Few things in classical music seem as quintessentially British as a brass band and the music of
Ralph Vaughan Williams. As part of the RVW Society's 150th anniversary of the composer's birth, the award-winning
Tredegar Town Band, with music director
Ian Porthouse and guest conductor
Martyn Brabbins, offers listeners
Vaughan Williams' three brass band compositions as well as some new and interesting arrangements of other works.
Phillip Littlemore is tasked with arranging one of his most popular works, the English Folk Songs Suite, keeping the original key rather than transposing it down as
Frank Wright did for his brass band version from 1956. While this keeps tone color and sound structure from the original in place, it may have played a role in the performance here, where some of the solos are not quite as strong as one would expect with their broad familiarity. The
Tredegar Town Band is much stronger elsewhere, especially in the three works originally written for brass band (the Henry the Fifth overture, Prelude on Three Welsh Hymn Tunes, and Variations for Brass Band), since they fall well within the standard parameters of the instruments involved and are truest to the sound the composer was writing. Overall, though, the arrangers do justice to the original compositions, and the
Tredegar Town Band delivers some splendid performances; consider the Prelude on Rhosymedre, a lovely rendition in an arrangement by
Paul Hindmarsh. The Tuba Concerto, once more arranged by
Littlemore, featuring
Ross Knight of
L'Orchestre de la Suisse Romande, is an example where the brass band sound is an interesting contrast as a backing ensemble to an orchestra or piano. While this might not be to everyone's taste, it certainly fits in the overall sound environment of the brass band world and will likely draw the interest of tubists. This is a welcome release from the RVW Society for lovers of band music and of this 20th century master. ~ Keith Finke