stephen bulla: brass band composer

24
The ofiicial Journal of the North American Brass Band Ass0ciation, Inc. Aussies Take NABBA 1994: lllinois Takes Honors Section Hawthom CityBand (Ken McDonald) fromnearMelboume, Australia,cdgcd out Ohio Colletiate and thc BBC to gainthe victoryin the Championship Section at NABBA '94 in Raleigh, NC, on thecampus of NorthCaroliiaStatc University. Illinois BrassBand(Colitl Holm.n) gaincd thc laurcls in thc packed Honors Section, with Eastern Iowa right behind them. (See bclow for completelistof contc$tants, final order, andovervicw of repertoire.) No Championship section band stood out in their handling of the Vaughan Williamy ya,lations. Hawthom City, however, fresh from thcir victory in the Australian Na tional BrassBand Cham- pionships, providcd a solid reading of Wilby's difficult Paglfiiti Varialions. This gave themthccdgc ovcrthc Amcri- can brass bands. May 1994 lssue 56 Stephen Bulla: Brass Band Composer TheBritish brass band scene first took notice of Srcphen Bullafor his award- winninSarrangement tvidriicornbc Fai (winner of the original test-piece com- petition sponsored by Rothman's Brass in Concert). Since thenhehas provided works for the National Brass Band Championships of Creat Britain (Cifys6apes), theShell-New Zealand BB Championships (Carlicles in Erass), the Dutch BrassBand ChampionshiF (Clro- rale qnil Toccata), ^nd a series of other commissions,including his test-piece Iilesform, $'ritten for The U.S. Artrry Brass Band andprcmiered atNABBA '91 in CedarRaDids. Ame cans are more(amiliar with Bulla's work asstaff arrangerfor the U.S.Marlne Band (The Presidengs Own).In thiscapacity his duties include production of concert andc€rernonial music for the band and the White House Orch€stsa that en- compasses many styles and instrurnen- tal cornbinations. You have probably heard Sieve-s music during those "I-i!€ at the White House" television sDe cials. City rcturnBl to NABBA, theywould win again.Don't count on it! I lake nothing awayfrom Hawthorn City they deservcd to win. Their victory, however, was notastunningone, nota runaway. As onc iudgc putsit later in thisissue, it will not bclong before our bestbands will matchanyin theworld. May NABBA bands ncver fall into thc trap.howcvcr, of just becoming "con- tesf' bands. wc tormcd NABBA for MUSICAL reasong. Our competitions arcmeans toanend, that ofmaking the vcry best MUSICwc canthrough the medium wealllove, thebrassband. As we get tcchnically shonger andstron- ger,let us always shiveaftermusical cxccllcnce in every paramctcr. Congratulations to all tNrteen bands! It wasan outstandingday. In Honors, Curnow's Lrrlde proved the perfcrt choice tochallengc thesc enthu- siastic andfast'developing enscmblcs. AII the bands playcdat a vcry high level, making it apparertt to oncjudgc, at least, that the s€paration bctwccn Honorsand Championship was not so large as expected. Thisbeingmy sevcnth year as Control- ler,I cansafely asscrt thatthiscontest provided the most consistcnt plalng we havc cver hcard at NABBA.ltalso ranverysmoothly, thanks to a host of volunteers. Our adiudicators' com- ments tell itall; our bands are playing ata veryhigh standard. Wearc making remarkable progrcss, this being only our 12th ycarof competition. I know thatKenMcDonald attempted humor when, in accepting theChampionslup banner, hesomcwhat ungraciously in- dicad that if and whcn Hawthom cntinued onpaSe 7

Upload: buituyen

Post on 29-Jan-2017

280 views

Category:

Documents


3 download

TRANSCRIPT

Page 1: Stephen Bulla: Brass Band Composer

The

ofiicial Journal of the North American Brass Band Ass0ciation, Inc.

Aussies Take NABBA 1994: lllinois Takes Honors SectionHawthom CityBand (Ken McDonald)fromnearMelboume, Australia,cdgcdout Ohio Colletiate and thc BBC togain the victory in the ChampionshipSection at NABBA '94 in Raleigh, NC,on the campus of North Caroliia StatcUniversity. Illinois BrassBand(ColitlHolm.n) gaincd thc laurcls in thcpacked Honors Section, with EasternIowa right behind them. (See bclow forcompletelistof contc$tants, f inal order,and overvicw of repertoire.)

No Championship section band stoodout in their handling of the VaughanWilliamy ya,lations. Hawthom City,however, fresh from thcir victory in theAu stralian Na tional BrassBand Cham-pionships, providcd a solid reading ofWilby's difficult Paglfiiti Varialions.This gave them thc cdgc ovcr thc Amcri-can brass bands.

May 1994 lssue 56

Stephen Bulla: Brass Band ComposerThe British brass band scene first tooknotice of Srcphen Bulla for his award-winninS arrangement tvidriicornbc Fai(winner of the original test-piece com-petition sponsored by Rothman's Brassin Concert). Since then he has provid edworks for the National Brass BandChampionships of Creat Britain(Cifys6apes), the Shell-New Zealand BBChampionships (Carlicles in Erass), theDutch BrassBand ChampionshiF (Clro-rale qnil Toccata), ^nd a series of othercommissions,including his test-pieceIilesform, $'ritten for The U.S. Artrry

Brass Band and prcmiered atNABBA'91 in Cedar RaDids. Ame cans aremore(amiliar with Bulla's work asstaffarrangerfor the U.S.Marlne Band (ThePresidengs Own). In this capacity hisduties include production of concertand c€rernonial music for the band andthe White House Orch€stsa that en-compasses many styles and instrurnen-tal cornbinations. You have probablyheard Sieve-s music during those "I-i!€at the White House" television sDecials.

City rcturnBl to NABBA, they wouldwin again. Don't count on it! I lakenothing away from Hawthorn Citythey deservcd to win. Their victory,however, was nota stunningone, notarunaway. As onc iudgc puts it later inthis issue, it will not bc long before ourbestbands will matchanyin theworld.

May NABBA bands ncver fall into thctrap. howcvcr, of just becoming "con-tesf' bands. wc tormcd NABBA forMUSICAL reasong. Our competitionsarc means to anend, that ofmaking thevcry best MUSIC wc can through themedium weall love, thebrassband. Aswe get tcchnically shonger and stron-ger, let us always shive after musicalcxccllcnce in every paramctcr.

Congratulations to all tNrteen bands!It was an outstandingday.

In Honors, Curnow's Lrrlde proved theperfcrt choice to challengc thesc enthu-siastic and fast'developing enscmblcs.AII the bands playcd at a vcry highlevel, making it apparertt to oncjudgc,at least, that the s€paration bctwccnHonorsand Championship was not solarge as expected.

Thisbeingmy sevcnth year as Control-ler, I can safely asscrt that this contestprovided the most consistcnt plalngwe havc cver hcard at NABBA.ltalsoran very smoothly, thanks to a host ofvolunteers. Our adiudicators' com-ments tell itall; our bands are playingata veryhigh standard. Wearc makingremarkable progrcss, this being onlyour 12th ycar of competition. I knowthat Ken McDonald attempted humorwhen, in accepting the Championslupbanner, he somcwhat ungraciously in-dicad that if and whcn Hawthom

cntinued on paSe 7

Page 2: Stephen Bulla: Brass Band Composer

N,4BBAOilicial q uarl€rly jo! rnal oi the NorlhArnerican Brass Band Association, Inc.Founded by J. P€rry Watson in 1980.Uselulnows lor Brilish-slyle brass bandsin Nodh Ameica. Ths views oxpr€ssedby corlibutors are nol nec€ssarily lhoseol the Nonh American Brass BandAssociation, Inc. P!blicalion andadverlising d€adlines afe lhe 1slh olJanuary, April, July, and Oclober.Copyright @ 1994 by th€ Nodh AmeicanBfass Band Associat ion, Inc. Al l r ighls

nonald W. Holz, EdltorThe Brass Band BrldgeAsbury College Muslc Depl.Wllmofe, Kenlucky USA 40390T€l€phone(606)858'3511 exlension 2246Facsirnile (606) 858-3921

Paul e Droste, RevlewerTom lilyerg, AdvenblngLynene owens, Producion

NABBA Membership Dues

$201050

100500

1,000

Editor's Notes

lndividualSiudenl / Reliredf,4ember BandCorporalePatronLeade.ship

To ioin NABBA, please mail yourname, addross, lelephone number,inslrumenl, and bancl's name {if youplay in one), plus annual membershipoues , Io -

Mr, 8e L WlleyNABBA li&nbership ChahP.O. Box 2438Cullowhee, Norlh Carollna 28723

NABBA '94 was a landmark for us inmany ways. Most notably, NABBAcame full circle, after a dozen years,back to its launching site. What hasb€€n achieved in a dozenyears?l thinkit is safe to say that a true brass bandrenaissancehas be€n setoncourse. Ourbandshave made,simply put,amazingprogressin twelveyears. Checkoutthecomments by our adjudicators, pro-vided belorv, and you can get a gencralidea of our currentstafus as an cmcrg-

Commentary and "thank-yous" con-ceoring all aspccts of thc week arespread throughou t this issuc. From myown perspective this was one of thebL,st championships! Congratulalionsto all ba nd s, for their sacrificial work ingottinS b Raleigh, for thcir positiv€suPPort of th!'ir collcaSucs from othcrgroups, and, abovc all, for thcir fine

This summor thcrc arL'a numb$ ofexccllcnt brass band activificsr CrrdlA"rcrica,t BB Frrltral, Tour o{ BNFLBand, BB Coursc rvith Frank Renton,and anothcr Srcat year of Yamaha/NABBA Workshops. Hopc you cancheck onc of thcsc out!

One vcry important task for everyNABBA member is to getgood, qualificd pcoplc activcon our Board. Pl(:asebccome active in nominating Boardmcmbcrs, c'ithcr ncw mcmbc.$, orrenominatingoutstanding Board mem-bers whose terms are expiring. Detailsare providcd in this issuc, as is thcnomination foim, which is duc in toBert Wiley by July 25th.

Band reports have been excellentj keepsending us your programsl I will thenscnd thcm on to Bert Wilcy for fteNABBA Archives. While Band Reportsand Programs have been going well, itis rcmarkablc how fcw bands havctakenadvantageof the free "Band Bul-letin Board" or "Coming Events" sec-tion. Doyou rvant sto kccp thisinTheBridg€?

Best wishes for a productive summer!See you next year inToronto!

R.W. Hotz

NABBA VideoContest 1994:Eastern lowa, Again!Congratulations to Eastern Iowa BrassBand (John de Salme) for pulling itoffone more year! Wenatchee BritishBrass Band (Duane Mikow) came inaval iant second. Judges were PaulDroste, NABBA President Tom Myers,and Ron Holz. Both groups gave spir-itcd performanccs, cach with its ownspccial musical and cntertainmentvalue. Eastern Iowa highlighted theirChristmasconcert, Wenatchee centeredtheiru around Cershwin's Rhapsody it1Bfue. Hcre are the programs they sub-mlttedl

Eastern lowaFanfarc and Carol (Banks)

Tivo Canadiarl Christmas Carols(Calvert)

Thc Littlc Drummcr &)y (arr. Sparkc)

O Holy Night-Soprano Solo(Adam/Bul la)

Christmas Tryptych (Cumow)

Slcigh Ridc (Andcrson /Tomlinson)

WenatcheeRussian Saibrs' Dance (Gliere)

My Lovc Is Likc A Rcd, Red Rose(arr. Langford)

Rllapsody In Blue (Gershwin/Ashmorc) with soloists KathrynHibbard, piano; Sandy Rydz, clarinct

washington Crays March (Grafulla)

Moving?The Brass Band Bridge cannol beforwarded because il is mailedlhirdclass. So, be sure lo mail to BertWileyyourold and newaddresses,or your copy of the Bridge will bediscarded by the U.S. Posl Ollic€,and you will miss the next issuesl

2 lhe Brass Band Sddge M8y 1994

Page 3: Stephen Bulla: Brass Band Composer

Contest ResultsBands arc listed within sections by order of thcir final placcment. A majorrepresentative work they played, in addition to the test piece, is listed, as is theband's total performanc! tirne.

