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Contents:
DDD Total Time = 59:43 / Recorded: St Martins Church, East Woodhay, Berkshire, UK, 16-17 October 2000 The collection of music on this CD represents not only favourite wedding choices but some of the most popular classical music in the world today. The explosion of interest in music from the baroque period in recent times is reflected here, particularly in the processional music. The exuberance of Vivaldi's concerto for two trumpets brings to mind the splendour of Venetian court. The opening bars are of a declamatory nature, which quickly turns into a brilliant interweaving of the florid trumpet parts. Written in 1749 The Arrival of The Queen of Sheba was the opening to the last act of Handel's Oratorio Solomon. Originally scored for much smaller forces Handel expanded the orchestration greatly over the following decade. This is one of the few pieces on this CD which have been augmented to the brass quintet format from the original. This arrangement of the Pachelbel Canon by Christopher Mowat was a commission by OffStage Brass to be performed at a wedding in 1997. This simple piece is often voted for in people's 20 favourite pieces. Marc Antoine Charpentier studied with Carissimi in Rome and the influence of the Italian Baroque is obvious in this prelude from his TE DUEM. This is the first of several processional pieces on this compact disc in the key of D Major. This key was favoured above all others when a brilliance of sound was required by composers of the Baroque period when writing for trumpets and timpani. The choruses involving trumpets from Bach's Magnificat, Christmas Oratorio and B Minor Mass are perfect examples, as indeed are the Hallelujah Chorus, Worthy is the Lamb and Amen from Handel's Messiah. Representative of this genre we have trumpet tunes by John Stanley, Henry Purcell and the often wrongly attributed Prince of Denmark's March by Jeremiah Clarke. There are many pieces from this period referred to as "Trumpet Tune" which were never intended to be played on the trumpet itself but merely refers to the trumpet stop on the organ. It is worth stating here that John Stanley, the English Organist and composer had a huge output of operas, cantatas, concertos and vocal works despite being blind from the age of 2. Henry Purcell is doubly represented here with the inclusion of the Rondo from Abdelazar. This piece is the inspiration and foundation for Benjamin Brittan's Young Persons Guide to the Orchestra. Benjamin Britten studied composition at the Royal College of Music with John Ireland and Arthur Benjamin and Ireland's THE HOLY BOY is included as part of the reflective music on this CD. George Frederic Handel's Water Music was a set of pieces performed in 1715 on a boat following a royal procession on the Thames. Although the Allegro Maestoso from this suite is in triple time it is still a very popular piece for processionals. Amongst the very well known pieces here gathered is a new piece by UK composer Alistair King. His fanfare is vibrant and bold leading to an exciting climax. It is a very short piece which is very useful addition to our ceremonial repertoire since the author has played at many weddings when the bride is waiting at the altar before the first sixteen bars have been played. In complete contrast to this is the Triumphal March from Aida by Guiseppe Verdi. First performed in the Teatro Alla Scala in 1872 it requires a large orchestra with numerous trumpeters playing in costume onstage. A long trumpet (not surprisingly called the AIDA trumpet) was especially constructed for visual effect to be played in the Triumphal March. The Wedding March from Mendelssohn's A Midsummer Night's Dream was first performed in Potsdam in 1843 and since that time has become the most evocative of all wedding music. Mendelssohn was a great champion of the music of JS Bach and without his efforts many of Bach's masterpieces would have been lost forever. Jesu Joy of Man's Desiring is a chorale taken from Bach's church cantata no 147, Herz und Mund und Tat und Leben (1723) based on a chorale melody "Werde Munter" (1641) composed by Johann Schop. The Bach/Gounod Ave Maria is a melody by Gounod written over JS Bach's C Major prelude from the well tempered Clavier. More arrangements of popular choral works form the backbone of the reflective music here - Mozart's beautiful Ave Verum Corpus K 618 written in the last year of his life, the Agnus Dei from William Byrd's mass for 5 voices and the haunting Pie Jesu from the Faure Requiem. The remaining two pieces are both instrumental. Mascagni's tragic opera Cavalleria Rusticana was first performed in 1890 in Rome. The Intermezzo Sinfonico has been regularly performed since as a popular concert piece. Taken from Richard Wagner's opera Loengrin, Elsa's Procession to the Cathedral is a ponderous, noble theme that begins quietly and builds throughout to a huge conclusion. Even in this greatly reduced version the power of Wagner's music shines through - Elsa's happiness and grief encaptured. Page revised 30.06.03 |
