Symphony in Two Movements

SKU: HL.238320

12.0x16.5x0.65 inches.

Symphony No. 2 began its life as Pozcatek, a 'Michael Nyman Band' 'soundtrack' that was written for the Michael Nyman Band to accompany a selection of sequences from post-war Polish films that Nyman selected and edited in 2009. That work has already been networked a Pozcatek for piano trio (recorded by the Fidelio Trio for MN Records) and a song cycle 'Ex Votos Songs' with texts transcribed from Mexican Ex Votos, hence the possibly subtitle for this symphony: Ex Photos. The symphony, which was completed in 2013, consists of four interconnected movements and is Arranged for orchestra. Duration of approximately: 28 minutes.

SKU: HL.4491059

UPC: 884088569693. 9.0x12.0x0.017 inches.

As heard in the Oscar-winning movie The King's Speech, one of Beethoven's most beloved movements accompanied the dramatic moments of this monumental film. Robert Longfield's accessible adaptation for string orchestra can be a centerpiece of most any program.

SKU: PR.416413710

ISBN 9781598068214. UPC: 680160587162. 9x12 inches.

Needham's original intent with Chamber Symphony was to encapsulate the 2008 presidential election, from the Democratic primaries to the historic general election campaign and win of Barack Obama. But, says Needham, In the midst of the general election circus, I decided to broaden my inspiration and have the work's overall goal focus on the larger ideas of hope and transformation. Chamber Symphony was commissioned by the American Composers Orchestra with generous support of Paul Underwood. Additional support was from the National Endowment for the Arts.
I originally envisioned a work inspired by the political landscape of the 2008 presidential election, focusing primarily on the hard-fought Democratic Primary race. I was fascinated by the historic and hopeful spirit that both the Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton campaigns embodied. Sometime later, in the midst of the general election circus, I decided to broaden my inspiration and have the work’s overall goal focus on the larger ideas of hope and transformation. Chamber Symphony is constructed in three movements (played without pause): I. Hammering Out, II. Open-ended Echoes, and III. Radiant Nation. The titles suggest a general atmosphere that each movement attempts to express. The outer movements, both quick in tempo, act as the antithesis of each other in terms of mood. “Hammering Out” employs an aggressive, relentless, pounding beat that frequently shifts, often emphasized with metallic sounds. “Radiant Nation” is much lighter and more optimistic in tone, and uses an up-beat groove throughout the movement. The middle movement, “Open-ended Echoes,” is the proverbial calm after the storm. Unlike the outer movements, “Open-ended Echoes” is almost void of any strong sense of pulse. The movement attempts to create a peaceful, contemplative mood that transforms the volatile nature of the first movement tothe radiant spirit of the last. Chamber Symphony was commissioned by the American Composers Orchestra for its Orchestra Underground Series with the generous support of Paul Underwood. Additional support for the ACO’s Emerging Composers Program comes from the National Endowment for the Arts.— November 5, 2008.

SKU: CA.1817900

ISBN 9790007188979. Language: all languages.

It is no coincidence that the Toccata from Widor's Vth Organ Symphony is his best-known composition. Who can resist its thrilling verve? Not only this, but also the other movements of this unique work of the organ repertoire win you over immediately - the first with its march-like, majestic, much-varied theme; the second with its wonderfully elegiac oboe melody, flowing along over staccato sixteenth notes; and the two slow movements, of which the melancholy, almost static Adagio forms the greatest contrast imaginable to the following triumphal Toccata. The Carus Urtext edition is based on the Paris edition of 1928/29, the last one to be published during Widor's lifetime. The corrections which the composer made after the publication of this edition have also been taken into consideration. As well as this, earlier editions have been consulted for comparison to clarify individual variant readings. Editorial suggestions on the performance of individual passages complete the new edition. Great organ works: Series A: - Symphony II op. 13 no. 2 - Symphony IV op. 13 no. 4 - Symphony V op. 42 no. 1 - Symphony VI op. 42 no. 2 - Symphony Romane op. 73 in preparation Subscription offer for Series A: 20% discount off the retail price.

SKU: PR.16500104F

ISBN 9781491132159. UPC: 680160681082.