Championshlp Sscllon:Test Piece - yarirrions /o/ Bmss Band (Vaughan Williams)

#l Hawthom City Band (Kc{| McDonald), 28'02"P a gan i n i V aria I b t6 M ilby,

#2 ONo Collegiat. Brass (Paul Droste; Les Susi);25'25"Ioc.afa (Heaton)

#3 Bras3 Band of Columbus (Paul Droste);28'12"Circius: Wind ol lhe Norll (Aagaard-Nilsen)

#4 Triantle Brass Band (Michael Votra), 25'54"I bilee Overturc lsparke)

#5 Smoky Mountain Btass Band (rohn West); 25'48"F es tia e O v er ht rc (Sho stakovitch /Gordon)

Honors Soctlon:Test Piecc - lrldej R rdpsodic Vaiations (Cwnow\

{ l lllinois Erass Band (Colin Holman); 2744"The Plantagarcts (Ct gpnl

*2 Eastem lowa Brass Band Uohn desalme), 2200"F es t io e Oo ei u rc (Shostakovitch /Gott)

f3 Sheldon Theatsc Brass Band (Larry Brentzcl); 26'56"Iondfu Ouertlue l'patke)

NCSU British Brass Band (Frank Hammond);27'28"Anericin Ciuil War Fanlasy (Bilik/Himes)

Varstty All Stars (Eric Aho); 23'd4"The Shipbtilden (Y otkcl

Comdonwealth Brass Band 0erome Amend)i 28'14"Kenilz,orf, (Bliss)

Queen City Btass Band Gonald Smith); 25'53"Chotule and Toccata (Bulla,

Youlh Socllon:Test Piece - Dirrsrtirrerto Gall)

#1 Junior Varsity All Stars (Eric Aho); 1728"

Sololsl Awards:HonorgSection-S€an Roark, CommonwealdrBrass

I bilance (Him,es)

ChampionsNpscott Heath/ Ohio ColledateEupl@nium Concerto (Horoilv)

Soloist of the Day-Scott Heath, Ohio Collegiate

For NABBA'94,SpecialThanks to:Frank Hammond, Coordinator of theChampionship

co-Hosts: NCSU British Brass Band,Triangle Brass Band

NCSU Honorary Music Society: MuBeta Psi

Compere: Robert A. Bames

Coniroller: Ronald W. Holz

Controlle/s Staff: Tom Mycrs, BethHronek

Adjudicators Cumow, Gregson, andRenton

NABBA Secretaryr Bcrt Wilcy

NABBA Treasurer Sara North

Exhibitors and Corporate Sponsors

. . . And many othcr kind, graciousvolunteers!

#5

#7

* N.4!!BA *Championships XIII

7995

Attend theNABBA Chamoionshios Xlll

in Toronto, CanadaApril 21-22, 1995

Host: Weston Silver Band

tby l9€l lhe B.rss Ernd Bdqs 3

Page 4: Stephen Bulla: Brass Band Composer

Our Adjudicators'ReactionsTheiudgingpanel thisyearrepresendone of the most balanced and mosrmusically expericnced panels, espe-clallyas it relates to brassbands. Eachiudgc was asked to share his thoughtsabout NABBA 1994 as time permincUin the hectic rush to press followingRaleigh. Frank Rmton'smoreextendcdcomments also include his reactions toour overall process, and his recent ex-pcricnce with theBrass Band ofBattleCreek.

Jamos Cumow:I would like bo take this opportuniry tocong.atulate Orc brass bands that per-formed duringtheNABBA Brass BandChampionships on AFil 23 in Raleigh,NC.I had the privilegc ofadiudicatingthe championships when they wereheld in Ashville a few ycars ago and Iam astonished by the rnarked improve-ments that I havc hcard in the last fewyears.

Thc Ievel ofdifficulty of the music andthc development of thc brass bandsound, teahnical facility, and maturityof interprctation is remarkable. Everyband played wcll and should be cx-trcmcly proud of their achievements.

I am pleased to have been involvcd inthe championshipg and trust that mycommentg were constructivc and help-ful. Should any of thcconductors havcqucshons regarding my comments, Iwould welcDme the opportuni ty to d is-cuss them with you. Again, to all of youwho participated - BRAVOT You arcall winners.

.lames Curnow TEL 60G885-3695; FAX6r'j6-885-3547

Bram Gregson:Firstly, let me express my admirationfor all the bands which participad atRaleigh. especially those which trav-elled long distances, no doubt at con-siderablc cost. Your cnthusiasm and

4 lhe 8r8se 88nd B.ldge ay 1991

commitment to the brass band movc-ment is not only admirable but esscn-tial if brass banding is to continue itsremarkable growth in the U.S.

To make such efforts for a thirty-minute'spot' displays rcal dedication! There-fore, all bands deserve commendationbocau sc you came to Raleigh not ncces-sarily to conquer, but, I'm sure, to healand leam from this cxperience.

Adiudication is an onerous reqronsi-bility. Each of thc tcam no doubt hadhis prefercnces, but there was conscn-sus on the rcsults, There were somesuperior technical performances but formc the'pointof vicw'on dre music wasnot alwaysevidcnt. I talk to myband agrcat dcal about thc fact that thc dotsareon the page but thcmusicison theback of the pagc! Musical symbols areiust the beginning. Ifs the way that thenotes are conncctcd that's so impor-tant; iys the ability to shape musicalscntcncet paragraphs, and create anintercsting story that must be para,mount. Agrecd, this can only beachieved after tcrhnical proficicncy hasbeen coupled with accuracy in tuning(mcchanical) and intonation (pcrsonal).There cannot bca satisfactory musicalFrrformance withoutmetiollousattcn-tion to these basic details. Therefore, itis gratifying to lcarn that the perfor-mancc standards are improving eachyear.I can't wait for the day whcn thcbestof North Amcrica's bands providestif f competition to Europe'sb€st. Basedon what I heard ifs not too faraway!

A personal regret is that under the cir-curnstanGs it wasn't possible for mc tomcct too many ofyou. I hope that thiswill be recti6cd ncrtyear in Toronto!

Meanwhile to all brass band enthusi-asts, keep up the good work and goodluckinall yourendeavors. Flaving nowbeen bandmastcr of the same churchband for 25 years I know all about thechallcnges facing amateur musicianstrying to make music. It is exciting towihess improving standards of pcr-formance; it is frustrating when itdoesn't work; it is stimulating whcniust once in a while the playing s€ems

close to pe ection. It is exhilarating tomake music. Aboveall we are partofagreat ftaternity.

Contests may play an important role intheelevation of perf onnance standaids,but I hope that they will never be thcraison d'etre tor lhe existcnce of NorthAmerican brassbands. The musicis thethingl It was Fricdreich Nietzsche whosaid "without music life would be awaste!"

EramGregson; TEL519-473-242O;F AX519473-2445

Fnnk Renton:The oppoftrnity to combine adjudicat-ingattheNABBA Championships withmy other work in North America wastoo good to miss, so after the BrassBand ofBattle Cre€k's April lTth con-cert/ where I sharcd the conductingduties with Kcn Bloomquist (NABBABoard Member), it was up to MichiganState University to conduct the orchegtra and wind symphony and l(lhire 0othe Conducting Class, then on to NorthCarolina for the comFtition. All myarrangements had b€{n made at longrangc with Ron Holz and FrankHarnmond, and everything worked atreat, as it should.

On Friday evening after supper withmy fellow adiudicato$, JamesCumowand BramCregson,both of whom I wasmeeting for the first time, but whoseworkIkncw and respected, itwas toasight reading session in the auditoriumwhere the contest would be held thencxtday. Whata good idea! It allowedthe Perfomers to 8et a look at us andgave them the opportunity to decide atfirst hand whether we knew what wewcre talking about or not, as the casemay be, and allowed us to hear the hallin which we would bc adjudicatin&whilst building a rclationship, how-ever small, with the people who wou ldbe playing for us. I was immenselyimpressed by the standard ofsightreading shown, and thecomradedeof the players, both of whichfactors augured well for the followingday

Page 5: Stephen Bulla: Brass Band Composer

Goming Spring Brass Band Events

The onlyproblem with having all threesections in one hall on one day, andfollowing that by a concert, is that youhave to start so early. NoMy shouldhave to play a brass instrument at 8:15A.M. and ccrtainly nobody should haveto listen to them! Having said that,everyone did amazingly well and wewere all impressed by the overall stan-dard of playing in the Honors Section.There was a considerable aftEunt ofadvenfurous prograrnmin& and gen-erally a good understanding of themedium. Wefclt that rDst conductoEhad failcd to understand tully 0e in-tentions, and insEuctions, of th€ corn-poser in the set piar€, Lorrda. This was alittlecritical, as thc composcr wasadiu-dicating. We all aF€ed that compoecrc' instructions should not b€ takenentirely litc.ally, b!t, ard it is a larSebut, once one alters th€ very <orlsEuc-tion of a piece, chieny by alEring therelationship betwe'en tempi and style,then we arc alrnost into the business ofrc-composint, not interpretin&

Our one Youth Bard perfcrrnled withsufficient s}jll to be an en<ouragerFntfor the futurc, but found the Eric Ballpiece, which looks easy on F aper, quitedifficult to cope with.

The Championship Scrtion - after thevery positi ve, and encouraging sound softhe momin& it is fair to say that wewere lookint forwards to the task oflisteninS with some relish. I think thatit is also fair to say that we were a litdedisappointed by the overall standardof the section; perhaps we expectedmorc than we had a right to do, but thegap betwe€n the betE Honors bandsand the Championship section was notas great as we expected. Yet again theconductors found the set piece, thistime the Vaughan Willia !n.s' Varitliotls,difficult tr shape, and perhaps too manyof them did not take enough noti.e ofthe composer's very clear instructionsabout pace and style. Our main criti-cism, however, was that so many of thepelornrances lack€d any real style ordirection. Fairly loud and fairly quietare not good enough in an ensemblelike the brass band. The DarameErs of

dynamic control need to be set widcr,and the grad ings in bctwe€n nc'cd to bemorenumerousi equally, the quality ofproduction and articulation n€€ds tobe rr'€xamined in scveral bands toavoid everything sounding the same.On the posi tive sidc, thc quality ofplay-ingisSenerally very high, and our find-ings of Friday cvcning were well supportcd. Il'show thcsc positivcqualitiesare utilized that dctcrmincs the speedof progress.

Finally, the concert by Hawthom CityBand, the new champions, prcscntedby thei rconductor, Ken McDonald, whoshould know what he is talking aboutafter eight years with Crlm€thorpe.The band sounded a little tircd, btrtplayed a varied and at times difficultprogram without too many bad mo-

The contest is well organizcd, \a'ith atcamof quitededicad peopleall work-ing well togethcr, aided by the use ofmobile radios, so things wcre donc in-stantly. Eands came on and performedexactly on tiine virtually all day, andwith scrmingly little fust having hadoppo.tunity to warm up, and prePare

themselves properly, exactly as itshould be.

As an adjudicator, I still *,rsh that orga-nizers would bite the bullet and let uslistm in the open. The sareen did notaffect the sound, and did prevent usfrom seeing theband s, but it meant thatwe had to occupy seats a t the rcar of theauditorium, with tables at knee levelon the seats in front.I've still got a badback! I found that usi ng a tape recorderallowed an immediate rcsponse to themusic making. I iust hope that nobodywas disturbed by my comments, andthat bands took them all in thc con-structive manner in which intended.

ToNABBA President Tom Myers, andto Ronald Holz and his team of assis-tants. thanks for thc opportunity to a9sess the state of banding in NorthAmerica. Th€ Brass Band of BattlcCIe€k is a professional outfit, andwould not be outof place anywhcrc inthe world. Your own organization ismade up of amateur bands and musi-ciant and is close enough to what isgoing on clsewhere in the world tomake me think that it won't be longbefore your best bands wiu be able tocornpete on equal terms with bandsanywherein the worldlKeepat iL andyou will not be disappoind.

Frank Renton TEL 01144-0628-789-740; F AX 01144-0528-789-837Great

Amen!oenBr:ass Band

FesdvalJure r7-rg rgg4

CenEe ColleteDanvill€, KY 40422

Eetturing, anong other gfoups:

Sumnit Bra99

Chicago Staff Band

SheldonTheah€

ay19$ rhe Br&33 Bsnd Eddge 5

Page 6: Stephen Bulla: Brass Band Composer

Gala ConcertHrwthom CiYs program on Satur-day evening deviated substantiallyfrom that printed in the Contest pro-gram brochure. Here is the ompleteprogam as perform€d that evening:

P afl I --Th e Arc h al ian N al io nal An lh an ;Fa farc afld Floui*es (Ctmow) Over-tttrc'. Ruler of the Seirits (Von Web€r/Gay); Cornet SolorNapoli Gellstedt/Brand),lanHolme6;Th?Shephe'ssong(arr. Richards); AIto Hom Solor HSSyjS(Richards), Wendy Steel qSifiply CnndMirrel (PDQ Bach/Schikele); Cometsolo: S'l8al Bfues (Morrison), JasonMea.si An Auslrdl ian Fanlasy(Langford). Part II - Frfitasia on "ficoTi6o' (Bourgeois)i Euphonium Solo:Rlalsody (Curnow), Michael Mewt andconducd by James Curnow;lrbhTrne(crainger); Trombone Solo'. ConcertEtlrde (Co€dicke), Mervyn PreusketCornet/T.ombone Duct: ftro Cals(Rossini/Snell), Jason Mears andMervyn Preusker; English Heritage(Lfoyd).Encores: WallzirS Matida;Statsan l Slipes Foreoer (s.'rsa), led by FrankHammondi fi€ Slar-Spa n$Iel Banner.

Our victoriousAustralianambassadorsprovidcd an entertainin8 hour-and-forty-fivc minute program Saturdayev(ning. Though having played theirthirty-minutc contest proSram mid-way through the aftemoon, they begantheir conccrt with Sood verve and style.If later ihey showed some fatigue, whocould blame thcm? The band seemedcspecially well-suited to larger concert-contest t)?e items, providing some oftheir best plaing on the Von Weberoverture, the Austroliqn Fantasv, a\dthe finaf test-piec€, Engl ish H.ritage. Oftheir soloists, wendy Steele was a tcalstandout on her version ot Hi8gyjig,while Jason Mears showed us he canhandle the harmon mute quite effec-lively (Sugar Bl es and Duet for Cats).

