner there was all the noise and

14 15

An Orchestra and a Military Band: Brahms and Holst, The Times (London), 1920. New Works For Wind Band, Timothy Reynish, 1983, pg. 2-3.

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hustle and exuberant vulgarity of the cockney crowd, pushing and shoving and sweating and swearing and shrieking and guffawing its good-humoured way.16This level of composition shows the seriousness that Holst held the
military band, it was no longer just a vehicle for orchestral transcriptions and simple marches but a vehicle for serious national music. Although Ralph Vaughan-Williams was a latecomer to the world of composition, he was not without experience, having studied with Max Bruch in Berlin and later Maurice Ravel, and also being a close friend of Holst. With Bruch and Ravels mentorship and influence, his early works were in a Germanic Romantic style. After WW1, a new style emerged taking influence from the renaissance, as previously mentioned, this helped Vaughan-Williams to really find his own style and write such magical work as The Lark

Ascending. Vaughan-Williams also rose to the challenge of writing for and

developing the military band, speaking about her husbands time in the Army Vaughan-Williams wife wrote: he had heard enough of the "ordinary

monger's light stuff" to feel that a chance to play real tunes would be an

16

The Music of Gustav Holst, 2nd ed, Imogen Holst, 1968, pg. 125.

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agreeable and salutary experience for Bandsmen.17Following this he

composed his English Folk Song Suite in 1923 and used no fewer than nine folk songs to create the three movement suite.18 Vaughan-Williams nationalism and patriotism always shone through in work, collecting over 800 folk songs in his lifetime, and a year after writing his folk song suite he composed two more songs for military band. The first entitled Sea Songs, is a simple one movement work where as the Toccata Marziale is in complete contrast to the English Folk Song Suite, uses powerful timbres of large scale brass and woodwind simultaneously, and a contrapuntal form shown through major, minor, and whole tone scales.19 Although writing before the time of Vaughan-Williams and Holst, Percy Grainger wrote numerous works for wind band, however they varied dramatically in style as to make publication and even performance a

17

A Biography of Ralph Vaughan Williams, Ursula Vaughan Williams/ Ralph Vaughan Williams, 1964, p. 150-153. 18 The folk songs included: March - "Seventeen Come Sunday", "Pretty Caroline", and "Dives and Lazarus"; Intermezzo - "My Bonny Boy" and "Green Bushes"; Folk Songs from Somerset - "Blow away the Morning Dew", "High Germany", "The Tree so High", and "John Barleycorn". 19 A History of the Wind Band: English Composers and the Military Band, Stephen L.Rhodes, http://www.lipscomb.edu/windbandhistory/RhodesWindBand_04_Classical.htm , 2007, Date Accessed: 15/04/2011

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hazardous affair.20 Take for example the composition of Shepherds Hey and

Irish Tune from County Derry, two wind band pieces with beautiful folk
melodies, then in complete contrast, Hill-Song No.1 which although written in 1901, some years before Holst First Suite in E-flat, is many years more advanced in its approach, as can be seen in Appendix i, the bar-lines are there more for convenience, with the time signature changing every few bars, and the composers fondness of complex but free rhythms as shown in the Appendix ii. Timothy Reynish describes the work as having The harmonic

language of Richard Strauss and the rhythmic vitality of Walton 21; each voice
is treated as a soloist which is a trait that gets lost during a great deal of large scale wind band works of the 1900s. Graingers use of folk songs accumulated in his work Lincolnshire Posy (1937), this work combined the wind band instrumental structure of Holst and developed on his previously over-complex work to produce a masterpiece which stunned the wind band world. Written in six movements it presented challenges in timbre, style, and

20

British Wind Music Before 1981, Timothy Reynish, http://www.worldmilitarybands.com/british-wind-music-before-1981-tim-reynish/ , 2004, Date Accessed: 17/04/2011 21 ibid

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rhythm that were not normal for wind bands of the time.22 However, unfortunately for the British music there was a sudden decline in significant works being written for the wind over the next few decades. The possibilities opened up by the likes of Holst, Vaughan-Williams and Grainger were almost completely dismissed as if they were just a passing thought and there were no significant commissions from Elgar, Walton, Bliss or Britten. The British Military Bands had little choice but to go back to what they had done previously, providing music for the ceremonial occasions and entertaining, now however with a few gems to add to their repertoires. The British music scene continued to develop with all of the aforementioned composers become world renown composing for other spheres, one can only ask what might have happened had the commissioning of work continued? It might be worth noting that although in Britian there was an obvious decline in composition for wind around this period the same can not be said for America, who saw a new wave of interest for winds composition at this time with the likes of Stravinsky, Prokofiev and Schoenberg all turning their hand to

22

Lincolnshire Posy - BDGuide, March-April 1990, p. 44-45.

