Night Watch

SKU: OU.9780193555280

ISBN 9780193555280. 12 x 8 inches.

For violin and piano This is a reworking of material from Berkeley's 1979 Violin Sonata, and is an evocative and atmospheric single movement. Veilleuse means 'Night Watch' or 'Night Lantern', and the music has a slightly melancholy, restless atmosphere, which momentarily erupts in a passionate outburst before settling back to the quietly ticking, veiled lines of the opening.

SKU: FP.FBS03

ISBN 9790570500192.

Sarah Baker is Vocal Composer in Residence at Education Music Services, an ABRSM examiner and a well known composer of songs and musicals for primary schools and massed-choral events.

All this experience has come together in the creation of this album of piano pieces, inspired by growing up in the Chiltern Hills. Suitable for players of around grade 4-5 standard, her evocative sound pieces describe a crash-landing hot air balloon, garden invading cows and a even a snake in a pond!

Air Balloon!: One vivid memory I have as a child is of the day that a hot air balloon passed over our house and made an emergency landing on the road in front! The sound of the gas being blown into the balloon to try to keep it high enough to pass the house sounded so loud and intimidating, and then there was the bustle of the neighbours as we all went out into the street to watch. It was both terrifying and exhilarating to watch the balloon float past and then land so near by.

Buzzards Circling: There is something so calming and restful about watching birds of prey circling in the thermal currents of a summer sky. Growing up in the Chilterns gave me plenty of opportunity to watch buzzards and red kites. This piano solo captures the beauty of their flight as they glide so effortlessly through the air.

There’s A Cow In The Garden Eating The Flowers: Inspired by the memory of seeing an unexpected cow in the garden! This surreal image is captured in a quirky waltz, as I portray both the absurdity of the moment and the sense of wonder I felt as a child, looking out of the window and seeing the cow walking round and eating the flowers. The final phrase articulates my longing: ‘I wish it would come again’.

Watching The World Go By: A short, reflective piece, remembering what it was like to have time to just sit and watch the world go by from my bedroom window.

Autumn Skies: A miniature about the beauty of Autumn skies and the poignant sense of loss for a summer gone. Friends I was fortunate to have several children of my own age living close by. We seemed to be forever making dens, playing out in the street and generally enjoying each other’s company. This piece reflects that sense of well-being.

Snake In The Pond: One hot summer I was astonished and scared to see a grass snake cooling off in our garden pond! I watched, both horrified and fascinated, as it rose up from the depths and then disappeared again. Here I portray the sense of the hazy summer afternoon as I peacefully watched the tiny movements of fish in the pond, contrasted with the fear and excitement of seeing the snake appear.

Morning Commute: I recollect many mornings stuck in traffic as my Dad took me to school on his way to work. There is one main road out of the village where I grew up, and that got more and more congested the closer we got to the town. We may not have chatted a lot, but it was always good to be together with my Dad, lost in our own thoughts.

The Witch’s Cottage: My siblings and I had a fascination with a small cottage nearby. It was set back from the road in a dark part of the woods and we called it 'the witch's cottage’. Every time we passed, I imagined I heard the distant cackle of the witch and wished I could catch a glimpse of her.

These pieces are written to complement my other collection, Night Time Impressions, which also draw on childhood recollections, particularly of the woods behind the house where I grew up. - Sarah Baker 2023.

SKU: CF.FAS131

ISBN 9781491162644. UPC: 680160921393. Key: E minor.

At night, there are many possible dangers that lurk in the dark. With intense energy, this piece depicts the daring determination of protectors who keep watch in the night. The music is energetic and engaging, reinforcing foundational rhythms and techniques including staccato and changing dynamics. Written in three parts with Violin II doubling Viola and Cello doubling Bass, with optional Piano for support, all players will have the opportunity to play melodic material. Stay vigilant!