Most Australian bands I have heardiouring the U.S. usually try real hard atthe "novcltl/' side of things. Thisband'sFanlash: on Tico Tico fit that genle asexpcrted, irats, slaPstick, and all that

6 lhe Bn$tjsnd Bddge lray 1994

kindof thing.Theaudienceateitup! Inone sense the Cocdicke Concerl Etude,as played on trombone, is also a nov-elty of sorts. Mervyn Preusker has ex-cellent technical facility; the piece justdocs not speak well, in my opinion, inthis version (and American audienceshave f(luendy heard Bill Broughtonexcel at this piece on tsombone, too!).

One ot thc most musical offcrings of theevming came when Ken McDonaldhandcd thebaton over toJim Cumowfor a readingol his Rhapsody for Eupho-ninn an l Band. }{awlhom respondedadmirably to this unplanned event,plalngverywcll for the guest conduc-tor/composer, as did thcir soloigt,Michael Mews.

My personal favoritc cameat the end oflhe conccrt, Gmrge Lloyd's Erglisrt

HenraSe. Never having heard the worklive, this was a treat. Ken McDonaldshowed himself to be a real fine bandtrainer 0uoughout the evenin& but hisskill at gefting textural clarity andproper dynamic contrasts s€emed par-tic:l arly evident in this unusual score.McDonald is not a demonstntivc cDn-ductor; the resultsmustcorn€ from hardslugging in the band room. Hawthomshowed why they can excel at this kindof banding exFrience, for there aremany very skilled players in this band !

The evening ended on a very Posihvenote, with gracious Presentations be-ing made by Hawthom's Band Sccre-tary to Frank Hammond and to TomMyers, with the latter rc"ciProcating onbehalf of NABBA.

For the first time NABBA had an out-side band compete in its ChamPion-ship6. That band was the chamPion ofits own association. NABBA therefor€greatly benefitted from the experienceof both havinS Hewthom compete inthe contest and provide a very muchappreciated Gala Concert. Wc inNABBA send our heartfclt thants andconsratulahons to our friends from'doin undcr.' They rcpresented theirassociation and country very well; weleamed from them and we hope thatthey found their Amcrican experierc€to be of lasdng value.

R.W. Holz

ComlngBrassBand Events:Surnrner 1994Gr98t arrgrlcln Bregs Eand FoEllval

June l7-19Cenfs Collsgg, DanMlle KY

NABBA Reprcssnbllve:Sheldon Thoafe

Olher Bdtish-Slyls Erass Band: ChicagoSlall Eand

Brasg BSnd Cou|3o nidr Frank FonlonJune 27-July 1

Vandecook Collgge of MusicS€s lulldslails in loatuD his issue.

BNFL 8a8Es Brnd TourJuly21-2€

See tull details i0leature his issue.

Yamaha/NABBA Bi8ss 8aM wortEhopsSee tull dehils in lgaturc f s issls.

NABBABo€rd €e{ng:August 26-27i Toronlo, onlaio

Page 7: Stephen Bulla: Brass Band Composer

Stephen 8u acontinued trcn we 1

Born and mised in the ranks of TheSalvation Arm, he conti nues as a ,,sonof the regiment", provides mucher(El-lentmusic f or that dmornination,sbrassand vocal combinationt and dircclsthe well-known National CaDital Bandof The Salvahon A rrny. His iather wasa long-standing rhember of the N"wYo* Stafl Band,a tuba section; at onetime both he and his brotlrer, phil_played in thatexcell6rt group wi th theirdad.

Background, Tr8hlng, trfrrencosBul la studied at the Berl(elee Colleqe ofMusic (Bostont reeiving his diplomaIn.arranging ard ompcition, gradu_atrng rnagna cum leude in 1970. Beforejoining the Marina B.nd, he served asftc'e-lance commercial araanqer/D€r-former in New York Gty, arii r^,ioeand edited for such 6nt1s as Chas. Colinand Kmdor.

My own fnend ship wi th Steghen da tesback b Star Lake MusicamD. whercSteve aEuz€d us all with his Lbnsasa young pranist, honbonist, and, aboveall, young arranger who had a ,narve!ous talent and ear for atrsorbins a widerange styles a nd ru king those; Dart ofhis own developing viabulary. Bullawould call himself a shy personalitv;his early efforts in composin& hori-ever, combined with his unique gi fts ofmusrcalmtmicry, made his music anv-thlng bu t introverd. In the mp stytllle handles so well, Steve wo;ld'de-clare an admiration for Netson Riddle,BiUy May, William Russo, and lohnWilliafis. ln the brass band arerla, I caneasily hearthe infl uenceof Erik L€idzen,Eric Ball, GilbertVinter, and earty Bruc€houghton. Arc we surDrised

'to find

out that he collects iazz ind film scorerccordings inaddition to hisbrassbandaddiction?

Bulla TrlvhOur eclectic hero considers himself'thorough to a faulf and somewhatself-<onscious abou t his work, Not sur_prisingly_, Mo"rrt provides his greatcstmusrcar Insprrahon, a model for any_or€adept at synthcsizinqa wide raneeof stylcst Hc and his wlfc, Kathtcc"n,live in Crofton, MD, with theh foursonr Brian (17), Andrew 05), Stephen(13, and Danicl (8). Hot, Caiun food iswhatwouldpleasehlmmostif hccomesto visit your band, as wcllas your stu_dious avoidance of his earliest brassarrangemcntt or so he says! He notonly writies for thc Marine Band, forsacred & s€crrlar brass bands, and con-ccrt bandt but he occasionally has timeto create commercial music for regiona Iadvcrtisint campaigns for firm-s likeBob's Big Boy, Roy RogersRestaurants,Britchcs Clothing, and cven a docu-mentary film score for the NationalAeronauticsand SpaceAdministration.In 1990 hc won an i DDy award for thcbest original music tclevision spot since1988 he has annually wo" an ,CSCepConcert Performanc€ Award.

AnalyslsA brief glance through the S€lectcdWorks List provided will reveal Bulla,swidc reach in ananging and comflos-ing. He isat homc withadaphng Broad_way show tunes as he is in providinesubshntial art-music for bris bandslHis early brass band works featured atue€-rgngrl& thoughromposcd apProach to form, almost in the swle ofanother of his brass mentors, RavSteadman-Atlen. In recent efforts h'ohas been much rnore deliberate in hisapproach to large-scale form, especiallyevident in works like Fr,restorm,'with i bcyclic treatment of themes and motives,and Fantosio lor Eupl@ ium anrt Bl,?ssBand, bascd on a Purcell hyrnn-hrne,Weslniatet AbW.

I^ Chorale and Todaaf, Bulla chose ahj.mn-tune, yictory, derived from theworks of Paleshina, and spe{ificallvintended to write what he wbuld h#t

as a 'dassical' work. The piece wouldserve as both a contesFpiece, and crosgover nicely for use by Salvation Armybrass bands, where the associateiwordt connected with the East€r Res-urrection, would give it an added aFPeat.Bulla has not just given us a Choralesetting followed by a Toccata, but hasreally given us a totally-integratedloccata, in much thc same wav thatBach'sToccata and Fugue in D Iiinor isnot iust a Fugue preeded by a Toccatabut that the cntire work, the choraleand subsidiary thcmcs, constitute theToccata. His'toccata, themc, first ptayedin the Lydian modc by thceuphdnium,constitutcs thc technical, or ,,touch_pic.cc" material one expects in such aform, The sustaincd paicstina choraleprovides the contsasting raw material.Thewhole work isgroundcd in a rnodaltonic of Bflat. As conscious as Bulla.sneo-classic, or rather nm-barocue, ori-cntation scems to have been in thiswork, thecomposition DIavs verv natu-rally, and doei not have ao worik hard"for cffect." Indeed, the piecc scems klmarka maturingand a tuming pointinhis brass band ourDur.

Bllla's handling of brass band coloratways seernss€cuneand conddent Thisrsnotunexpected, forhetold me thathemade a special study of Erik teidzen,sexcellent approach to brass band scor-in& esp€cially when Steve worked forThe SA Music Department in Ncw yorkand had acc€ss to so many of Leidzen,sworks. I remember when I iuded theSA's National ComDosition Co-nrest in1980 that all of us on the iudqes, Danclwcre struck by how the eventuafwin-net Stephen Bulla (but wc did not knowwho wiote it at the time), had so car!-fully modeled his scoring and rnarch-form after Leidzen, yet s-ntt mainAir,-ing a fresh, irnaginative voice.I still think Stephen Bulla has one of themost furtile imaginations, musicallysPeakrn& among a host of brass bandwriters. His eclecticism, his thorouqhcraltsmanshi p, and his gro wing sophls-ticnhon in all aspecls of the <omDosi-

ay 1gg4 the Brars gsnd Brtdge 7

Page 8: Stephen Bulla: Brass Band Composer

VCollegeof Mtsic

This summer, get the latest information onrunning your own Brass Band Program

Jumping on the Brass Band Wagon:A Comprehensive Course on

Brass Band Curriculumand Resources

on

June 27-July 1,1994

with

Frank Renton, Principal Conductor and Music Director,British Concert Orchesta. His workwith Brass Bands hascenlered around Grimethorpe Colliery, recorded on EMIand Doyen labels.

Tuition is $110 per sem. hour of graduatecredit. This is a three-credit course.

For information, call or wite:VanderCook College of Music

3209 S. Michigan AvenueChicago,IL 60616-3886

80n.4.r'.8-2655312-225-6288

Instruments vir be furnished n particiwnts byBooscy & HawkeslBuffet Crampon

"Vawletook's Oun"

ChicagoBrassBand

Fred LewisDirector

Auditions will be heldTueedan June 21. Forinfo, write or callVanderCook Collegeof Music, 3209 S.Michigan Ave., Chica-go, IL 5061&3885

8fl}44&2555312-2j2ffi28a

Irctnmants fumishalbyBoo*y I HaukeslB$fctCrampon

Page 9: Stephen Bulla: Brass Band Composer

tional art portend very well indeed forthe future.

Cunonl ShlusBulla facesonstantarranging pressure.In recent monthg he hat in addition tohis Marine Band obliga tions, been suFpllng those outstanding arrangementslot the Spiituals To lhe Bone CDs andthis past December had his Rhapsody ofHarrk&d, (originally enntled Festi&l 4Li8,ts) prerniered by the Brass Band ofBaftl€ Cre€k, which commissioned it.Very reently he has signed a contractwith Cumow Music Press for the pro-duction of ten new works for windband, various graded levels, in the nextyear. He hoFs that he can also getsomc brass band pieccs done, but feel stltat the concert band rnay be getting abit more attention in thc immcdiatcfuture.

WeinNABBA don't fear he will be ledastray by our sister m€dium! He is aNABBA Board membet leads a greatbrass band that is iust getting ready totour Russia, has served s€venl tim€s asan adjudicator forut and his music isplaycd with good frequency by ourbands. We know wc'll hear new Bullablass in the years to conle.

R.W. Holz

A Selected Listing of Bby Stephen BullaAnyhing Bul Lon€ly (W€bber/Bulla) IAtgenline Melody (W6bb/Bulla) 1Amed Forces Salule 6Eells ot Ch stmas, The 2Elow Away he Moming Dew 1Chorale and Toccah 2Ch.isnnas Suile ICityscapes 1Cleansing Power-Trombono Ensemble 3Conce.tanle lor Trcmbone and Band 6CrcssroadFoomet Solo 3Cfowns ol lhe Spiil 6Euplronium Fanlasia 2Fanhrc Pmlude - Praise HimlSFesli!€ Prelude IFireslom 2fleavenbound 6His Eye ls0nlhe Spanow-Fluggl Solo 4

rass Band Works

Any$ing Bul Lon€ly (W€bber/Bulla) I Low Chang€s Ewrythiru (Webber/tsulla) IAtgenline Melody (W6bb/Bulla) 1 Low€ll Annir€rsary-Fgstival March 3Amed Forces Salule 6 Mid Wnler {HolsuBulla) 2Eellsotch stmas, The 2 Moming Has Broken-Co.net Slo 5Elow Away the Momin0 Dew 1 My Faher's Wodd 5Chorale and Toccah 2 NgwYo go--ti,!a.ch 3Ch.isnnas Suile I Novarc-March 3Cityscapes 1 O Holy Nighl--Sopnno Solo (AdamiBu a) 2ClSansing Power-Trombono Ensemble 3 Peace Like a River-Tombone Ensemble6Conce.tanle lor Trcmbone and Band 6 Prcclamation ot Chistnas--Oveft]re 3CrcssroadFoomet Solo 3 Bhapsodylor BassTombone 6Cfowns ol lhe Spiil 6 Rhapsody tor Hanukkah 2Euplronium Fanlasia 2 Shenandoah-EuptDnlum Solo tFanhrc Pmlude - Praise HimlS Suitg For Brass fihreg Hymns) 2Fesli!€ Prelude I Tangents 1Fireslom 2 Thinking ol Me (Wobber/Bulla) 1fleavenbound 6 To Win he Wodd-Doublg Trio 6His Eye ls0nlhe Spanow-Fluggl Solo 4 Wavg That Flag-March 5How Far T0 Behlohem 3 Wddrc.ombe Fai 1Joyous Celeb.alion-March 5 Wishing You Were Somehow (WebberiBulla) 1

Publldpr'3 Code:I Rosshlll; 2 lhh$lG; 3 SP&S London; 4 lho Sslvatlon tumychlcago; 5 th€Stlvruoo Amy.t{ow Yo*;6 Msmlcrlpl svsllsble lrom Stophon 8ull8, 181}2 HynunLrne, Crolton, MD 21 114.1135; 410721424 3; FrrX 30.|.261'3957 (24 Hour).