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compose for the Military band. One composition of note was in 1944 by Aaron Copland. His work Fanfare for the Common Man, although it was composed for the Cincinatti Symphony Orchestra, uses only wind instruments, showing grasp of what an emotionally powerful sound wind instruments can produce. Percy Grainger sums it up well in his book when he say No doubt there are

many phases of musical emotion that the wind band is not so fitted to portray as is the symphony orchestra, but on the other hand it is quite evident that in certain realms of musical expressiveness the wind band has no rival.23
In 1951 The Festival of Britain was held, this was a post-war celebration of the arts. For the occasion, Gordon Jacob had been commissioned to write

Music for a Festival. This suite is a grandiose, vibrant sonorous work.

Originally the work was score for an ensemble whose size is not dissimilar to that of Berlioz proportion military band plus fanfare trumpets. As Berlioz did in his Symphonie Funbre et Triomphale, Jacob selects the timbre he creates very carefully with loud, triumphant passages used sparingly. Only in the final movement of this 11 movement suite do the Fanfare team and band play
23

Possibilities of the Concert Wind Band from the Standpoint of a Modern Composer, Percy Grainger, 1918

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together; the odd number movements are played by the Fanfare team and the even movements by the full band. As was one of the previously mentioned styles of the time Jacob draws on the renaissance and baroque song and dance forms through out the suite such as the movements intrada, and

madrigal. Stylistically the music is still firmly rooted in British band tradition,
even if the size of the ensemble is similar to that of Berlioz. The work was met with critical acclaim on its dbut, however despite writing another 13 works for wind band including a symphony and a Concerto for Band, Jacob sadly never quite had the talent to put the wind band to the forefront of music24. Following this spell of works by Jacob there were a number of works written that captured the attention of the wind ensembles, sadly most of these have not been performed and very few recorded. Alun Hoddinott composed a couple of works that explored the idea of a soloist with the wind band, his concertos for Piano and Trombone with wind band. He also embraced the folk song influences, in a similar manner to Holst and Vaughan-Williams, with his works for symphonic band. His first was Welsh Airs and Dances (1974)
24

British Wind Music Before 1981, Timothy Reynish, http://www.worldmilitarybands.com/british-wind-music-before-1981-tim-reynish/ , 2004, Date Accessed: 17/04/2011

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and his final work for band was his Welsh Dances, Suite No.4 (1990). There were many other works written in the folk traditions of the early 1900s notably, Orrs John Gay Suite (1973) and John Gardners English Dance Suite

(1977). The first modern work form this age of very little development was Metamorphoses (1977) by Edward Gregson. The composition was written for
full wind band with piano and double basses but without saxophones. The title comes from the constant changes that happen in the music. There is an opening four-note motif that provides most of the intervals and harmonic material. The work is in three movements, the first alternates between free and metered phrasing. The second is a slow section with electronically enhanced flute and clarinet solos, whilst the third is a charged and rhythmical which resolves the metamorphic argument.25 1981 became a momentous year in the history of British wind band music as it saw the formation of the British Association of Symphonic Bands and Wind Ensembles (BASBWE). The creation of the BASBWE also brought with it new commissionings and inspired a new generation of musicians and composers.
25

Metamorphoses Edward Gregson Works, Edward Gregson, http://edwardgregson.com/en/works/23/metamorphoses/ , 2004-2011, Date Accessed: 17/04/2011

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Gregsons Metamorphoses was one of the piece played at the conference to create the BASBWE. Gregsons Festivo (1985) is a light overture that combines traditional band elements with Stravinsky-like energy. This work became very successful and is now a standard in band repertoire. In 1988 Gregson wrote a choral work entitled Missa Brevis Pacem, this was set for SSA choir, treble and baritone soli and wind orchestra. It is a simple yet effective mass setting. In 1991 he composed the first of two works as music for a Stratford-on-Avon production of Wars of the Roses, The Sword and the

Crown, and the sequel The Kings of Forth (1996), these were both powerful
works but also had comical elements to them. One of his latest compositions for wind band was commissioned for the BASBWE 1995 conference, this was his Piano Concerto, Homages, which has been written in a completely romantic style. Another composer to take up the call of the BASBWE was Derek Bourgeois. Having been a brass band composer he says that he views the wind band almost as an extension of the brass band, with massive doubling and a luxuriant palette. Bourgeois style is traditional, even if with a

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twist here and there.26 The great trombonist Christian Lindberg writes him;

Bourgeois has not worried about the historical necessities and rules, which dictate the novelty of style regarded as so important by some compositional schools; he keeps instead to traditional musical patterns.
Phillip Sparke is very similar to other composers such as Gregson, Bourgeois and Philip Wilby by the fact that he also writes form the much more commercial field of the brass band, composing numerous test pieces and concertos, his Euphonium concerto in particular held in high regard. Sparke is by far the most successful composer of both genres. In 1992 he composed