SKU: BT.DHP-1064079-020

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

The Golden Age is a programmatic composition in four movements. I Overture For the Netherlands, the seventeenth century was a period of great flourishing in the fields of economy, culture and politics; thus it is called the Golden Age. Overseas trade boomed, and the Dutch East India Company (known as the VOC by the Dutch) was founded and expanded to become a powerful -and, at the time - modern enterprise. II ¡Adiós españoles!(Farewell, Spaniards!) In 1567, the Spanish army invaded, led by the Duke of Alva. There was a fierce resistance against the Spanish tyranny; toward the end of the sixteenth century, the Dutch proclaimed theRepublic. However, the Spanish continued the war. Only with the Treaty of Münster in 1648 did the Dutch get their much sought-after independence. This was also the end of the Eighty Years’ War. III Rembrandt’s Night WatchThe field of culture, particularly literature, painting, sculpture, architecture, the art of printing, and cartography developed fast. It was in the Golden Age that the celebrated painter Rembrandt van Rijn created his famous Night Watch. IV The Admiral Overseas trade entailed the colonization of large areas in Asia, from where precious products that yielded lots of money were brought in. Surrounding countries were also involved in such practices. Colonizers poached on each other’s territories in the literal and figurative sense - in this context the Anglo-Dutch Sea Wars are legendary. The fourth movement starts with the English patriotic song Rule Britannia, after which the Dutch Admiral Michiel de Ruyter makes the English change their tune; one can even hear the roaring of cannons. When the smoke of battle has cleared, a small fragment of a Dutch song about Michiel de Ruyter appears, followed by a fitting closing.

The Golden Age is een programmatische compositie in vier delen. Overtureverklankt de Gouden Eeuw, voor Nederland een periode van grote bloei. Dan volgt ¡Adiós españoles! over het einde van de Tachtigjarige Oorlog.Rembrandt’s Night Watch beschrijft de ontwikkeling op cultureel gebied: in de Gouden Eeuw schilderde Rembrandt van Rijn zijn beroemde Nachtwacht. Deel vier, The Admiral, begint met Rule Britannia,waarna de Nederlandse admiraal Michiel de Ruyter de Engelsen een toontje lager laat zingen, er is zelfs kanongebulder te horen. Dan klinkt een fragment van het Nederlandse liedje dat aan Michiel de Ruyter is gewijd, waarna een passendslot volgt.

The Golden Age ist eine programmatische Komposition in vier Sätzen über das so genannte “Goldene Zeitalter“ in der Geschichte der Niederlande. In dieser Periode erlebte das Land eine Blütezeit des (Übersee-)Handels, der Kultur und Politik, es befreite sich von der spanischen Herrschaft, brachte Kunstwerke wie Rembrandt’s Nachtwache hervor und entwickelte sich zu einer Kolonialmacht. Die Aufmerksamkeit der Zuhörer ist bei Kees Schoonenbeeks spannender musikalischer Geschichtsstunde garantiert!

Après une guerre qui dura 80 ans, l'Espagne reconnut finalement l'indépendance des Provinces-Unies néerlandaises, qui devinrent alors l’une des plus importantes puissances maritimes et économiques du XVIIe siècle. Cette période est connue sous le nom de Siècle d’or (The Golden Age) et correspond une phase de développement exceptionnel des Pays-Bas tant sur le plan colonial et militaire que sur le plan culturel, intellectuel et artistique.

Dopo una guerra che durò 80 anni, la Spagna riconobbe l’indipendenza delle Province-Unite olandesi che divennero potenze marittime ed economiche del XVII secolo. Questo periodo è conosciuto con il nome di Secolo d’Oro (The Golden Age) e corrisponde ad una fase di sviluppo eccezionale dei Paesi Bassi sia sul piano coloniale e militare, sia sul piano culturale, intellettuale e artistico.

SKU: BT.DHP-1064079-140

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

The Golden Age is a programmatic composition in four movements. I Overture For the Netherlands, the seventeenth century was a period of great flourishing in the fields of economy, culture and politics; thus it is called the Golden Age. Overseas trade boomed, and the Dutch East India Company (known as the VOC by the Dutch) was founded and expanded to become a powerful -and, at the time - modern enterprise. II ¡Adiós españoles!(Farewell, Spaniards!) In 1567, the Spanish army invaded, led by the Duke of Alva. There was a fierce resistance against the Spanish tyranny; toward the end of the sixteenth century, the Dutch proclaimed theRepublic. However, the Spanish continued the war. Only with the Treaty of Münster in 1648 did the Dutch get their much sought-after independence. This was also the end of the Eighty Years’ War. III Rembrandt’s Night WatchThe field of culture, particularly literature, painting, sculpture, architecture, the art of printing, and cartography developed fast. It was in the Golden Age that the celebrated painter Rembrandt van Rijn created his famous Night Watch. IV The Admiral Overseas trade entailed the colonization of large areas in Asia, from where precious products that yielded lots of money were brought in. Surrounding countries were also involved in such practices. Colonizers poached on each other’s territories in the literal and figurative sense - in this context the Anglo-Dutch Sea Wars are legendary. The fourth movement starts with the English patriotic song Rule Britannia, after which the Dutch Admiral Michiel de Ruyter makes the English change their tune; one can even hear the roaring of cannons. When the smoke of battle has cleared, a small fragment of a Dutch song about Michiel de Ruyter appears, followed by a fitting closing.