NOTE: This listing does not include dozcns of sacrcd brass band and brassensemble arrangements by Stephen Bulla published by The Salvation Armyin Atlanta, New York, or London. For further data check the Instrrrrarla,Music lndet ol Saluation AnnV Instnunetlal hftli.aliors, publish€d by TheSalvation Army Music Department, Central Territory, 10 W. Algonquin Rd,Des Plainet IL60016. Tclephoner 7M-294-2133. [R.W. Holzl

t|ay 1994 Tho 8r8ss Band &l6e g

Page 10: Stephen Bulla: Brass Band Composer

NABBA Reading Band 1994:A Brief OverviewOn Friday niShtof the Championshipsa very fine reading band gathcrei onthe stage at Price Music Ccnter for anhour and a half reading scssion. Atp€ak involvcmcnt, there were over 45NABBA members playing. Our threeguest adjudicators were given thc taskof taking the group through thcscorcs.To keep things fair, theconductors wcrcsightreading as well, havinS only bcrngivcn thc scorcs at diiner an hour bcforehandl Onc real del ight of thccvcning was the willinSncss ofJcromeAmend,director of thc CommonwealthBlass and a mcmbcr of thc frumpctsect ion, Louisvi l le Orchestra, tosightrcad Cumow's Cliorc trans{ript ion, which hedid witha lovcly, warmsound. Wllat follows is listing of thL'music playcd, with a brief dcscriptivc

1, Holy, tloly, Holy. ananged JamesCumow (DeHaske)W€ll 'scored,3 1/2 minutc hymn arrfl ngcmont thatpresents thrccconhasFing scttinSs ofthefamiliar tunc N,ram.Not difficult at all from thc tcchnicalside; great haining piecc foi any bandand ideal for timcs whcn your bandplays in church.

2. f,&rct-Honest loil Wllllam F|lnmer[, nghl & Round]Part of Wright & Round's Fafiolts Clas'sic Mdlcres scrics, this old gcm gcts€veryone going, but especially, as oncwould expecL solo corneL euphonium,soprano, first baritonc. Modcrato t|]lrhnical level for most parts. The greatadvantagcof thisrcprint a full scorelSo oftcn thesc old marches must beconducted ftom solo corn€t/conduc-tor sheets. A greatchangc for the bctter.

3. S|lss ltln/aturcs. Jarps Culnow(DeHsske)A four movement suite lasting about 6'll2 minut€s, the movements arc: Fa -

lare ; Ball ad ; Psn tlo-Blua ; Fant'are March.This moderate lcvel pic.e is quintee

10 lhe Brass Band Bddge li,lay 1994

sential Cumow and could be handledby mostofour NABBA bands withouttoo much extra r€hearsal. The thirdmovemcntcalls for some exposed soloplaing irr several parts and requiresdcft handling of multiple meters, in-cluding the main portion in 5/8 time.All four movements are thematicallylinkcd, though each short movcmcntcouldbc uscd individuallyas the ne€d.rises. An ideal short€oncert suite!

4. Contluercs Willlam Hlmes (Rosehlll)Composcd for The River City BrassBand i^1991, Colllltcncc wason ourlistofChallcngc lcvcl tcst pieces lastyear,though nobandscntcrcd thatcategory.Thc work is moderately difficult andrequirt.s throc pcrcussionists, includ-ins a mc'lody percussion player han-dl ing xylophonc, glockcnspicl , andvibes. Our reiding band did fairly wcllundor FrankRrnknr 'sstrongbak)n,butone could tcll this picco would nctdsome real woodshodding. hr additionto the pcrcussifir, thc llugclhorn gctsthc most exposurc in this cxcitirg, dy-namically-charged work of about 8 I /2 minutes length.

5, Catol Se ng: Mld.Wnter. G. HolsllStephen Bulla {OeHsske)I t1 the Bl eak Mi d -Witlo, assctby CustavHolst, stands as oncof thcmostbcauti-ful of 20th-ce tury Christmas carols.Stephen Bulla's scnstive arrangcmcrtdocsjustice to the tune in thecourseoftlrree successive orchestrations. Mod-erately easy technical rcquircmcnt,butalso requiring good fincssc. Thc workends strongly; very suitablc for conccr tor church use.

6. fhe Spidet and lhe FIy. B. B tlen/DarrolBany (Studlo)A difficult, short hanscription (3 1/2minutes) from Britterls l939 stase work,lohnson Otrer /o/da , this blucs-and-swing-style pcriod piecc is scored in avery hansparent mar er and requiressecure soloists in nearly every section.

The overall effect is quite pleasingandshould be worth the effort.

7 , Andante lu Solo Conet and Band.Gliere/Cumow {DeHaske)Trumpet players know this as the Ci,-ereConcelfo. Actually, Clicre originallywrote the piece for wordless sopranoand orchestra. In Cumow's trans.rip-tion the prcfcrrcd E-flat minor key hasb€en maintaincd but hc has wiselychanged theoriginal4/8 meter to 4/4.The solo part explores the entire ex-pressive and lyric range of the cornetlwritten C below the sraff to D-flat above.Knowing that the work was arrangedfor Philip Smith gives one the idea ofthc lcvcl of musicianship required. Theband is not sparcd, cithcr. A bcautifulwork that will call everyone-soloist,band, and conductor-to givc thcirbcst.

LA I Ask ol You. A.L. Webb€/PelerGraham (Bosehlll)Anothcr in the succcssful sericsofpop-tuncs by Andrcw Lloyd Wc'bber, hereskillfully arrangcd by Pctcr Craham. Arathcr straighFforward, modcratcly!'asy arrangcmcnt thatshould provc tobe very popular.

9. Golden Lady. Gotf Flchard (Studlo)Aftcr a slow light-rock introduction,this pop-style piece of about 5 in min-utes length picks up the tempo into arock-inflected allegro. Best to have adrum seton thisone, which we did nothave in Raleighl Lovely handlingof thcvarious contrasting color-choirs of thebrass band mark this lightcr, lyrical

10. Busslan FuneBl Music. B. Brltlen/FayFarr(Studlo)Beniamin Britten evokes old, orthodoxRussia in this unique score that mostbrass players may have firstplayed in abrass choir format. I sensed a restlcss-ness among the readers wit]r this on€,but that may have been because notime could be spent in settiig up thecofiect understanding and the coficctapproach n€eded. The style is solemnbut not severe. This is one that mightgrow on a band! Moderately difficultmosdy due to the demanding sustainedsryre.

Page 11: Stephen Bulla: Brass Band Composer

BAND PROGRAMS

11. tlarch: Washlnglon Gays, GralullaJafi.Cumow (DeHesko)Originally for brass band, (8th R€gi-ment N€w York Militia), this classictour-dejorce returns to its origrnalmedium through Curnow's effectiverescoring for modern bmss band, theoriginal version having been lost. Ev-eryone works full-steam on this four-minute onslaught. A great march. oneof the best, but not for the faint ofheartor lungs! Our reading band enioy€dthis one thoroughly.

12. Festlvese ng: Euaconbe,\nl|/€mHlme3 (Studlo)In the form of a Festival Fanfare,Ellacombc calls for fanfare soli partsfrom the front conret bcnch. A vcryeffective concert opener, or for use inchurch with conSregational singin& itcontains three stanzas of the hymnlinked by original fanfare material.Moderate level arrangement that mostNABBA bands should devour quicklyand also enjoy immediately.

R.W. Holz

Fecent Brass Band ConcerE: Muslc Lisledin Program orderBrass Band of Battle Cr€ek (KennethC. Bloomquist), with gxest conductorFrank Renton, Xylophone SoloistMichacl Udow, and Tuba SoloistPatrickSheridan. W.K. Kellogg Auditodum.Aptil 17, 1994. Part l, Conductcd byBloomquist: I trodltction and MaitlThnne from E.T. (Williams/Sykes);Xylop,lortd (Green/Maldo nado) ; At ner ic at 6 lN e (F i1lfi or c) ; S om cu h er e O u t T here(Horner/Barry); The Cotuboys (Wil-liams/Maldonado)j Part II, Conductedby Frank Renton: One yoice (Manilow/Farr); Cofitlolatiotls (GrcSson); TubaSolo: Hailstorm (Rimmer) ; An Ellir9lonPortrait IFrceh); The Pines of the AppiaWav (Resphigi/Snell).

Brass Band of Columbus eaul Droste)and The NewYork Staff Band (RonaldWaiksnoris). Arfir4l God arul CoufltryCorcerl. King Avenue Unitcd Method-ist Church, Columbus. March l9,'1994.NYSB - Rocky Mountai Co ennial(Bosanko), BBC - Pouer and Cloty(Sousa); NYSB - Comet Soloist Cor-do Ward,Fanlasy o a Maori Folk Song(Chaulk), NYSB Deep Riuer lwm.Broughton)j BBC - O?er hne to EJ!SS!g!ellJtdujlls(Cli nka / P arkcs)i NYSBTrombone Soloist Vanda Spcncc, MyRe,6/8e (Br. Broughton)j BBC - Vatiatio s lor Brass Band (V atghan Williarns,NYSB Vocal - Poor Man Lazarl$(Hairston); NYSB - Malc, sla!,Ochaikovsky/Phillips), BBC -Circitls(Aagaard-Nilsen); Combined Bands:me Saloation Anny Morch (Sousa), con-ducted by Paul Droste; /es u,loy of Mak'sDesinngGach/Leidzen),conducted byAnita CockerHunt;Fliflg Wide thecates(Leidzen), conducted by Ronald HolziTrombone Enscmblc - Glory Be! (w r^.Broughton); Iand of Ereedom (Bnlla),conducted by Ronald Waiksnoris.

Brass B and of Columbus (Paul Drostc).Music EducatorsNational ConJerenceNational Biennial In-Service Confer-ence. Cincinnati Convention Center,Aptil 8, 1994, Ooettute tojJJtr!@g!!442j!le.(Clinka/Parkes\ V at ittions f otB/ass Band(VaughanWilliams); Circile(Aagaard-Nilsen).

Cincinnati Brass Band (Anita CockerHunt). IJN(s Ben4if. Concerf KenwoodTown Center Mall. Febrtary 26,1994-cold./esr (Anderson); loyftn, fuyful(Ballantine); Nicaea (Hi( cs); MarcheMil i taire F /ancaise (Saint-Saens/Keny o ) ; E rc f et T enpl e (Condon); 5.rin8Lnu (Coft), Ceiebtutiotl (Condon); TftuClunsing Powar (Bdla), Sitnple Cifls(Steadman-Allen); Nezo yolk 90 (Bulla)jlal1d of Frellotn (Bulla)

Lexington Brass Band (Ronald Holzand Skip Cray). Classic Pops Concert.NortonCenter for the Arts. Centre Col-lege, Danville, KY March 27,1994. Fonlare atd Floltishes lcprnow); SopranoCornet Solo: T'rts,re:zo fton eM!Jg!!8ljltgq!4 (Mascagni/Baxter), RichardByrdl Trumpct Solor Hcrji Kali (Htbay' Mendez/Frech), Vinccnt DiMartinojMusic t'or the Royal Fird,Drk (Handc)/D. WrightL Corotlatioh March fon Tf;3Pror,cl (Mevcrbcer/Froeden); BassTrombone Solor Celesl ial Morn(Condon), Louis Routgois; Spectrutn(Vintct\; Bercatse a d Finale t'rofi Th!Elt@ttL(Strainsky /Cray - Gordon);Pines of the Appian way (Respighi /Gra-

Smoky Mountain Brass Band (JohnWest). With PhilipSmith, guest soloist.westcm Carolina University, March24, 1994, Festioe Ooertt lre(Shostakovitch/Gordon)i CornetSoloslConcertpiece (Cvnow), Cnnto Relisioso(Cumow)j Praise (Heaton : Variatiottslor Brass Bakd (V a'ughan Williarns), Co.Ionial Song (Grair.ger / west); Cometgolost Cleopatra (Da'].arcr, To a WildRose (MacDowell/Bulla).

National capital Band (Stephen Bulla).April 30, 1994, Bridgeport, CT. PtoiseHittt (Bdla\ Motivatiotl (Hirnes); Cor-net Solo:hctsl (Leidzen), Lars-OttoLjungholm; Melodies of Doorak (tr.Steadman-Alen); Chonle and Toccato(Bxrll^\, God ol Wonderc (Himes); /ppa-Iachion Moufi laif i Eolk Song S ite(Curnow); Vocal Solo.loyful, IoyfuI(Maddux), Deborah Bearchell; CometDuet:To Set the People Free lBr.Broughton), Robert Goodier and lareOtto Ljungholm; Tfte CdIl 4 the RiSh-

ll8y 1994 The Brass Sand Bddge 11

Advertlslngin

The BrtdgeConlact Thomas A. Myers,

Adverlising lranagel

155 N. Highland AveAkron, OH 443031504

USA

Phone (Evening): (216) 867-7821Fax: (216)291-7758

Page 12: Stephen Bulla: Brass Band Composer

Dr. Brian L. Bowman andthe world's linesleuphonium - theWillson Compensatinglrodel TA 2900

- INTEFINATIONAL _

Demands are greater, somore and more Brass Bandsare turning to wlLLSoN.

