The Cory Band

Conductor: Dr Robert Childs
The Hawth
Crawley
Sunday 22nd February

There are relatively few opportunities for those in the south of England to hear top class band, and thanks are due to venues such as the Hawth for maintaining a series of high quality monthly concerts. 

Played well

Sunday’s concert by the Cory Band showed, firstly, that there is an audience for brass bands, and secondly that, contrary to some schools of thought, such audiences will respond positively to new music if it is well played and attractively presented, although Robert Childs did assure them that they would not be faced with anything too avant-garde!

PLC

It was no surprise to find that the programme drew heavily on the music that won them first prize in the Brass in Concert competition last year. Paul Lovatt-Cooper’s opener, “Enter the Galaxies” got things off to a good start, with cornets standing at either side of the band, and the three trombones centre stage. 

The timpani heralded the start of the music and most sections were featured at some point, with Owen Farr standing in front of the band for his solo contribution.

Anniversary

Robert Childs introduced the band, explaining that they were celebrating their 125th Anniversary, his informal manner setting the tone for the whole afternoon, which was punctuated by stories from the band’s past, and plugs for a forthcoming book about the band. 

He then set a brisk tempo for the overture “Ruslan and Ludmilla” (Glinka arr Walter Hargreaves), really putting the band through their paces. With clean runs, slick double-tonguing, crisp articulation and a beautifully smooth euphonium melody it was a well-integrated performance, with some particularly subtle timpani work by Gavin Pritchard.

Virtuosity

In the absence of Ian Williams, unable to attend the concert due to work commitments, the Principal Cornet seat was occupied by Philip Cobb, who was featured in Kenny Baker’s “Virtuosity”. 

His reading was full of individual touches, managing to come across as totally spontaneous, and with various striking effects added in the cadenza, before a really sultry central melody. 

The accompaniment was also excellent, alert to both soloist and conductor, with some particularly crisp work from the trombones, whilst the response of the audience to Philip’s stunning climax threatened to raise the roof.

Warm wind

Peter Graham’s “Sirocco” is a three-movement work taking its inspiration from the warm wind that originates in the Sahara and passes through the Mediterranean, each movement representing a different country en route. 

Commencing in Italy, the “Tarantella” began conventionally enough in 6/8, but then syncopations and shortened phrases made things more complex. Descending runs starting at the top of the band led to a sustained bass pedal which linked the first two movements. 

Staple

“Romanza”, featuring the music of Spain, featured Joanne Childs on flugel, the familiar melody – a staple of the guitar repertoire - being by an anonymous 19th century composer (not Rodrigo, as Robert suggested). 

After a nicely balanced chord in the lower band a subdued roll on cymbal and timpani introduced “Sirtaki”, a Greek dance along the lines of “Zorba’s Dance”, with some telling bass pedal notes and a gradual winding up of the tempo.

Atmospheric

Dan Price’s “Sunrise over blue ridge” was another item from the Brass in Concert programme, an atmospheric depiction of the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia as immortalised in song by Laurel and Hardy. 

Various solo lines emerged from a gentle wash of sound, the brightness of the solo cornets only being added well into the piece, before the music died away once more, the final chord being subtly coloured by the addition of a quiet tam-tam.

Tour de force

The second soloist to be featured was Owen Farr on tenor horn, presenting a real tour de force from the pen of Philip Sparke: “Capricorno” opened with a smooth melody, incorporating an eloquent cadenza, before launching into a lilting 6/8 somewhat like an up-tempo version of Vinter’s “Hunter’s Moon”. 

The running quavers were impressive enough, but with the introduction of semiquavers the technique on display became all the more amazing, and the piece ended on a resounding top D.

Salute to Youth

The first half closed with a performance of the regional test piece, “Salute to Youth” (Gilbert Vinter), in a reading that was full of subtlety and refinement. 

The cornets at the start of “Resilience” were spot on, as were the succeeding entries, with some fine soprano playing in evidence. Robert had fore-warned the audience to listen out for the “love duet” between Philip Cobb and David Childs, which emerged from the sotto voce opening to “Romance”. 

Relish

The band seemed to relish every discord and suspension, and one couldn’t help but think that the interpretation of this movement could be crucial in a couple of weeks’ time. 

As for “Relaxation”, it is clear what Vinter meant by giving the movement that particular title, but it was far from relaxing for the band, who nevertheless managed to convey a sense of light-heartedness and fun regardless of the technical hurdles to be overcome.