The Golden Age is een programmatische compositie in vier delen. Overtureverklankt de Gouden Eeuw, voor Nederland een periode van grote bloei. Dan volgt ¡Adiós españoles! over het einde van de Tachtigjarige Oorlog.Rembrandt’s Night Watch beschrijft de ontwikkeling op cultureel gebied: in de Gouden Eeuw schilderde Rembrandt van Rijn zijn beroemde Nachtwacht. Deel vier, The Admiral, begint met Rule Britannia,waarna de Nederlandse admiraal Michiel de Ruyter de Engelsen een toontje lager laat zingen, er is zelfs kanongebulder te horen. Dan klinkt een fragment van het Nederlandse liedje dat aan Michiel de Ruyter is gewijd, waarna een passendslot volgt.

The Golden Age ist eine programmatische Komposition in vier Sätzen über das so genannte “Goldene Zeitalter“ in der Geschichte der Niederlande. In dieser Periode erlebte das Land eine Blütezeit des (Übersee-)Handels, der Kultur und Politik, es befreite sich von der spanischen Herrschaft, brachte Kunstwerke wie Rembrandt’s Nachtwache hervor und entwickelte sich zu einer Kolonialmacht. Die Aufmerksamkeit der Zuhörer ist bei Kees Schoonenbeeks spannender musikalischer Geschichtsstunde garantiert!

Après une guerre qui dura 80 ans, l'Espagne reconnut finalement l'indépendance des Provinces-Unies néerlandaises, qui devinrent alors l’une des plus importantes puissances maritimes et économiques du XVIIe siècle. Cette période est connue sous le nom de Siècle d’or (The Golden Age) et correspond une phase de développement exceptionnel des Pays-Bas tant sur le plan colonial et militaire que sur le plan culturel, intellectuel et artistique.

Dopo una guerra che durò 80 anni, la Spagna riconobbe l’indipendenza delle Province-Unite olandesi che divennero potenze marittime ed economiche del XVII secolo. Questo periodo è conosciuto con il nome di Secolo d’Oro (The Golden Age) e corrisponde ad una fase di sviluppo eccezionale dei Paesi Bassi sia sul piano coloniale e militare, sia sul piano culturale, intellettuale e artistico.

SKU: FG.55011-455-5

ISBN 9790550114555.

This cycle of carols, to the poetry of Christina Rossetti, was assembled piecemeal over a number of years, gradually acquiring a larger dramatic and harmonic arch shape as new settings were added. I was particularly attracted to Rossetti's conflation of the dark, fallow winter landscape with that of the soul waiting for salvation. The cycle traces the long nights of watchfulness before Christmas, with the great event constantly deferred, only glimpsed periodically in different visions before the music turns inward again to contemplation. The opening carol embodies this spirit, with passages of diffuse, roving harmony interspersed with meditative, lyrical pedals, calling out the night watch and dreaming of a far-off summer of the spirit. Earth Grown Old is a kind of double carol, setting two complete poems, their lines at first presented separately as a still, expectant chorale and a jubilant dance, then progressively interwoven toward a fervent climax before once again receding into quiet. In the bleak mid-winter, which sets a highly compressed version of Rossetti's original poem, presents an enfeebled landscape frozen in time, in dire need of deliverance. A gentle melody weaves its way through static drones, broken by an angels' chorus announcing the joy to come. Love Came Down at Christmas ends the waiting, with its gently falling, overlapping lines building to a final revelation, the mystery of Christmas at last made real.