Willson background specialist for:Euphoniums, tenor horns, basses.

Distribution in USA:DEG Music Products lnc.Lake Geneva, Wisconsin 53147

Distribution in Canada:At Willson brass instrumentdealers throughout Canada.

Brass Band: T,te Cossacl (Rimmer); Th dlrst Crol.i (Sullivan/tangford); Hoe-Dowtl Slottp (B^rker / Heriot)tTlrc WeeC c,op er O' F i f e (Dr o v c) t Rh o 7ts o rly i n Bm ss,Mot III (Goffin); Rigtime fot Hotns0oplin/Cumow),Solily Sotnds the Lit I I eBell lBall); Kalinka (woodfield); Irss,sT/orrrore(Fillmore/Trevarthen); Me,fre Sai,rts (Langford); Ertglish Folk SotlgSr/iie (Vaughan Williams/F. Wright).Part II: Combined BrassBand and PipcBand, in vanous traditional tunes andnrarches, including Ir. 'Ihit Red Litle\At(otd), Major Nonnat' (Ewind, andRosc o/ Ke/oirgor? (arr. Trevarthen).

Western Missouri British Brass Band(Bary D. Hartman). Lee's Surnrnit Performing Arts Ccn ter, Ja r,raty 23, 1994;and Missouri Music Educators Asso-ciati(nr In-Scrvicc Confercncc, lanuary29,1994.CVglus, Mul lll (Stirling); Eu-phonium Solo: Pa onitne (Sparke),Kcith Blandj larde(Cunrcw); March ofthe Mattiacs (Mosict); Li1hl Walk(Cott).

Western Missouri British Brass Band(Bary D. Hartrnan) and Mid-Am€dcaTuba Quanet. IndcpLndcncc, MO, Fobruary 12, 1994; and Shawn.r MissionNorthlvcst High School, March 5,1994.Anny of tht Nile (Alford, A DL,\u la .lSril.i El{ittarrt Rordo (lreland)j Crl.grirs(Stirling ); Irn lorr n,,. (Sp arkcJ; March ollfu Ma iacs \Mosict)t Lardc (Curnow);Tuba Solo:r.dr"So ul fu.torr,, (Rossnli),Charles McAdnms; Ni.r.'d (Himcs);Kif iS Colfof i (Sousa)j Mid-AmericaTuba Quartet: Celeslirl Srrile (Bulla),Thev Didn' l Bel i?u. Mc lKcr^/Holcombc); Lrgrrr lvirift (Gott).

Be sure to lesl ourinstruments in lhe DEGbooih at ChampionshipsXl on Apri l 22 & 23, 1994.

lcoirs (Condon)j Coldclcsi (Andcrson),Co,lta,t Co, pa ion (Raslow). A similar concert was givcn this SprinS int.ynchburS, VA, with thc additior ofA,netica lhe Bealttiftl(atr. Himos); BrDante anrl Cotobov Hvtnn lSparka).

SunshineBrass Band (Don Kntt trurg).1994 Spring Conccrt Sorics. FrcdonrPlizn, Sun City, Ft., Fcbruary 17; TheSalvation Army,Tampa, FL, March 20,King's Point Aud, Sun City, Mav 5,1994. Punchinello (Rimmer)j A Cd/ll.

SendYourBand News &

Concert progr:arns

Please send your concerlprograms and arlicles on recenl

adtvf tes lo - tE tJHtUGE

uy'e {rant to f€adabout your band!

Stiii' (Sparkc); Cornot Solorl/re Dcbafrrh'(Cl.rrkc/Smith), Ed Davisj CarDcrForr rds-V ( Bizct / La nit ft,.d \ Light CaralnlO . r r i r / r , ( v o n S u p p c / L a n g f o r d ) ;B.rilror,.r's 8rlrtro (Sricll); Att nzi I t g C nc (( Himcs),MiilrrMirSir (Stcphcns);Arrkdror.,-s Srl1r. (Bulla).

Triangl€ Erass Band (Michael Votta).19i).1 Spring Concert Series. Athen H.S.,Ri lL'ith, NC, Nl arch 26j Fuquay-VarinaII .S., Fuquay Varina, NC, Apri l 5;Baldnin Aud., Durham, NC, May 14.Fei.tLichtr Ei't"lti G. Strauss); ydria-il{,l'sIo/ Bmss Bdnd (Vaughan williams);lubiltc Ou?rhft lspatkc\ The Earl ofOxfonl's Marche (Bttd/ Votta), Se.ordS il,it1F Majar lHolst lHerbert)i Elsd'slror.ssion (Wagner/Himes); Ssuerhlsir Trombor.s (Willson/Duthoit). Asimilar program was also prcsentcd byTrianglc Brass Band at Thc Nclv YorkBrass Conference and Music Festival,Roosevelt Hotel, New York City, April9,1994.

Watsonville Brass Band (Conzalo H.Vialcs). With thc Salinas Pipe Band(Michael Ci l len). Cavi lan Col lege,Cilroy, CA. Ap;l 30, 1994. Part I: The

12 The Brass Band Erldge li&y 1994

Page 13: Stephen Bulla: Brass Band Composer

BAND NEWS

Welcome to NABBA: The Big RiverBrass Band, Winona, MN (JanelHenkeshoven, Direclor)Th€ watsonvilleBrassBand (ConzaloH. Viales, Director), is also new to TheBridg€ and NABEA, though theyhavebeen functioning as a brass band for th€past fcw years. Thc group was form€din 1990 from the larger windband,TheWatsonvill€ Band,af ter thisgroup b'av-elled to New zealand (f9EE), havinghad several opportunities to meet withand play with fine brass bands. TIleparent band is 47 years old and bothgroups draw their membership from avariety of communities in the ctntralcoast area of Cali fornia. The brass bandcurrently s€ats 1 Soprano,6 Comets, 2Flugelt 4 Alto Homs, 2 Baritones, ,ITrombones. 2 Euphoniums, 3 Tubas,and 3 Percussionists. Welcome toNABBA, watsonville!

Th€ Triangle Eras6 Band (MichaelVofta) was featured at Tlre New YorkBrass Conference, Saturday, April 9.ConnieVarner tells The Bridge thattheBallroom was quite crcwded for their

concert; they ran ou tof programs! Theyfelt they were received very enthusias-tically and found thcrnsclvcs tall.jngfrequendy to brass musicians interest€din brass bands. The photo enclosed ofSandy SvoMa, Alto Horn, and lanetYarborough, BBb Tuba. tclls "the longand short ofit in NewYork' Sandyi s 4 1 0 ; J a n e t i s 5 l l ' .

Smoky Mountain Brass Band (lohnWes0. Bert Wiley reports that SmokyMountain "was thrilled to have PhilSmith as their soloistin March; itwasareal turninS point for the band." Philwas vcry pleas€d wi th the perfornanceand del ighted to spend four days in theCreatSmoky Mountainsof North Caro-lina. OnJune l8lhe band will performa concert for the dedication ofan 1100-seat auditoriumat Haywood Commu-nity ColleSe in Clyde, NC. This newhall will be the home fo. thcband,andduring the 194-95 scason SMBB willpresent a four-concert season there,SMBB will also b( joining thcAshvtlleChoral Society for a July 4th gala con-cert at UNC-A, Ashvillc, NC.

The Brass Band of Columbus (PaulDroste) rvas very well rc'ccivcd at theMENCNational ln-ServiceConvcntion.The room thcy prrformcd in sat 700and it waspacked, withmorc standingin the hallivay. Tony Guererc intro-duc.t lheband.Thisisindccd anhonorfoTNABBA tohavctheBBC selected toperform! Sp€{ial thanks to YamahaCorporation, who covered the cost ofthe chartcr busl Prior to the RaleighChampionshipsall fourColumbus areabrass bands joined for a Pre-ContestConc.rtatDublin H.S., April 17th;theywcrc ioincd by thc ncrv Scioto ValleyBrass and Percussion Company. Eachband ptaycd thcirNABBA programfora live audimce, in addition to beingadjudicated.

Salt River Brass (Ralph Pierce) pre-sentcil a conceft entitled Carniaal Tiheon Sunday, Ap.il 10th, with PhilipMccann as guest soloist. Repertoircincluded Saint-Saens' Carnioal of lheAkiMI, D\oftk's Carniual Ovafutre,and, of course, the cornet srlo Carnioal

The Cincinnati Brass Band (AnitaCocker Hunt) worked with BuddyRoge/s Music Co. and Thc CincinnatiCollege-Conseryatory of Music for thelatter's L.I.N.K.S proSram LonelyInstruments for Needy Kids - culmi-nating in the collection 60 instrumcntsduring their Kenwood Town Centerprogram back in February. A worthyeffort!

Th€ l l l inois Brass Band (Col inHolrEn) is well into its third s€ason,fcaturing a varied and challengingschedu I.. Its foundcr, Bruce Bimey, hastaken a leaveofabsence to fulfill teach-ing obligations as Profcssor of Trum-pet at Northeastem Illinois University,and the band is being conducted thisyear by Colin Holman, a native ofEn-gland. Thcband gavc a very successfulNovember concert of tradihonal brassband music, which included perfor-mances of Howells' PaS?arfry, featuredthe cornet scction in Cor net Carillon a dthe euphonium scction i^Wafching theMledt. The band also gavc two Christ-mas concerts, one with the First Pres-byterian Church Choir of Libertyville,culminatrng in Langford's ClrislrrasFarfasy, and anothcr a t thc Scottish RiteTemple in downtown Chicago. AfterChristmas, the band had the plcasureofworkingwith Bill Himcsand PeggyThomas of thc Chicago Staff Band.Michael Mulcahy, trombonist of theChicago Syrrphony Orchestra, wasguest conductor of our February con-cert that included Elgar's Seoer Suite,and Stanhopc's snltc A liadstu)n, AItd!, and a Lord.To co clude the yearthe band will hostHawthorn City BrassBand on April 17 and the BNFLBrassBand on July 21. The band will main-tain an active summer schedulc withconce s in the Chicago suburbs. Forfurther information on the BNFL con-cerL call band presidcnt Ceorge Fosterat 708-357-7961- lceorge Foster]

The SASF Brass Band (Ronald Holz)and vo.al Ens€mble (Beatrice Holz) ofAsbury Col lcgc travel led to TheNoEidg€ Citadel Corps, Nonidge, IL,

iray 1994 The Brass Band Bddge 13

Page 14: Stephen Bulla: Brass Band Composer

BRASS BAND RECORDINGS

for a weekend ofmusical ministry, April1G18. Among the literaturc performedduring the worship service andSpringSong Festival were Ifte KingdonTitun-phant(Ball); Faith Re|'om(Condon); LBI tof the Wo d (Coffi^'); Christ Is Made theS rc Foundation (Jetf Curnow); Minnedpl,s W (Sodershom); This ls the Dayqo es); Bringingin the Sheaues (Amold ),fea turing Kevin Sparks on cornetj lrrlof Frcedon (Bu[la, alr.d Alleluia (BatD.Nontdte Citadel Bandmastcr PeggyThornas led the combincd comcts andtromboncsofboth band sir. Allegro t'rotnthe Royal Fieuor,/J (Handel/Skinner)and both trombone sections combinedfor Pea.e Like a Ril)er (B! IIa). The vo.alEnsemble prcscntcd new vocal rnusicby James Cumow, Harold Burgmayer,Kenneth Downie, and LeonardBallantine.

Tro Euphonlum Fealures: Re$ewed by 0r.PaulDoste, Bnss Band ot ColumbugohioShte Univefsity.

L Welsh W/zards. Boberl and NicholasChilds, with lhe Tredegar and EYMS(Hull)Brass Bands. Doyen. CD 022. TT63.59.Ptogan: Fascinaling Eupl]6 lBarry); Be MyL1ve \StodskylFan)t The Fantaslb FaslFingercd Fandango lFtaseO: EtriedelFtas€i; Salut d anou \ElgarMlson); Duofot Euphoniuns lPowel \ Song ol lheSeasro,e (Calherall); Panlodirne (Sparke);Flighl 0l lhe Bunble 8ee \Alnsky-Korsakov/Newsome); onl], Love (Catheall); A Piece olCake lNe\\sane); Lapo al Faclolun(B0ssini); Calon Lan (Trudilional/Ball);Czardas (Monti^Vilson); /4ka Tonbi lYanadalYamam0to); Iwo-Pad /nvenlio, (Sparke)The Wels, t{i:ards, Bob and Nick Childs,are 'frequcnt flyers' both as intema-tional tra vclers and virtuoso musicians.They have toured The U.S. several timesand were featured in the 1993 NABBACala Concert. In addition to their new-cst rclcasc, thcy are featured on thr€€previous rccordings on thc Doyen la-bel Childs Play, Euphoniwn Mrcic,and Souereign Soloists - as well as thcnew London Cttad€l Bend disc rc-viewed lastissucin The Bidge, Sofigoflhe Brother.

