USA Western Territorial Band

Bandmaster: Neil Smith
Southend Citadel
Saturday 10th October

The visit of the USA Western Territorial band to Southend Citadel and Leigh on Sea came at the end of a ten-day tour of the UK which included Worthing, Norwich, Derby, Sunderland, Kettering and Cardiff. 

The band had set out from Cardiff earlier than planned in order to fit in a brief look at the tourist spots in London, which gave Bandmaster Neil Smith, a former member of the Scots Guards Band, an unexpected opportunity to see his old band in action outside Buckingham Palace!

The USA Territorial Band was reformed in 2006, 75 years after its former incarnation fell victim to the great depression. Drawing their membership from several Salvation Army divisions, the band meets three times a year for rehearsal, fellowship and ministry. 

The ethnic mix of its 5 female and 25 male players reflects something of the diversity of the area, and the range of Salvation Army activity in that part of the world.

Well-balanced ensemble

The band opened its programme with James Curnow’s Festival Prelude “Hallelujah”, revealing a well-balanced ensemble, albeit with a somewhat lightweight sound. The featured melody “Stand up and bless the Lord” set the tone for the evening, with the bandmaster explaining that they wished above all to develop a rapport with the audience, and would be playing mainly familiar and popular material.

Principal cornet Hilary Lyons then moved to the piano to accompany the band chorus in Kenneth Downie’s setting of “Be still, for the presence of the Lord”, which led into spoken prayer by Lt Col Trevor Davis, who had travelled with the band on its tour as the representative of UK Territorial Headquarters. 

After further introductions, the band led some rousing congregational singing in an upbeat version of “Praise my soul the King of Heaven”.

Who says brass bands can’t swing?

Martin Cordner’s “Sweetest Name” allowed the band to show that they are quite at home in the swing genre, with stylish playing and a light, delicate touch. Basses, horns and percussion were particularly impressive, with excellent solo contributions around the band, the final couple of bars including some particularly cheeky percussion playing, ending with an upward glissando on timps.

The horns and flugel had a further opportunity to shine in Peter Graham’s setting of “Swedish Folk Song”, which displayed much attention to detail, and finely controlled crescendi and diminuendi.

Trombones to the fore

The first soloist of the evening was principal trombone Kevin Larsson, whose parents, General John Larsson and Commissioner Freda Larsson, were hearing the band for the second time in a week. Playing William Broughton’s “Swing that door” he showed great control and a relaxed, fluid style, with an impressive mini-cadenza over the last couple of bars, although he did have to fight at times to be heard over the band. 

He was then joined by sectional colleagues Ralph Pearce and Michael Pierce, together with flugel player Michael White, in an enthusiastic rendition of “I will follow Him” from “Sister Act” (arr Goff Richards).

Balance and control

This was followed by “Amazing Grace” (arr William Himes), its opening cornet choir being well balanced, and with an effective build-up at the entry of the full band. Soprano cornet John Doctor soared over the band, his clean playing enhancing the ensemble throughout the evening. The first half of the concert concluded with “I’ll walk with God” (arr Goff Richards). 

Once again, the mellow sound of the low brass was impressive, with a nicely sustained melody from flugel and horns. The piece ended in a majestic fortissimo that was just right for the acoustic of the hall.

Transatlantic feel

The second half opened with a march with a real transatlantic feel to it, and it was something of a surprise to find out that it was in fact “Wonderful Day”, a recent contribution by the UK’s own Steven Ponsford. 

Featuring the familiar hymn “Oh what a wonderful day” together with Peter Graham’s “It’s been a wonderful day” the lively, syncopated writing was most effective, although it took a while to adjust to hearing Peter Graham’s vocal number within the fairly rigid constraints of a march.

Trumpet and voice

Two solos followed, with Captain Matthew Madsen taking up the trumpet to present Stephen Bulla’s “Joshua swings the battle”, a fine vehicle for his commanding playing, and a chance to display his mastery of the jazz style, with smears, glissandi and falls galore, and more than the occasional excursion into the high register. 

Susan Pierce then stepped forward from the percussion section to sing the powerful song “They could not” (arr Brian Bowen). Accompanied initially just by Hilary Lyons (piano) and Richard Bosanko (bass guitar) she had to cope with some technical problems with the microphone just at the point where the band enters, but it did not seem to put her off, or to detract from the telling impact of the closing words: “Could they keep Him in the grave? – They could not!”

Rousing variations

The major work in the programme was Kenneth Downie’s “Purcell Variations”, based round the tune “Westminster Abbey”. Neil Smith had warned the listeners that it consisted of several sections, and avoided any long gaps that could have led to premature applause. The band coped well with the at times demanding writing, although there were some signs of tiredness, with suspect intonation in the more lightly-scored passages. 

The final triumphant statement of the melody rang out with confidence and assurance and was greeted with enthusiastic applause, fully justifying the decision to include what was originally written as a competition piece in the programme.

Music with a Latin American twist

As well as being a fine trombone player, Kevin Larsson showed he is an accomplished composer/arranger with “Just like Juan”. This was a fresh take on Norman Bearcroft’s “Just like John”, strongly influenced by salsa and Latin American music. 

The tricky rhythms seemed to come quite naturally to the players, who produced a commendably uniform approach, with the three-strong percussion team being given their head for a few bars. The two ladies and one gentleman of this section did sterling service all night long, showing their versatility by frequently chopping and changing between instruments.

A devotional interlude, in which the band’s Executive Officer Lt Col Ron Strickland, posed a number of rhetorical questions, was followed by the band playing a meditative setting of George Beverly Shea’s song “The Wonder of it all” (arr Smith). 

Again, there were signs of tiredness affecting the more sustained passages, and the balance between the sections was not so well defined, but the uplifting finish raised the spirits once more.

Closing contrasts

In total contrast, the band then rattled briskly through the “Cossack Wedding Dance” (Peter Graham), giving everyone a further opportunity to show their skill, and with some neat passagework all-round, including some excellent work on xylophone.

William Gordon’s arrangement of “God be with you” provided the benediction, with effective contrast between the mellowness of the horns and basses and the brighter tones of the cornets and trombones. 

The band then wrapped up proceedings with William Himes’ new transcription of Sousa’s “Stars and Stripes”, topped off with some first class soprano playing, but perhaps lacking something of the razzmatazz often associated with this number.

Despite the presence of one of the UK’s foremost Salvation Army bands a few miles down the road, the hall was almost full, the audience enjoying a well-balanced and well chosen programme by a band that played nicely within its limits. 

For such a recently-formed group that meets so infrequently to achieve such results says a lot for their ability and commitment, and bodes well for their future ministry.

Peter Bale

^back to top