Following a well-deserved break, during which the merchandising team seemed to be doing a brisk trade, the band returned to present Steven Ponsford’s “Turris fortissima”. Robert explained that one of the things that had initially attracted him to the piece was the underlying kit-work, only to find that it had been omitted from the published version. 

Fortunately, he had been able to contact the composer, who has now joined another church, but who gladly sanctioned the restoration of the original drum writing. 

Reference

The composer has drawn together a number of tunes relating to God being a strong fortress, including Luther’s “Ein’ Feste Burg”, “Blessed be the name of the Lord” and “Shout to the Lord (My Jesus, my saviour)”, and even incorporates a brief reference near the end to Dean Goffin’s “My strength, my tower”. 

The band as a whole seemed to take a little while to settle down after the break, but there was some quality solo playing from euphonium, trombone and horn respectively.

Imagination

Robert Childs explained that Karl Jenkins is probably the most prominent Welsh composer at the present time, with the “Adiemus” series and choral works such as “The Armed Man” having fired the public’s imagination. 

The band has been performing his music for a little while, including the successful collaboration with the choir Cantorium (otherwise known as Only Men Aloud, from the recent BBC competition). A four movement suite, “Aspects of Adiemus” has just been recorded by the band, the music having been arranged by Tony Small. 

The opening “Adiemus” was notable for the clarity of the repeated semiquaver phrases that provided the underlying pulse throughout. 

Song of Spirit

For “Song of the Spirit” the cornet section was split antiphonally, with Chris Turner switching to Eb trumpet to provide the top voice for one group. With phrases sometimes echoing one another, the section was frequently split into smaller groups, and the writing was very effective, despite the occasional tuning problem. 

“Vocalise” featured Joanne Childs, Owen Farr and Chris Thomas on flugel, horn and trombone respectively, and gave the opportunity for some fine lyrical playing from both soloists and band, often at very low dynamics. 

The final movement, “Song of the Plains”, was full of driving rhythms, with the three drummers leading the way, building in excitement to a somewhat unexpected sudden finish.

Pleasing

Three soloists were showcased in the second half of the programme, commencing with David Childs, who showed that the older solos can still please an audience with a stunning rendition of “Grandfather’s Clock”, played pretty straight with only the occasional added glissando and an extra-high finish. 

This was very impressive playing, with some ferocious tempi at times, although the bass pedals in the tutti passages seemed rather superfluous, and became wearing after a while.

Principal Trombone Chris Thomas produced a beautifully laid-back rendition of “Georgia on my mind” – although the programme could have brought memories of the Goon show with the printed title being “Georgia on my min” (sic)! His fluid playing sat lightly on top of the band, with a lovely fall away from the last note.

Exciting

Lastly came percussionist Gavin Pritchard with a new composition from Andrew Baker. “Kompanista” is a Bulgarian folk dance, replete with exciting irregular rhythms, giving Gavin the chance to show his prowess on a variety of instruments. 

Starting at the end of the row, he began with the vibraphone, commencing with some bowed notes followed by some nifty work with four sticks before moving down the line to an array of varying-pitched tom-toms and bongos. 

This passage was particularly effective as the drums seemed to take on the specific pitches of the melody played by the band. Three different cymbals were also introduced before some stunning work on xylophone, and the piece ended with an enthusiastic shout from the band. 

Only afterwards did Robert Childs explain that Gavin had been playing on a borrowed vibraphone that was smaller than usual, making his performance all the more remarkable.

Civil War

Several composers have drawn on the music of the American Civil War – some older folk will no doubt recall Clare Grundman’s “The Blue and the Gray” – and one recent such offering is Dan Price’s “An American Tale”. 

Opening with the “Battle Hymn of the Republic”, the piece incorporated narration, brought by David Childs. 

“Taps” sounded out from the middle of the band in tribute to the 700,000 lives that were lost, before a rhythmically varied rendition of “Yankee Doodle”. Other melodies included “Marching through Georgia”, “Turkey in the straw” (featuring a lightning-fast duet between Philip Cobb and David Childs) and “Amazing Grace”, whilst Gavin Pritchard patrolled the stage with a marching side-drum.

Encore

The Cory Band managed to fit in one encore before their journey back to Wales, with a disciplined account of the march “Death or Glory”, although it seemed rather odd to leave one percussionist sitting it out, presumably because there was no cymbal part in the original score. 

The audience had enjoyed two hours of first class music and entertainment, without the need for excessive gimmickry or funny costumes, and it all looks promising for Cory in their 125th year.

Peter Bale

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