From the first notcs of Track'l to the lastnotes of Track 16, this CD corhmandsthe listene/s attention and admiration.The solos and duets are varied andinterestin& and the performances arebrcathtaking. Like a rare violiry theChild Brothersimprove withage. Theirncwest CD is aptly titled.

Four of the nine duets on this record-in8 were specially wdtten for the ChildsBrothers. The four composers are well-known in brass band circlcs: DarrolBarry, Bruce Frascr, Roy Newsome, andPhilip Sparke. The cxpected pFotech-nics are exploitcd, along with the ex-heme high and low notes and unbe-lievable clarity. Most interesting is theTu,v- P ai I tlrEtlt bn (Sparke). Starting inthe style of Bach, it progresses into atasteful showpiece. The achral playingtime is 1'5O not 15'01 as nod on theinsert. The FIiSht of the Butnblebee sels a

new world's record for the most notes

PCr SeCOnOj

In addition to nine duets, each brotheris a featured soloist. Nick (the youngerbrother) offers a tender version of BeM! Ir,,v, wh\le Bob counterc with ancqually sensitive Only Lo?re. The us€ ofmallct pcrcussion providesan unusualbackground for Bob in Song of the Sea-

Nick's interpretationof Pantotnitne hasa few surprises, even for composerPhilip Sparke- Tlere is an added ca-denza, a rnajor cuL and a new mding.Bob displays his usual r ips andscreeches in Eltriede. Iargo 4l Factohrnand Currddr are tossed of with relativeeasc by Nickand Bob, respectively.

Thc band accompanimcnts by theTredegar and EYMS (Hull) Bands aresolid and supportive. The recordedsound is clear and live, with no distor-hon at the upper endsofthe d)'namicsor therange. If you listencarefully,youwill hear some sharpness in the upperregister (sixth partial) of thc eupho-nium, a builein hazard in most brassinstrumcnts. A fcw picc cs (Panlolnitne,Tuo-Part lnoentbn, a d Calon lan) arefound on the earlier duet albums, butwcrc remrded again for this disc.

You don't have to be a lover of theeuphoniumorbrass bands to enjoy thisrecording. This is not 'easy listening'music, but uplifting and exciting. TheChilds Brothers will not letyou up forair until thc end of thc disc.

2. Midnighl Euphoniun. Riki McDonnell andMike l(koy, $/ilh Lynne oaniel (Piano) and theWllllams Fsirey Band (Major PelerPa Gs).Polyphonic CPRL 0640. Progtan: MidnighlE! ph o ni u n lqicha'dsl ; E u p hor',bm (Sparko);Ati1so lFtocfolucKenzie)t H1w 30on(Mancini/Maundeo; Corcerlo #/ (8randl):Aresslr Dorra {Pur4ini/Stephens); DeepInskk ke Saqed Tenple (Bizevwilkjnson);Sonewhele (BemsteirvAdams); Jearie(FostedHowarth); youf tnl Frczen lknds(P!.rini); Canival Cocldall lsykes); Lovo /sForcvet lqicha'dsl; HalL Ancienl wals(Gounod/Snell);,4/egro (Fiocco/Smitl); ira

NABBABoaTdNorninations

Enclosed in this issue isa nomina-tion foTNABBA'SBoard of Direc-tors. The following curent mem-trers of the Boad have terms thatexpire this September: Brian Bow-man, C,eorge Foster, Ronald Holz,Beth Hronek, Tom Myert SaraNorth, Thomas Palmatier,Michael Russo, and Bcrt Wiley.Thcse members may berenominated or new NABBAmembers may be nominated.Forms are DUE July 25,199{, in-dicated on the form, which may

14 Tlre Bnss Eand Bddge lilay 1994

Page 15: Stephen Bulla: Brass Band Composer

IS.€,*e); Pokarckarcana 11 onoa€Jlraunde4This recording reminds me of PhilipMcCann s four volumes oIThe Woid'sMost Bealtiful Melo,lies, ot Btian.h\\.rnAr( sm e Sa cr e.l Et I lh oni r tn. Ther eare seventeen hacks on this tape (alsoavailable in CD), and only two are realshowpieces. The others are mainly poptuncs and opcratic mclodies. RikiMcDomell, a Ncw Zealander who hasan impressive record of winning solocontests on flugelhom. tenor hom, andeuphonium, is featured on twelve ofthe tracks. Mike Kilroy, who has playedwith several of England's top brassbands, is feahrr(d on two tracks. Rikiand Mike play th.cc duets.

Riki and Mike b.lame act|uainttd inthe 198rys. ln 1992 thcy atpear.d t(Fgether at a charity concert sponsoredby Btass Band World where they wcreaccompanied by the williams F.LeyBand. Several of the pieces on this tapewere premicrcd at that concert.

Three of Riki's solos were rccord€d inNew Zealand with piano accompani-ment. The rest of the piercs were ac-companied by Fat€y Band and re-corded in England. One drawback ofthe this recording is the differenct inRiki's euphonium sound between thcpiano piecca, and the band pie<es. Hissound is much roundcr and more Dlcagant when being backcd by the_brassband. There is al so sbme valve noise onthese tracks. The Wtlltams Fair€y Bandis impressive, but too shong on thelower end for my cars,

The tide piece, Midnight Euphoniun,was written for Riki by Coff Richardsand highlights his beautiful, liquidsound. The pop numbers by Manciniand Bemstein are tastefully played, andRiki isequallyathome playingPuccini.Only on ore romantic warhorse, Con-certo #1 (Brandt), does Riki display hisimpressive technical tacili ty. This is oneof the pieces provided piano acrompa-

Mike plays the ballad On My Oun anda r edley of Calfifua| ol Venice vaia-tions called Cafih.vl CocktaiL The ar-

ranSer, Stephen Sykes, has quotedvariations from Del Staigers, HerbertL. Clarke, and l.B. Arban (plus a ChildsBrothers-t'?e cadenza). Mike takes aback seat to no one in performing fiisv|rtuosic arrangement.

There are three tasteful duets on thistape. Thebestoneis E /pr@rirm (Sparke),written for the 1992 aoncert. It has asubti e, Te Horonsr, which is Maori for"a m€eting of friends across the water."The soloists blend beautifull, as if theyhad been plalng together for manyyears. A llTical beginning leads to asparkling allegro in this work of sub-stance and variety. The other two du-ets, Deep Inside the Sacred Temple, ar\dL,ooe ls Foner, ate effective, but some-what manufactured.

Thc rcrordingcnds with a lovcly Maorislow mclcdy , Pokarckarcan4. Riki startsoff unaccompanicd and then is joinedby the full band.

Thanks to this rccordin& we can nowhear euphonium players from NewZealand and England play separatelyand togethe.. Riki and Mike rank withthe best, including American BrianBowrnan and Englishmen Boband NickChilds and Steven Mead. This isa ma-jor recording,lackingonly in balance ofprogamming. There is plenty of ex-pressive, lyrical plaln& which a rujorstrength of the cuphonium, but notcnough pieces that show off the technical abilitiesofthc instrument and solo-ists. The insert, by editor RobertMulholland of Brass Band world, isthorcugh in describing Riki's back-ground, and how he and Mike wereable to n€ke this recording. There isnot muchinf ormation givenon thecom-Positions or arangements,

Buy the tape or CD and enpy some fineeuphonium playtng. This reviewer islooking forward to a second recordingby these two aitistt especialy if theprogram has more variety.

Paul Droste

Solo Tlombone Release: Heviewedby Professor Don Kneeburg,

Sunshine Brass Bandruniversity ofSouth Florida.

Sho*case lot Ttotbone, Jacques Mauge(Trombone, wih Stelrart D€ah (Piano),

Itennh Eu dlng Soclety Ernd (HowardSnell) and Royal l,|onhom Colloge ol MuslcMnd Ensemble Omolhy Rsynish). Do'enC0 027. TT 72.33. Program i Czatdas (MonlilFisnga); Sonah'Yox Ga!r,br'(Sulek);frcnbone Con@no lgoutgois): LiebesbidlKieisle Lehzen\; Trcnbne ConcslolctaelelKe.wtn); L Honne aux 3 visageslNaulalE): Flighl ol ke Bunblr Bee (Eimsky-Ko6alev/Wyss).Jacques Mauger is a native ofNormandy and, among other teachers,has studied with Michel Becquet at theNational Conscrvatory of Music inLyon. He is curently solo Fomboncwith the Nic€ Philharmonla Orahes-tra, and soloist with thc NationalThe-ah€ Orch€sha ofthe Parir Opera. Hisstylc of performance has been greatlyinfluenced by B(.cqucL and he possessesbeautiful sound and fluent technioue.Highlights of this recording are theSufek Sonal. 'Vo/ Csbieli,' and lt('L'Honme a x 3 visagcs (The Mon WilhIrleeFaces)byNaulais, Mauge/sbeau-tiful tone and romantic stylc give theSulek Son ld a truly inspiring reading.me Man Wifu mree Facor uses a wood-wind quintct as the accompanyingmedium, and the sound colors and con-trasts work very well. This work is inthree movements, with the first movement for trombone alonc, In tlusmove-ment, Mauger displays his ve$atilityand does sonre of the best plalng onthe album. The other two movementsare acrompanied by the quintet and arevery delighttul. To this reviewer, this istheb€stcomposition on the A. Czar dasand F|ight of lhe ButnUebeearc acrompa-nied by Britannia Butlding (HowardSnell), and are given an effodess per-fomance by Mr. Mauger. The Bour-geois Cotcerto is also accompanied byBritarmia, and is given an excellentreading. Stewart Death, pianist, is to becommended for his fine work in ac-comFanlng theSulek an dthe Lidesleid.AII in all, this isa fine recording by an

lrsy 1984 The Br.$ 88nd Bd6e t5

Page 16: Stephen Bulla: Brass Band Composer
Page 17: Stephen Bulla: Brass Band Composer

outstanding tsombonist, and deseresto be in the library of every s€riousstudent of the trombone.

Don Kneeburg

New Yo(t Staff Band CD, Revie$ed bySled|€r| Bulla, Natonal Cspltsl Bgrt4j.gli&rlng Btnd

On lha Boad. Now Ydt SElt Sard (BorEtdWaiksnods) TdumplDnic TBCo lc5t. TT58.08. Program:,4FC C€rtarit (&la); Or,l8 Foad (oavies); CorEl Solo: LontuNenyAi(Bosanlo), Godon Ward; P&r,inage(Burgmayeoi Tuba Solo: SE/d/U O/l heP/om6es (Siltv€rbee), Albei Honsberu€r;D€rp F/ver(Win. E.oughbnl; SW L*e t2(Ball); E-fat Sopram Solo: firtr dody(Audoire), Lori l-aidor; Vocal: I tfir GuideIttdo (8urymaye4; Trcnbo.E Solo: WBetugs (8r. Brc(4hlon), Varda Spefte;Yocal Youle Nevet T@ Fat Frcn Gd(Hines)i Joy ln W Heatl lshadman'Nen);Shioe Jesus $ins (Kerdick).Even as the numbers of new NABBAbands are on the rise, one of NorthAmerica's oldest brass bands c\ontin-ues to produce rccordings that revealmusical growth and stability. This isN€wYork's firstCDreleaseunder newleadcrship and the disc should provepopular with the "easylistening" band-o-philes.

Carehasbeen taken to includea varietyofurvecorded or rarely r€corded items.For this there is value, although theabstrnce of substantial concert works inthis collcrtion is a d isappointrnent. Theband produces a solid, wcllbalancedsound - one of the leading British-style exponents in this counFy. All prin-cipal chairs are musical, reliable, andplay with confidence. Fans ot a punchybass trombone will be in for a tteat.

After my initial listening, I wanbd torctum to two selections in oarticular.FirsL I went back to the tuba solo tohear Honsberge/s clcar and well-ar-tiolated performance. The music isPredichble but conveys an eni)yablespirit.

S€condly,I had to repeat the trombonesolo - this time with headDhones to

get deep inside Bruce Broughton'swonderful harmonic palette. This ob-scure opus was written sorne twentyyears a8o and is an enjoyable rhaFsodiciike vehiclc for bo$ soloist andband. lt is clearly the highlight of therecording. A highly contrapuntal andpcrcussive score, My Refuge givesVanda Spence plenty of room for lyri-cal and technical expression. Her per-fo.mance is very accurate, if a bitunemotional, and intonation is quitegood.

Credi t must bc given to recording engi-ncrr Ted Marshall. His work with bal-ancing and homogenizlng the sound ofbrass and percussion has placed himatthc top in the small indusb-y of NorthAmerican brass band r(rording. Whena band secures his scrvices it is assur(dofa musical product that complimentsthe sound of the Broup.