Orient Express it was commissioned by the BBC as its entry in the EBU New
Music for Band Competition, where it won first place. The piece tell a musical story of luxury travel across Europe. Opening with the hustle and bustle of the station, a percussion whistle starts the train in motion and across Europe. A momentary reflection leads back in to the final stages of the journey and

26

Part II of a History of British Wind Music, Timothy Reynish, http://www.basbwe.org/articles/reynish_history_of_british_wind_music.pdf, Date Accessed: 17/04/2011

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arrival at the final destination.27 Many of his works are arranged for either wind band, or brass band following their composition for the other genre. This is the case for the piece Year of the Dragon which was a brass band test piece in 1985, but also now regularly played in the wind band genre. Guy Woolfenden was, for many years, head of music at the Royal Shakespeare Theatre, Stratford-upon-Avon with scores for many plays to his name. He drew on the uses of these works for his two early BASBWE commissions,

Gallimufry (1983) and Illyrian Dances (1986). The musical language is a

mixture of the late English renaissance, both the 16th century and early 20th century versions, but with twist in the time structure and harmonic structuring to avoid the obvious.28 Following the composition of this work it brought up the question as to how the musical world is still ignoring the wind band genre. Robert Maycock wrote of Gallimaufry in The Independent: In so far as music

criticism deals seriously with radio at all, it tends to concentrate on Radio 3,

27

Orient Express, Phillip Sparke, http://www.philipsparke.com/Orient%20Express%20CB.htm, Date Accessed: 18/04/2011

28

Part II of a History of British Wind Music, Timothy Reynish, http://www.basbwe.org/articles/reynish_history_of_british_wind_music.pdf, Date Accessed: 17/04/2011

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such are the cultural blinkers most critics wear. A piece like Gallimaufry, with its witty ingenuities, expert layout, and a tune that stays with you as long as Carousel's, has helped thousands of players to cut their musical teeth and stirred thousands more with the adventure of living music. Yet how many "contemporary" specialists have heard a note of it? This is followed by
Timothy Reynish stating The works of Guy Woolfenden are perhaps typical of

this new wave of music for wind orchestra, which has charm and wit. I believe that it is ignorance of the medium, which leads to this repertoire being largely ignored.29 Maybe this also the same reason for why the genre had a lack of
compositions during the 20th century, that is to say; ignorance of the part of the wider music genre? Early on in the BASBWE, many of their inspired works and commissions were score for the symphonic wind band, not quite the size of Berliozs but doubling the players in the flutes, clarinets and brass. The wind band concept however is that which came about from Frederick Fennell and the Eastman Wind Ensemble in 1952, in which there was one player to a part. This gave

29

ibid

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composers more control of the players they were writing for. The wind ensemble concept of up to 45 players can be adopted for most wind works, and can provide clarity for both the dense and light textures. The scoring has been derived from the beginnings of the orchestral wind section and now has been refined. It is generally for Piccolo and two Flutes, two Oboes and Cor Anglais, Eb Clarinet, 3 Bb Clarinets, Bass Clarinet, two Bassoons and Contra Bassoon, and a Saxophone quartet of two Altos, Tenor and Baritone, four Horns, three or more Trumpets or Cornets, three Trombones, one or two Tubas, with Timpani, Percussion, Double Bass, Harp and/or Piano.30 The composer Richard Rodney Bennett has been described as doing more to develop the stylistic middle ground of 20th century music than any other composer.31 There are three of his works that are important work for wind ensemble of the 20th century. His Morning Music (1987), Four Season (1991),

and Trumpet Concerto (1993). These show the rich textures that can be
achieved from the wind band. All three of his works are based on closely
30

A History of the Wind Band: Instrumentation, Stephen L.Rhodes, http://www.lipscomb.edu/windbandhistory/RhodesWindBand_11_Instrumentation.htm, 2007, Date Accessed: 15/04/2011 31 Sunan Bradshaw - Part II of a History of British Wind Music, Timothy Reynish, http://www.basbwe.org/articles/reynish_history_of_british_wind_music.pdf, pg. 9. Date Accessed: 17/04/2011

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related intervals and harmonies. The Morning Music is predominantly made up of patterns of 3rds and 4ths. The harmonic line of the cadenza within the

Trumpet Concerto is largely the same as Miles Davis Maid of Cadiz, with the
slow movement being an elegy for him.32 Following the success of the first decade of the BASBWE and the resurgence in composition came also the growth of new publishing companies, able to provide more music for purchase rather than for hire as was common within the orchestral genre. New publishers such as Maecenas often targeted a specific area of composition. Many composer writing for Maecenas have been given a brief to write easy music which gives the player a musical challenge whilst the listener gets the same emotion experience of listening to an orchestral standard. Such examples of this are Adam Gorbs works,

Bridgewater Breeze, and Gareth Woods The Cauldron.

