March "Cossack"
Rimmer is a composer,arranger and conductor at the same time, who was active in early brassband music from the end of 19th century to the biginning of 20th century. His famous pieces are marches like "Punchnello" and solo pieces like "My Old Kentucky Home".
"Cossack" is also his march which dipicts cossack cavalry.
The Last Spring
A lovable little piece composed by Norwegian composer Grieg known for Suite "Peer Gunt".
It is originally a lied for a verse of Norwegian poet Vinje. Grieg himself arranged it for the orchestra and merged as "Two Elegiac Melodies" with another piece "The Wounded Heart".
Japanese title is "Suginishi Haru (The Bygone Spring)" or "Banshun (The Late Spring)", but the story of the original verse describes the quiet joy of forecoming spring.
Overture "Peterloo"
After the Napoleonic Wars in 1815, the contradiction of the industrial revolution was exposed, and movements for political revolution and parliamentary revolution got very active.
On August 16th 1819, when a public meeting was held at a square in front of St.Peter Church ,Manchester the city administration, who concerned about riots, deployed voluntary cavalry and light cavalry there. The army sweeped the 8,000 people there. 11 people were killed and over 400 people were wounded. British people cinically called this incident "Massacre of Peterloo" after the victory of British army at Waterloo during the Napoleonic Wars.
Arnold, known for the music of a movie "The Bridge on River Kwai" and "Four Scottish Dances", said this overture is trying to describe those incidents musically and after the lamentation for murder and injury, it ends with a firm belief that the death of every people for the unification of the mankind is not fruitless.
Serenade
Once NHK sent out questionnaires titled as "The Music in Your Heart" and "Serenade" was highly ranked in it. The reason is clear. Just after the WWII, a radio program "Soldiers at the Front", which gave information to those who were waiting for their husbands and fathers, played this music every time.
Probably people got familiar with this comforting music through the program.
"Serenade" originally means a music of lovers, but later it came to mean a music of small ensemble.
Diversion on a Bass Theme
Lloyd is one of the representative composers in Britain. He has published 12 symphonies, 3 operas, 4 piano concertoes.
This music was composed as a contest piece for the Brassband Championship of colliery workers in 1986. Lloyd wrote in the score that this piece is a variation. Traditional variations treat given melodies in a various ways literally. The pattern of "Diversion on a Bass Theme" adopted a different way. Many melodies are played in the first bar by Basses and grown up by the melodies played through this piece.
This piece got overwhelming ovation from audience and players and was eventually selected as a contest piece in the Open Championship in September 1998. Unfortunately, however, Lloyd passed away in July not listening to the competition in the contest.
He wrote 3 brassband pieces such as "English Heritage" other than this piece.
Slipstream
Hangarian Dance No.1, No.5
Intermezzo from "The Marriage of Louis Alonso"