To wrap up, if your musical tastes bendto tlavor the lighter variety of bandprogram (including two occasionswhen the group lays do\in the instru-mentsand decides to sing) then thisCDwill bea good addition to yourcollec-tion.

tler Releases R€viowgd by Ronald W Holz,Lerngbn B.8ss BsndAlbuly CollegeS,AS,F. Bfa$ 88nd,

1 . o1uble Chanpions.llllllams Fslrsy Brnd(Major Peler Pafi€s). Polyphonic CPRL065D. Prognm: Masquerad€ (Wlby);Euphonium Solo: FlEpsodl(Cumow), oavilWelsh; Soprano Comel Solot C4pnir6,b(Sparke), Craig &nn€I; ne Land o/ ttelorg lryhire C/oud(Spa e);Trombone Solo:Dance Seque/rco (Wood), Bre[ Baker; TgnotHom&lotVadatons a Webh Theno(Xnoale), Sandy Smith; Ihe Dovil and tr€Deep 8/ue Sea (Bowg€ois).In 1993 Williahs FaiEy Band wonboththe Aritish Open (Manchester) and theNational Championships (tondon), arare occurrence and a significantachievement. This cass€tte (also CD)amply demonstrates why they de-served to wir! with the live Royal AlbertHall whming p€rformance of the Bour-

geois The Devil atd the Deep Blre Settaking your breath away for its confidence and contsol. The four soloistsfeatured here demonshate the streneththey have on the end chans of ;hs€rtion. This is a meaty release, espe-cially when one would consider theCumow and Sparke solos the lighteritems! Sparke's flrst test?iece, from1979, L.and 4 the long Whit e Clail, can\esoff quite well and shows why he soquiclJy took to brass band w ting.Philipwilby s Maqterale, a deliberaFreworking ofmusic from Verdi's comicrnasrerpic<e, F al s I a ff , lr om one hundredyears ago (1893), would challenge anyband! I did not find it as prcfound awork as his Na, lcflrsalem. It is morealong the fine of Paganini Vatiationg,which it not surprisingly recapitulatesin small, subtle ways. While I wasthrilled by the plalng of this outstand-ing band, I am still koubled by theiroccasional lack of control over full bandvibrato. While one can tolerate it invarious solo passages where it makesstylistic scnsc, when the whole banddoes it, as in the big 'fruitl/' chords ofBourgeois' neoclassic fantasia, it isharderto accept. Thisfinal work, givena stunning live readin& mixes nco-ba-roque fugue with what the composercalls "Shostokovitch meets DickEarton"; I would say ifsShostakovitchmeets posFmodcm Richard WagncrlAs Bourgeois' third test-piece for theNational finals, I do not think that itwill liveaslongorhaveas muchimpactas Elitz from l98l. That is not to say thatit is not a vcry cngaging work. Oneunexpected surprise was the lovelyWelsh variations by Kneale for altohom. This was a ncw name tro me andthe ananger s€'ems to have a real gift.Both the livc rccording and the studiosound are firsFrate, as one comes toexpect from Studio productions. Theliner notes are very informative andmost helpful; I wish rnore bands wouldtake time with that aspect of produc-tion. Congratulations to WilliamsFairet Maior Peter Parkeg and Studiofor Do ble Champions.

ay lSl The E ass Bsrd Brldge 17

Page 18: Stephen Bulla: Brass Band Composer

2. S/arcric &ass. Blsck oyks Mlll3 Blnd(James Wabon). Polyphonic. CPRL 0530.Ptq{,tant fhe Batlepd Bide (Snelar,algrcadb€nl) i Poiovlsian Oancss (8orcdir/Huclddge); Los PGludss(UszuRimme0;Sravonic 0anc0 tt(0wnk+lanmer) ; lrdanteItom Svmpiony ffi (IdEikovslq/8airy);Fnde ton fMItuWgrMSWhpW(0'oraldirlholl); Cqpdircir €spagnol(Rimslq-KoFakov/Wilkjnson); ausatraSSong lo lrt ^roon (0voraldLanglod);Prccessior o/ lhe Sidar{ lpfilitovlvanov/spatke); S/arcric Danca #8 (DvoraldHannei; Andanlno aN Finale lrcnS/npl'o4l #1 (Tdaikovslq^licholl); SaraYaga and fhe Grcal Gale ol Kiev(Mu$orusky/Spa €).The James Watson era at Black Dykecertainly has not taken away any of thisband's agSressive approach to perfor-

18 thoBraBandBd{e ky 1991

mance. Watson rides his charges rightto the brink in this brilliant cassetbe(also CD). In facl my only oiticism isthat the conductor sometimes allowsthe band to get iust beyond that edge ofcontrol, a sliSht tcndcncy to overplay.Yet, thisis a band with great dynamicaange wonderful softs/ overwhelrn-ing Faks! Thc litcrature, all transcriPtions from the last half of the nineteenthcentury. docs call for cxuberance!Watson and company supply that inaburdarKe. Actuall, this isa brassbandbuffs delight, along the line of BlackDyke's older CD, Ooe*!rs. Some won-derful old transcriDtions ha ve t€en reviv€d hcrc, bv Rirnmcrand bv thelesscr-known Wesion Nicholl, a former con-ductor of Dyke in thc carly years of thiscmtury. The bcst kind of transcription,to my mind, is onc that is a complcter€workin& not a "Cems from..." ap-p.oach. You getboth types in this richcornucoPia of Eastern European,Slavonic favorites. The Droduction(Philip Sparkc) and rccord ing (MichaelMoor) are all onc has come to exD€ctfiom Studio. I think this disc will bc..come one of thc most popular releasesof the early 1990s.

3. Surh/|st Tho Unllsd Sbt€s tury BrassBand fihomas Palmatie4, wilh Philipli4coann (Comet), Bobed and Nicholas Childs(EuplDnium), William Johnson (VocalSobisl), Ths U.S. tuny BEES oulntel andHerald TrumpsB. Liw Recording: NABBA1993 Gala Concen. TT 72.1 5. Prognm: ShI€Up lhe Sand (GgrshwirvRichads); CanpalOvtdure (Dvordu&and); Comel Solos:fyrlolv Ecltoss (Simon), l,ressun &rnalP\/{,,inils.Bll), Hunbnan tiledby ;CaryeDbr, (Himes); guntursl (Hosay); TomboneSecfion Feafure: Peacg tike a Bivet$ulla)',Euplbnium ousts: Sdriarle (Gnaham);Ped4s lova (oenve/Frasetl, Fanlaslic FaslFngor€d Fan&ngo (Fras€0; Vocal Solo:largo a/ Fachlum (Rossini/Richard); 7heSe.ttu Dawning l{osay\ The Si,'$ andSlr,ipgs Forevff {Sousa).This exciting live recording recapturesIor NABBA members the outstandingGALA Concert at George Mason Uni-velsity, April 3, 1993. I gave that pro-

gram a rave review in the May, f993issue of The BridSe, This CDlcassetteholds nearly the entire event. I foundthat on the second time around I wasable to enjoy the magnificent soloistseven better due to thc 6nc recordingtechnioue involved. The band is in ex-cellent form, as wett. This is a hand-some production, with fine notes onthe music provided by Master ScrgcantHenry J. sgie<ti. A previous issue ofThe BridSe printed an inaccumte an-nouncement conceminS the availabil-ity of this recording. While not avail-able to all NABBA members (that iust isnot allowable by law), educational in-stitutiont cducators, libraries, broad-cast entities, and civic organizationsmay request a complimentary coPy bysending a letterhead request to: TheUnited States Army Brass Band, attn:Publicity, P.O. Box 70565, Washinglon,DC 2m'24-1374: F AX 70319639M.

4. Sir8, SiTS,SINCI Brais Band of BattleCI€ek (Kenneth G. Bloomquist). BBBCRecordings. TT 66.10. ProgramlMalagteru (Lectiona / Freeh); Eupho-nium Solo: Party Peace (Sparke), StevenMeadt William Tell OLvrhrre (Rossini/Grant-Maf donado);A Sweet Shephed-ess (Richards); A Dishe! Fafitasy(Richards)j Amazilr8 Crace (Himes);Trumpet Solor la Yil8efi de lo Macarcffi(Monterds-Mendez/Freeh); R ssid,Christmas Music (Reed/Leppla);Barnum and Bailey's Faoorite March(K^E\ Li' I Daiin' (HeIb / Sparke\; Sing,Srr& Si/,8 erima/Freeh).

Brass Band of Battle Creek, a profeesional group under the able baton ofKenneth Bloomquist, called upon JeffTysik as producer and Michael Moot(Studio) as recording engineer to in-sure that their firstCDwasa stunner.Itis! Great solos by Steven Mead andVincent DiMartino headline this vari-ety package. The rernarkable charac-teristic about the band is its great stylis-tic flexibility. They can REALLY swing(a rarity for bra6s bands) and they canhandle serious brass literature.

One would exDect that frcm a band

Page 19: Stephen Bulla: Brass Band Composer

consisting of players from acrossAmerica and Creat Britain; the inter-esting thing is that they achieve it withsuch consistent, stylistically correctpeforrnances. Do they sound like aBritish blass band ? Not really, yet theyare not an American hybdd or brasschoir, either. In thesc carly efforts,Bloomquist and company seem to b€combining the best aspects of the Brit-ish and Ame can approaches to brassplafng. Vibrato is evident when ap-propriate; itisabsent when it is not.

Overall the rccording is on the lighterside, but what a lighter side! The titletune, Sins, Sing Sifl& demonstra tcs thi sband's great depth as well as geatsoloists. Carl Rowe, Soprano comet,makesyou believeyou are almost hear-ing clarinct (BcnnyCoodman) in MarkFreeh's faithful adaptaLion of one ofSwing Era's grcat classics. Steven Mcadwai ls his Babe Russin imitat ion.DiMartino gives you a spectacularHarry .lames and thcn morcl (On l,yilgefi , DiMartino also gives you vin-tage Mendez AND something from hi sown blend.) Only in Rrssian ChrishnasMrsic does the group slightly disap-point and overplay iust a bit in thef inale;thc saxhorn sound getsdistortedand theovcrall rccordingbalance isoffccnter. Thaysjust a minorcomplaint inthe midst of high ad mira tion for a 6'rea tfirstCD. As Frank Renton implieselse-where in this issue, this is a band towatch out for!You will thoroughlyen-joy thcir plalng this is a really enter-tainingproduct. CongratulationsBaft leCre€k!

5. Fascinat:rg Brr4hm. Simone Rebello,percussion soloisl, with he Edwar(8 Jazouartel Britannla Buildihg Soclety Band(Howard Snell), and Stewart Dealh (Piano).ooyen C0024. TT 58.04 ProgGm:Fasclnatirg En tr, (Gershwi Edwards);Xybphonia \Grcenlgnell Rhykn Song(Smadbeck); Spn ing Sorg (Mendelssohry'Snell); Eiues lor Gi/be/.l (Glent*ortr)iRhapsodb Fanlasie lEd'4atdsl Heler Skellel\Lenman)t Two Mexican Dances far Mainha\Sloul): HaWy HanneB lB@uet): Au Lovels Hete T0 Slay-\Getshwin); Valse Billiante(Green); Zmba Zamba (Rlchards).Only four scicctionson thissolo albuminvolvc the brass band. The soloist,howevcr, has been the principal pcr-cussionist of Britannia Building Soci-ety for the past fcw years. Shedemon-strates rcal depthinher field herc, fromsolo marimba works to iazz comboitens. My personal favoritcs arc theformer,cspciallyR ylr,nsokga dT,tMrican Ddrccs. Bccausc of thc mix ofstylcs, I f ound thc xylophoncsolos withband accompaniment to be the leastintercstin& but I must confess a per-sonal bias a8a inst thal Scnre- The bandhandles the accompanimcnts quitccompetently. The jazz quartct docs afine, tasteful iob. Stewart Death, beingmentioned for thc sc.ond time this i9sue, does vciy wcll on piano. The pro-duccrs of the Doye, Solo Series shouldtr,. commcnded for not just focrssingon traditional brass band instruments,but for risking this movc into an arcathat was for years woefully neglcctcdby brass bands - that ofpercussion.Ifarrists like Simone Rebello continuetheir involvement in the brass bandscene wc should have high hopes forthe development of new gcncration ofoutstandingpercussionists. The wholeCD is well-balanced in programmingand has a fine sound, with very clear,tastetul pick-up on thesoloist. Recom-mended for morc than just drumme$

you'll like this one and you can get ayoung drummer interested in the brassband scene via this disc.

