Around the World in 80 Minutes

Weston Silver Band
Larry Shields
Marshall Arts Productions: WSB CD01
Total playing time: 72.16

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The Weston Silver Band from Ontario, Canada takes us on this musical journey around the world.  Overall, the CD has a good variety of repertoire with some original Canadian pieces and a wonderful new arrangement by Theresa MacDonald. 

The band is of a very good standard, but for some of the well-known pieces (e.g. "Malaguena" & "Irish Blessing") a very good performance doesn't quite match up to the standards many of us may have in our heads from performances from the truly top-flight UK and European bands.  Never the less, the CD as a whole makes for a very enjoyable listen.

"Around the World in 80 Days" is a fine way to start of the CD.  It helps grab the listener's attention from the word go.  The band's signature march, "Weston Express" sounds more like a march that comes from Canada's southern neighbor than from their British heritage.  Rather than featuring a light solo cornet line and broad accents, you'll find a well-played euphonium melody in the middle of the piece and low-brass counter melody at the end.

Some lovely solo cornet playing in the slower, middle movement is one of the highlights of Curnow's "Appalachian Folk Song Suite."  "Windows of the World" and "Hine e Hine" are the first of several Peter Graham pieces on the CD and all are good choices.

It seems brass bands either like to do transcriptions of the orchestra warhorses or arrangement of pop tunes.  It is much rarer for a concert band piece to make it over to the brass band genre and Weston band member Theresa MacDonald did a fantastic job of capturing the essence of the concert band classic Variations on a Korean Folk Song.  Hopefully as a result of this CD, MacDonald's arrangement will get more play.

In "Cossack Dance", the band plays the dots well, but doesn't quite grasp the feel of Russia.  Compared to the other pieces on the CD "Siyahimba", perhaps is a bit cheesy.  However, the band pulls it off quite well and it is a wonderful addition to the ‘tour.' Weston then finds a nice groove with "Malaguena."

"Blue Danube" is, well, the "Blue Danube."  If you like it, you like it.  If you don't, you don't.  With no fault to the band, six and one-half minutes of the piece is a bit too long for my taste.

The band has some of its finest ensemble moments in Peter Graham's "London Celebration."  The band really does produce a nice well-rounded ensemble sound in this piece.  Some lovely lyrical playing in "Berkley Square" and later in the piece a good trombone section is featured.

Howard Cable's piece "Ontario Pictures" is another wind band piece that makes a good transition to brass band. Point Pelee features a gem of a cornet solo that evokes images of an evening stroll along one of Canada's southernmost points on Lake Erie.

The journey is over with the brass band standard "Irish Blessing" (Bacak, arr. Bradmen) and even though it isn't a Canadian end to the CD, does give the journey appropriate closure.

Overall, the band shows great flexibility in being able to play such a wide variety of music and the CD makes for an enjoyable listen.  The artwork on the CD jacket is quite good, a programme notes for the pieces are well done, but it would have been nice to see a bit about the band's history.

Pat Herak

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