Lowry Sketchbook, Philip Wilby. Brass Band

LOWRY SKETCHBOOK, PHILIP WILBY. BRASS BAND

Championship Section testpiece and Wilby's homage to the much loved artist, and the equal of anything by this acknowledged master of the band.

1 City Scape
2 Family Portraits
3 Peel Park The Bandstand

Duration 15.00

The composer writes:
I wrote this piece when I was composer in residence with the Britannia Band, and the pictures Ive chosen are all on display in the Salford Art Gallery, so its my Manchester piece.

The first is called City Scape and, in typical Lowry style, contrasts the fragile nature of humanity - individual figures, all different from each other - against the great, throbbing energy of the industrial landscape in which we live.

The second is a tribute to the family, though I have in mind more universal family elements, a cross-generation thing, so its a sentimental melody rather old fashioned, but Im rather fond of it.

The last one is a depiction of Peel Park - a subject Lowry painted several times - The Bandstand as seen from the window of the Art Gallery itself. A huge crowd of Mancunians, or Salfordians, dances to the music of a brass band. What sort of music would it be playing? In my case something arranged from the classics. To say any more would give the game away.
P.W. 1993

Performance notes :
Percussion: Bands may find the inclusion of a Marimba impractical. In these instances the composer sanctions the use of the Xylophone played with soft sticks. Where there is a choice of the instruments but only one is possible, the Marimba should always be preferred. and the Xylophone sections played with hard sticks and taken up an octave where practical. Both options are authorised by the composer and are authentic.

Fanfare Brass and Percussion (Peel Park): There will be occasions when bands can call on additional players for these parts: in such instances these optional players should be grouped behind the band, Group A stage right, Group B centrally, Group C left, and should play only the bars indicated. The players are optional, but the notes are not! On all normal occasions for ordinary concert performances, the parts will be taken by the regular musicians seated in their normal positions.

This edition incorporates some very minor revisions the composer made in 1996.