Ever since the success of my series of wind ensemble works Places in the West, I've been wanting to write a companion piece for national parks on the other side of the north American continent. The earlier work, consisting of GLACIER, THE YELLOWSTONE FIRES, ARCHES, and ZION, spanned some twenty years of my composing life, and since the pieces called for differing groups of instruments, and were in slightly different styles from each other, I never considered them to be connected except in their subject matter. In their depiction of both the scenery and the human history within these wondrous places, they had a common goal: awaking the listener to the fragile beauty that is in them; and calling attention to the ever more crucial need for preservation and protection of these wild places, unique in all the world. With this new work, commissioned by a consortium of college and conservatory wind ensembles led by the University of Georgia, I decided to build upon that same model---but to solidify the process. The result, consisting of three movements (each named for a different national park in the eastern US), is a bona-fide symphony. While the three pieces could be performed separately, they share a musical theme---and also a common style and instrumentation. It is a true symphony, in that the first movement is long and expository, the second is a rather tightly structured scherzo-with-trio, and the finale is a true culmination of the whole. The first movement, Everglades, was the original inspiration for the entire symphony. Conceived over the course of two trips to that astonishing place (which the native Americans called River of Grass, the subtitle of this movement), this movement not only conveys a sense of the humid, lush, and even frightening scenery there---but also an overview of the entire settling-of- Florida experience. It contains not one, but two native American chants, and also presents a view of the staggering influence of modern man on this fragile part of the world. Beginning with a slow unfolding marked Heavy, humid, the music soon presents a gentle, lyrical theme in the solo alto saxophone. This theme, which goes through three expansive phrases with breaks in between, will appear in all three movements of the symphony. After the mood has been established, the music opens up to a rich, warm setting of a Cherokee morning song, with the simple happiness that this part of Florida must have had prior to the nineteenth century. This music, enveloping and comforting, gradually gives way to a more frenetic, driven section representative of the intrusion of the white man. Since Florida was populated and developed largely due to the introduction of a train system, there's a suggestion of the mechanized iron horse driving straight into the heartland. At that point, the native Americans become considerably less gentle, and a second chant seems to stand in the way of the intruder; a kind of warning song. The second part of this movement shows us the great swampy center of the peninsula, with its wildlife both in and out of the water. A new theme appears, sad but noble, suggesting that this land is precious and must be protected by all the people who inhabit it. At length, the morning song reappears in all its splendor, until the sunset---with one last iteration of the warning song in the solo piccolo. Functioning as a scherzo, the second movement, Great Smoky Mountains, describes not just that huge park itself, but one brave soul's attempt to climb a mountain there. It begins with three iterations of the UR-theme (which began the first movement as well), but this time as up-tempo brass fanfares in octaves. Each time it begins again, the theme is a little slower and less confident than the previous time---almost as though the hiker were becoming aware of the daunting mountain before him. But then, a steady, quick-pulsed ostinato appears, in a constantly shifting meter system of 2/4- 3/4 in alteration, and the hike has begun. Over this, a slower new melody appears, as the trek up the mountain progresses. It's a big mountain, and the ascent seems to take quite awhile, with little breaks in the hiker's stride, until at length he simply must stop and rest. An oboe solo, over several free cadenza-like measures, allows us (and our friend the hiker) to catch our breath, and also to view in the distance the rocky peak before us. The goal is somehow even more daunting than at first, being closer and thus more frighteningly steep. When we do push off again, it's at a slower pace, and with more careful attention to our footholds as we trek over broken rocks. Tantalizing little views of the valley at every switchback make our determination even stronger. Finally, we burst through a stand of pines and----we're at the summit! The immensity of the view is overwhelming, and ultimately humbling. A brief coda, while we sit dazed on the rocks, ends the movement in a feeling of triumph. The final movement, Acadia, is also about a trip. In the summer of 2014, I took a sailing trip with a dear friend from North Haven, Maine, to the southern coast of Mt. Desert Island in Acadia National Park. The experience left me both exuberant and exhausted, with an appreciation for the ocean that I hadn't had previously. The approach to Acadia National Park by water, too, was thrilling: like the difference between climbing a mountain on foot with riding up on a ski-lift, I felt I'd earned the right to be there. The music for this movement is entirely based on the opening UR-theme. There's a sense of the water and the mysterious, quiet deep from the very beginning, with seagulls and bell buoys setting the scene. As we leave the harbor, the theme (in a canon between solo euphonium and tuba) almost seems as if large subaquatic animals are observing our departure. There are three themes (call them A, B and C) in this seafaring journey---but they are all based on the UR theme, in its original form with octaves displaced, in an upside-down form, and in a backwards version as well. (The ocean, while appearing to be unchanging, is always changing.) We move out into the main channel (A), passing several islands (B), until we reach the long draw that parallels the coastline called Eggemoggin Reach, and a sudden burst of new speed (C). Things suddenly stop, as if the wind had died, and we have a vision: is that really Mt. Desert Island we can see off the port bow, vaguely in the distance? A chorale of saxophones seems to suggest that. We push off anew as the chorale ends, and go through all three themes again---but in different instrumentations, and different keys. At the final tack-turn, there it is, for real: Mt. Desert Island, big as life. We've made it. As we pull into the harbor, where we'll secure the boat for the night, there's a feeling of achievement. Our whale and dolphin friends return, and we end our journey with gratitude and celebration. I am profoundly grateful to Jaclyn Hartenberger, Professor of Conducting at the University of Georgia, for leading the consortium which provided the commissioning of this work.

