Benjamin Britten: Phantasy Quartet Context Composed whilst Benjamin Britten was studying at the Royal College of Music, Phantasy Quartet was premiered in August 1933 as a BBC broadcast. Subtitled ‘Quartet in one movement for oboe, violin, viola and violoncello’, the interesting orchestration makes it one of Britten’s stand-out chamber works. Read more…
Aaron Copland: Our Town Suite Context Aaron Copland was asked to write the score for the 1940 film Our Town. The film centres around the small life in the town of Grover’s Corners, New Hampshire. Copland explained the style and approach he took with this score: “For the film Read more…
Peter Graham: On Alderley Edge Context Commissioned for the 1997 National Brass Band Championships, Peter Graham’s On Alderley Edge was the set test piece for the Championship section. Described as a series of tone pictures, On Alderley Edge’s scene is set by this programme note from Graham: “The North Read more…
Sergei Prokofiev: Toccata Context Sergei Prokofiev’s Toccata in D minor (Op.11) was composed in 1912. Prokofiev himself premiered the work some years later in December 1916. Similar to some of his contemporaries like Ravel and Khachaturian, Prokofiev’s Toccata is a development to the toccata form made famous by the likes Read more…
Malcolm Arnold: Concerto for Harmonica Context Composed in 1954, Malcolm Arnold’s Concerto for Harmonica was premiered by harmonica virtuoso Larry Adler at the Royal Albert Hall in the same year. The BBC Symphony Orchestra accompanied Adler for this concerto. Clocking in at around nine minutes in duration, this concerto is Read more…
Jessica Curry: All the Earth Context British composer Jessica Curry is a well-known voice on classical radio stations such as Classic FM. She is also known for her stand-out video game soundtracks, such as her music for the 2015 game Everybody’s Gone to the Rapture, which won her a BAFTA. Read more…
Derek Bourgeois: Blitz Context Derek Bourgeois studied at Magdalene College, Cambridge and the Royal College of Music, where he received specialist composition tutelage by Herbert Howells and conductor education from Si Adrian Boult. Bourgeois worked at a number of places as a lecturer, teacher and conductor, whilst also writing a Read more…
Jennifer Higdon: Percussion Concerto Context Composed in 2005, Jennifer Higdon’s exciting Percussion Concerto has received very high acclaim from the media and from audiences around the world. Throughout the 20th Century and beyond, the growth of the percussion section is far more vast than any other section within an orchestra. Higdon writes in Read more…
Yiruma: Kiss the Rain Context Yiruma, born Lee Ru-ma, is a South Korean-British composer and pianist. Born in 1978 in South Korea, Yiruma moved to England in 1988 to study at the prestigious Purcell School of Music, and then at King’s College London where he studied composition. Whilst studying at Read more…
John Barry: Out of Africa Context By 1985, John Barry was already a very well-established film score composer. His work in the James Bond franchise was legendary, and his huge output of film music speaks for itself. One of his most beloved scores came from the 1985 film Out of Read more…