Variations
Conductor: Chris Lawrence
Soloist: Cameron Scott
St Luke’s Church, Cambridge
Sunday 23rd November 

‘Variations’ wove together three strands – original works for brass band by English composers, the 80th birthday celebrations of two, and of course, the variations of the concert title.

Both halves began with the music of celebrant Rodney Newton.  ‘Cambridge’,  a set of variations on the well-known hymn tune, opened with the band in confident form, while the three concluding variations from ‘The Pilgrim’s Progress’  provided a dramatic start to the second half, but which left you wishing to have heard the rest of the piece.

Soloist Cameron Scott delighted with Philip Sparke’s ‘Variations on an English Hymn Tune’  but reserved his very best technique for that hackneyed old warhorse ‘Grandfather’s Clock’,  which elicited the loudest and longest applause of the afternoon.

Abridged version

An abridged version of ‘Variations for Brass Band’  (Vaughan Williams) was competently performed, with the end of 'Variation 5'  segueing seamlessly into the beginning of 'Variation 9'.   However, the rather dense scoring, combined with the generous acoustics meant that at times some detail was lost.  

A novel feature was the use of an electronic keyboard in lieu of a celesta - the instrument checked beforehand to ensure the chorale was not accidentally swamped by the sound of a Moog synthesizer!

A novel feature was the use of an electronic keyboard in lieu of a celesta - the instrument checked beforehand to ensure the chorale was not accidentally swamped by the sound of a Moog synthesizer!

Slightly less successful was ‘Variations on the Shining River’  (Edmund Rubbra).  

At times the band sounded ill-at-ease with the complex cross-rhythms, meters and tempo changes, although the soloists generally acquitted themselves well in the exposed lines.  Unfortunately, a mechanical malfunction required the flugel horn to tackle the entire second half of the concert on a trumpet, the only spare instrument available.

Excelled

Edward Gregson’s 80th birthday was marked by ‘Chorale & Variations’  (from ‘Partita’) - full of good sounds, although a little ragged in places.  However, on the afternoon’s finale, ‘Variations on Laudate Dominum’  (in its original incarnation), the band excelled itself. 

 However, on the afternoon’s finale, ‘Variations on Laudate Dominum’  (in its original incarnation), the band excelled itself. 

Conductor Chris Lawrence chose tempi to match technical abilities, and the results (most notably in the fugue) were lines that were crystal-clear, with particularly strong, solid sounds from both the middle of the band and trombones. As throughout, the timpani work was also very impressive.

No fuss

The concert was completed with the only arrangementl, ‘Nimrod’  (Elgar arr. Denis Wright), directed without fuss or sentiment.

Not for the first time, Chris Lawrence and CSD Brass presented a programme compiled with thought and imagination, which continues to help dispel the perception of brass bands as musical magpies, and instead instils the idea that the medium can speak with its own unique voice.  

The brass fraternity at large would benefit if others emulated this Cambridgeshire outfit.

Alec Gallagher