In answer to the question asked earlier in 1981 Gunther Schuller addressed the College Band Directors National Associated, urging the delegates to remove their blinkers as Robert Maycock put it earlier. Schuller said:

32

Part II of a History of British Wind Music, Timothy Reynish, http://www.basbwe.org/articles/reynish_history_of_british_wind_music.pdf, Date Accessed: 17/04/2011

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There are too many fine and/or famous composers that have eluded your grasp thus far. You need more of that kind of international world calibre amongst the composers in your repertory before that world will begin to take you seriously, before a critic from the New York Times or The New Yorker will look in on what youre doing and look in on festivals such as this. And you must more aggressively pursue that establishment world, with its critics and taste-makers, its foundations and other benefactors, its managers, and its musical leaders. You must reach out now beyond your own seemingly large but actually small world. For they will not come to you; you must go to them. Mostly they dont know you exist.
Since the beginnings of the wind band genre, it very rarely attracted widespread praise from the musical establishment, only occasionally is there a sentence reviewing a premier, festival or concert. Is this because the genre is not a powerful as the orchestral, or is the focus just not in the right area? The writings from the pens of Holst and Vaughan-Williams were very secure and traditional, writing for a set ensemble. These techniques soon developed with the increase of other influence. Wind band music seems to have grown dramatically throughout its styles, textures, timbres and maturity following the founding of the BASBWE. The association has given the composer a platform on which there was previously nothing, to compose freely and evolve the wind band genre further. Therefore the future, one could argue, is indeed bright for

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this oft-ignored genre within our British musical tradition.

Appendix

i) Original Score Hill-Song, bars 1-8. Percy Grainger

ii) Hill-Song, Flute Bars 6-7, Percy Grainger.

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Bibliography

Anderson, E.(1966):The Letters of Mozart and His Family, Vol. II New York:
MacMillan Burkholder, J.P., Grout, D.J. and Palisca, C.V. (2006): A History of Western

Music (5th edition); New York: W.W. Norton.

Bird, J. (1999): Percy Grainger; Oxford: Oxford University Press. Day, J. (1998): Vaughan Williams; Oxford, Oxford University Press Goldman, RF (1961): The Wind Band: Its Literature and Technique, Boston: Allyn and Bacon Holst, I (1968): The Music of Gustav Holst, 2nd ed. London: Oxford University Press Jacobs, A. (1972): A Short History of Western Music, Harmondsworth,

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History and Analysis Level 3

Assignment 2

Middlesex, England: Penguin Books Lawson, C. and Stowell, R. (1999): The Historical Performance of Music; Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Reynish, T. (1983): New Works For Wind Band, Composer 79 (Summer) Reynish, T. (1999): Retrospective; Winds Magazine. Smith, E. (1982): Mozart Serenades, Divertimenti and Dances (BBC Music Guides series); London: BBC Sadie, S. and Tyrrell, J. (ed.) (2000): New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians (2nd edition); Sadie, S. and Latham, A. (ed.) (1985): The Cambridge Music Guide; Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Vaughan-William, R.V. and Vaughan-Williams, U. (1964): A Biography of

Ralph Vaughan Williams, London: Oxford University Press

Websites

A History of the Wind Band: English Composers and the Military Band,
Stephen L.Rhodes, http://www.lipscomb.edu/windbandhistory/RhodesWindBand_04_Classical.ht m , 2007, Date Accessed: 15/04/2011

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Jonathan Booth

History and Analysis Level 3

Assignment 2

British Wind Music Before 1981, Timothy Reynish,

http://www.worldmilitarybands.com/british-wind-music-before-1981-timreynish/ , 2004, Date Accessed: 17/04/2011

Harmoniemusik and the Classical Wind Band, Stephen L.Rhodes,

http://www.lipscomb.edu/windbandhistory/RhodesWindBand_04_Classical.ht m , 2007, Date Accessed: 15/04/2011

Metamorphoses Edward Gregson Works, Edward Gregson,

http://edwardgregson.com/en/works/23/metamorphoses/ , 2004-2011, Date Accessed: 17/04/2011

Orient Express, Phillip Sparke,

http://www.philipsparke.com/Orient%20Express%20CB.htm, Date Accessed: 18/04/2011

Part II of a History of British Wind Music, Timothy Reynish,

http://www.basbwe.org/articles/reynish_history_of_british_wind_music.pdf, Date Accessed: 17/04/2011

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