SKU: HL.48180249

UPC: 888680794811. 9x12 inches.

French organist and composer, Marcel Dupré (1886-1971) is also remembered as a significant pedagogue. However, his prominence within the organ repertoire remains absolute with sublime works, including his Passion Symphony. Dupré studied at the Paris Conservatoire with Louis Vierne and Charles-Marie Widor, where he won prizes for piano, organ and fugue, as well as the Grand Prix de Rome. He was a famous organ virtuoso and was able to perform the entire works composed for the instrument by J. S. Bach from memory. Dupré's Op. 23, the Passion Symphony for Organ is made up of four movements depicting the life of Christ; 1) The World awaiting the Saviour, 2) Nativity, 3) Crucifixion, and 4) Resurrection. All of the movements display a high degree of virtuosic technique and musical integrity. Dupré's compositions and didactic works remain important to organists today and his Passion Symphony is no exception.

SKU: BT.DHP-1114234-010

9x12 inches. English-German-French-Dutch.

Symphonie Fantastique, composed by Hector Berlioz, is a symphony in five movements based upon Berlioz's own experiences of disappointment in love. Tohru Takahashi's arrangement fully exploits the capabilities of the concert band whilst staying true to the tonal colour and textures of the original. Movements include: Reveries - Passions, Un Bal, Scène aux champs, Marche au supplice and Songe d'une nuit de sabbat.

Hector Berlioz was nogal teleurgesteld in de liefde. Met de nog steeds modern klinkende Symphonie Fantastique gaf hij hieraan uiting. Tohru Takahashi verwerkte de originele partituur voor deze transcriptie. Hij wil hiermee de mogelijkhedenvan een modern blaasorkest optimaal benutten, maar verliest daarbij de originele klankkleuren nooit uit het oog. De optionele solopartij voor de cornet verschijnt in het tweede deel. Oorspronkelijk werd deze voor de beroemdekornettist Jean-Baptiste Arban geschreven.Mooi en meeslepend!Symphonie Fantastique bestaat uit de vijf delen Rêveries-Passions (Mijmeringen), Un bal (Een bal), Scène aux champs (Scène op de velden), Marche au supplice (Gangnaar het schavot) en Songe d'une nuit de sabbat (Droom van een heksensabbat).

Berlioz' einzigartige instrumentale und musikalische Herangehensweise klingt auch im 21. Jahrhundert noch neu. Für diese neue Transkription für Blasorchester schöpfte Tohru Takahashi unter bestmöglicher Ausnutzung der originalen Klangfarben die Möglichkeiten eines modernen Blasorchesters voll aus. Die Sinfonie besteht aus den fünf Sätzen Rêveries-Passions, Un bal, Scène aux champs, Marche au supplice und Songe d'une nuit de sabbat.

L'originalité instrumentale et musicale de Berlioz apparaît encore au XXIe siècle avec la même fraîcheur, que celle qui présida lors de la création de l'oeuvre. Pour cette nouvelle transcription pour orchestre vent, Tohru Takahashi a revisité la partition de Berlioz en respectant l'orchestration originale, afin d'exploiter pleinement le vaste potentiel d'un orchestre vent. La Symphony Fantastique se compose de cinq ensembles Rêveries-Passions, Un bal, Scène aux champs, Marche au supplice et Songe d'une nuit de Sabbat.

L'originalit strumentale e musicale di Berlioz è attuale anche nel XXI secolo. Per questa nuova trascrizione per banda, Tohru Takahashi ha rivisitato lo spartito di Berlioz rispettando l'orchestrazione originale per sfruttare al meglio il vasto potenziale delle formazioni di fiati moderni. La Symphonie Fantastique si compone di cinque movimenti: Reveries-Passions, Un Bal, Scène aux champs, Marche au supplice e Songe d'une nuit de Sabbat.