6. Cone Fo\ow The Band. BNFL Band(Richafd Evans). Doyen C0018. TT62.26.Prc$an: Cone Follow lhe Band \Colefiar,lSieberl); Iie,4fcadlar (Moncklo&ryVood);Soprano Crrnet Solo: Summe,lime(Gershwidsnell), Alan Wycheltey; Cheek toCheek lBel,inlFenie); I Gol Rhythn(Gersh'rvir/Femie); Tenor Hom Solo: /Drcaned a Drcan \Schoen&tqBatry),Melvyn Bathgale; Flugelhom and SopranoDlelr Ple Jesu (Webbe/Pearson), Gary Lordand Alanwychef,y; Slaughlet on TenlhAv e n ue (Rodlercl Snilh) ; Ano lh e | 0N n i nAnolhet Shovr lPodelqabensl Ovetlue to'manbn 0f ke Opera (WebborMilkinson);An fiing G1es \Pode Cole); Soprano CornetS0l0: MetJory flebbe./Calherall), AlanWyche/y; Wesl Side Slory (BemsteirvD.W ghl);Comel Solo: Iil liere Was You(WillsorvBroadbenl); oklahomal (RodgeryCaf,ealll; You ll Nevet Wak,4/one (Rodgers/Snoll).BNFL has been making some lovelyrecordings these past few years, as in-dicated by the very positive reviewsthat thcy havc bccn rcreiving in TheBridge. This particular release showsthe Broadway PopTune side of thisband we usually hear in a disa devotedto "scrious" brass music. Well,yougetan American Broadway historical re-view in this production - GeorgcGershwin, lrving Berl in. RichardRodScrtColePorter,MeredithWillson,and Lconard Bemstein. Somc of thcmorc rcccnt saores - SchoenberS andWebber - are included to make it notall "old-time" favorites. I certainly donot think these kind of arrangementsarc whcrc this band shines, but theycertairily play quitc acccptably- Thc disccan be thought of as a great study re-source f or show-fu nearrangements thathave been published for thcbmssband.This disc should come in very handy inhelping bands plan programs. They donot have the stylistic finessc ofa BattleCreekBrass Bandinplaying thesepoptuncs, but thcy do provide very spir-itcd and tuneful renditions. This is anexcellent band and you will enFy fteirjoumey into lighter fare.

R.W. Holz

iray 1994 The Brass Band Brldge 19

Page 20: Stephen Bulla: Brass Band Composer

BEHNEL MUSIE LTD

nEw mustcMalaguena, Holiday for Trombones, and Flve

L)nic Pieces from Mark FreehNoble Trombone - Brian Bowen

G]'nnopedie #1 - arr. by Frank RentonMisry for f lugelhorn - Burke/Garner

Trombone Concerto Derek BourgeoisPLUS more than 60 other new titles!

NEW HECI]HDINESSing Sing/Sing! Battle Creek Brass Band

featuring works by Mark Freeh andperformarces by Steven Mead - A MUST CD!

Gourlay Plays Tuba - tie latest from Doyen

Bourgeois - music of Bourgeois performed bySun Llfe Band

Firebird - Grimethorpe Colliery Bard

PLUS many others!

Eernel lllusic LtdP 0 Box 2{38. Culloruhee. flE 28723

PH/FBX ?0129353t2

Band Books:Three Short Reviews byRonald W Holz

1 . KrsitrEr Kgnneh. Discoursirg .9rce1Musb: Town Bands aN Connuniu Ue inT un- of .the CentJ ry P enn sylvania. Chicago:Tho Universily of lllinois Press,1990.205 pp.,l8 hbles, mullide illustations, indudingscorc examplgs; exc€llenl doflfi enta$on

m lhe Brass Band Bridge l&y 1994

(endnoles), index and bibliography. ISBN 0-252{1661-0 Hardback.The streneth and weakness of this bookis its narr;w focns on small brass bandsftom an obscure corner of NortheastPennsylvania during the p€riod of approximately 1890-1910. The wealth ofdetail about the bands, their memb€r-ship, activities, music, and short-termNstory is invaluable for understandingour own Amedcan brass band slory.On the other hand, so sp€cialized is theattention to this gmall region that thereader hardlv connects with anv other

brass band events beyond Wilkes Barreor Scranton, the largest nearby oties.Even there, thesc cities are orily men-tioned as they relate to the small townbands under discussion, not aboutbanding in these citieE which musthave been considerable and must havehad an impact on the more parochialactivities Kreitner erGmines. I thor-oughly enjoyed the book; i t rcads well.Kreitner has provided the brass bandcommunity with a slice, probably amost 9?ical slice, of our banding heri-tage - that of the small town brassband. Recommended for both bandhistorians, the brass band enthusiast,and the general reader interested inAmcrican musical and social history.

2. Hgslip, Malcom. Nosla/glc Haw'nkgs lnthe Thrce Bands ol John Philip Sousa,Columbus: htegrity Press, 1992 (8ev. Ed).75pp.,22 pholos;good indox and bibliognphy.ISBN 0-918048{9'5, hardback.The author served as a flute player inthe United Shte6 Naval Training Sta-tion B and, Great lakes, IL which Sousaled duringWorld War I; the other twobands rcfcrrcd to in the hde are, ofcourse, the U.S. Ma ne Ban4 andSousa's Band. Thc books consists oftwenty chapterg, or anecdotes, aboutSousa, his band, his hobbiet |us music,and other related topics. These arecharming gems ftom band hi story andlore. Theyare notall pretty little tales;chapter 9, "An UnluckyDay...", tells ofthe canceling of a band concert inMannheim due to a lost train cai, caus.ing substantial financial loss for Sousa.A sirall, handsomq well-produced andentertaining volume!

3. Canuq Aaoul F . Mililary ltusic 0f lheAmerc€r Fevoiulion Columbus: IntegdtyPress, 1994 (Rev. Ed). 218 pp., mullipleillusbalions and musical gxamdes; excellenldodfi enhlion {endnoles), appendices,index, ard bibliogEphy. ISBN 0-918048-10-9.Hadback.Integrity Press @aul Bierley) has doneAmerican music and the band world agreat service by providing this revised

Page 21: Stephen Bulla: Brass Band Composer

edition of Camus' pace-sethng t eatiseon our early military music. While thesubject s€€ms somewhat removd fromour brass band scene, we should un-derstand the origins ofband musiconthese shores and how such early effortsrelate to the development of the brassband in America. A leading musicolo-gist in the area of bands (he r4Tote theNew clove lead article on bands, aswell as forty other entries), Camusbrings a disciplined, objective mind toNs topic. Thecoverageis thorough, butit is never dull. The author takes thereader from l8th-century Europeanmodels upon which American effortswerebuilt, through a description of thcmusic, instrurnents, and musicians ofthe Amcrican bands. and p.ovides achronological overview of the rolemili-tary musicplayed in theRevolutionaryWar. Highly r€'comrncnded.

R.W. Holz

Contact: Don StineEastem lowa Brass Band319-895 5319; ot 379444-2845

Sun., July 24St Louis, MO ArcaSt Louis City Park;7:30 P.M.Host: Harry SwangcrHost: ComptonH€ighB ConcertBand

lron., July 25St Louis, MO AreaSt lluis Tower Crove Park;7:30 P.M.Compton Heights Conaed Band

Wednesday,July 27Kansas, MO/KC AreaCrown CentreHost Don SchaefferHalLnark Cards Band

Fdday, July 28Dcnvcr, CODenver School of Mines;7:30P.M.Host: Rocky Mountain Brasswork8Ken Anderson; Fleshcr/Hinton MusicCo.

Ifyou would like to receive moredirectinformation about Bdtish Nu cl€at Fu-els Band, one of the tiop contestingbands from Grcat Britain, then contact:Friends of the BNFL Band, RylestoneHouse, Station Rd, Salwick, PrestonPR4 OYH ENGLAND; TEL 011-44-0772-762-86 j F 4X011 - 444n2-7 62-87 6.

1994 Yamaha/NABBASummer Brass Band WorkshopsJune HEastern MichiSan UniversityHost: Dr David WoikeMusic DepartmentEastgn Michigan Unive$ityYpsilanti, MI48'1973t3l87-1430

June 17-18California Statc Polytcchnic Univc.sityPomona, CaliforniaHost: Linda Taylor2070 E. CicnagaCovina, CA 91724818-339-2414

July 8-9Iowa State UnivcrsityHost: Rogcr Cichy211 Music BuildinSIowa Shte UnivcrsityAmes,Iowa 50010515-294-2c80 ot 515 -292-5(37

JW 22-23Cotter High SchoolHost: Denis Carter1401 E. Bums ValleyWinnona, Minncsota 55987507452-5280

August 12-13Minot Statc UniversityHosl James Thomton1131 First Street, N.E.Minot, ND58701701 -852-9121 or 701457 -3189

Take advantage of these clinics, orspread the word to those interested ingetting their brass bands underway.For more detailed information, pleasc

Dr. Paul Droste (Clinician)1310 Maize Rd CourtColumbus OH 43210

(614) 88E-1310

BritishNucleur Fuels Band Tour ltinerary, July 1994As of prcss time, The Bridte had re-cei ved the following tenta ti ve itineraryfor this superbband's summer tour ofthe USA; phone numbers are gi ven forthchostcontact. WchopemanyNABBAmemb€rs can get to hear this toPlevelband this summer:

Thu6dayJuly2lChicago Area ConcertUbertyville, IL; 7:30 P.M.Contack Ceorge FosterIllinois BEss Band 708-357-796 1

Sat, July 23Eastem Iowa Arca ConcertMount Vemon High School525 Palisades RdMount Vemor! IA;7:30 P.M.

May 1994 The Brass Band B.ldge 21

Page 22: Stephen Bulla: Brass Band Composer

Brass Band Coursewith Frank Renton:Jumping 0n the Brass Band WagonBoosey & Hawkes/Buffet Cmmpon ispleased to amounceabrassbandcou$eat Vandercook College of Music inChicago, n, with Frank Rmton, wellknown British conductor, scholar, andbrass band pedagogue.

The course will be offered .fune 27throughruly l, 1994. Tuition is$110.00per semester hour of graduate credit.This is a three.credit cou$e. Throughspecial a[angement with Boosey &Hawkes, a complete set of brass bandinsFuments will be provided to thecollege in order to implement this spe-cial program. For more informahon onFrank Renbon ot the Cowse, please con-tact Boosey & Hawkes, Box 130,Libeayville, IL 60048. TEU 0841G2!fr ;or Vandercook College of Music, 3209

S. Michigan Ave, Chicago, IL 60616.TEL 800-448-2655.

The one-week comprehensive coursewill seek to clarify the historical aspectsof the development of the Brass Band,both socially and through the develoPments in instrumental manufacture.The cours€ will also tracc thc development of repertoire in the fields of popu-lar and serious music. l,echtes on com-position and arranging for the brassband medium, conducting techniquetand development of inshrments willtJe within the focus. To summarize, thisis the complete background packagewith all the information and 'know how'for the management of a brass bandProSram.

Announcing:A Regional Brass

Band FestivalFebntary 2&-25, 7995

University of KentuckyLexington, KY

Host: The Lexington Brass Band

Guest Soloists andPrivate Adjudications

NOT A CONTEST -A FESTIVALI

For fu rther information,see the August issue of The Bddt€,

or writel

Ronald W. Holzt€xington Brass Band

520 N. LexingtonWilmore, KY 40390

I\IABBA'94Sorrvenfus

DlscorrntedtT-shifi s ..,,..,.....,,.,..$8Sveatshirls .....,.,.$1 2Insulated Mugs $3.75

Froe pon with ovory item orderod!

Please fiake .hecb Wlable to:Mu Beta Psi

Please smd Wur ofuler to:Dr. F.ank Ha$mond

Mu Beta PsiNCSU Music Departsnent

Price Music CmterBox 7311

Raleigh, NC 27695

NABBA'94 Souvenirs Order Form

Item Unlt Cosl ouanlity orderod Total Cost

swostshln $12.00 I

T.Shi 0800 $Insulated Mug $3.7s D

Namo:

Address:

22 The&e83BandBndg€ lilay 1994

Page 23: Stephen Bulla: Brass Band Composer

North American Brass Band Associatio#ne.

Form to NominateA Memb€r ol the Board of Directors

Nameof Nomineeplease Fint or typ

Statement ol nomlnee's background and brass band expetience.

I agree to my name being placed in nomination tor a position as Member-at-Large on tho NorthAmerican Brass BandAssociation, Inc. Board of Directors. lfelected, lagreetos€rve at leastthreeyears, attendingas many NABBAlunctions as lpossiblycan, attending at least one board meetinga year, and will tulfill committee work and other assignments as may be required. I will hold validmemborship in NABBA throughout my three-year lerm on the Board.

Fhst Nomlnator's Slgnature Signature ot Nomlnee

First Nominator's Printed Name

Second Nominator's Signature

Cullowee, NC USA 28723

ffi This torm may be duplicated as needed.

Date

Please return this completed form by July 25, 1994 to:Mr. Bert Wiley, NABBA SecretaryP.O. Box 2,138

lilay 1994 The Brass Band Eddge A

Page 24: Stephen Bulla: Brass Band Composer

PF|IcETHE

FTGHTERS!k/or //b / arg"^rt,9e/edtu of #orq l/^tlp,*u,

(,1 Bngq 4, "",rtu,r..r ad l/oru./'

0ur Service, Seleclion & Prices willKw0CK YaA 0Ar!

''Waddt Ldt6l SdlenDol L$ttfrdrb I ,fc@tt6"

SIMPLY RFTURNThe lollowing Coupon

n recetve a tHtLBrassrrind Catalogt

Nam0AddressCl lyS l a l o - Z i !

rrusffffi1.rynl 9880Sl . le L in r Bd.Sou lh Send l I 46637

trnIl.tt.I [[Tittfn\rl, !lrltiX it I titi iE: I tEl , :Ei ilr t

N,4BBANorlh m.rlc.n ! .. Drld /\nocl.rlotr, Inc,

The Brass Band BrldgeRonald W. Holz, EdltorAsbury College Mu8lc DeptWllmore, KY 4o39oUSA

Non-Prof it 0rganizationU,S, POSTAGE PAIDCuliowhee, NCPermil No. 30