A full hall greeted the International Staff Band as they visited Hadleigh on a warm May evening, following a short programme they had presented at the tea rooms at Hadleigh Training Centre.  

Due to illness and work considerations it was a rather unfamiliar line-up, with Gavin Lamplough deputising on soprano and recent appointee Jonathan Evans leading the trombone section.

Vibrant start

The programme got off to an excellent start with Martin Cordner’s vibrant ‘Call of the Gospel’, allowing all sections of the band to shine.  In contrast the transcribed part song ‘Tu es Petrus’ brought some lovely sustained playing.

After the opening prayer, the band introduced ‘Inclusion’, commissioned from Paul Sharman for the Bolsover Brass Band Summer School.  Original themes combined with ‘When I Needed a Neighbour’, ‘Whosoever Heareth’ and ‘In Christ there is no East or West’, the melodies often appearing as fragments or in distorted rhythms.  

It made a fine impression, full of contrasts and building to a triumphant close.

Soloists to the fore

Principal Cornet Carl Nielsen, gave an impressive ‘Jubilance’, although the accompaniment seemed a little stolid at times, particularly in the lower end of the band.  

Derek Kane followed with a stunning rendition of Stephen Bulla’s ‘Air ‘N Variations’, grabbing the listener’s attention right from the opening cadenza, and showing control over the whole range of the instrument.  

‘Gigue: Alleluja, Amen!’ is written in the style of a baroque dance, although to modern ears there seems to be more than a touch of a Celtic influence in its driving figures.

Classic Ball

The band closed the first half with ‘Journey into Freedom’, in a spacious performance that contrasted the underlying menace of the martial music with the confident assurance of the final transformation of the love theme.

The audience was welcomed back with a lively setting of ‘Ev’ry time I feel the Spirit’, before joining in the congregational song ‘Guide Me, O Thou Great Jehovah.’  The band then accompanied Hadleigh Temple Timbrels as they presented a display to the march ‘Assignment’.

1930 masterpiece 

‘The Old Wells’ is well worth reviving - being more a set of symphonic variations than a traditional air varie.  The various sections fitted neatly together, with the trombones making a particularly distinctive contribution.

The final soloist was Richard Woodrow, with ‘The Seal Lullaby’, a lovely sustained solo that was unfortunately occasionally swamped by the backing from the band.  In contrast ‘Jubilo, Jubilo’ was a light-hearted romp, replete with plenty of Latin American percussion and whistles.

Kenneth Downie’s evocative ‘Sunset over the River Exe’ was inspired by his new location at Exmouth, incorporating references to the tune ‘St Clements’.

The band’s vocal item ‘That Beautiful Land’ was particularly appreciated, evoking memories of the old LP recording.  The accompaniment had been rearranged for a quartet of flugel, horn, baritone and bass.

Popular finale

Paul Lovatt-Cooper’s ‘Fire in the Blood’ closed the programme, with its effective use of ‘Psalm 95’, ‘Lord, You Know that We Love You’ and ‘I Love You Lord’.  Carl Nielsen and Derek Kane stood in front of the band for their respective solos, and the whole built to a resounding climax.

There was just time for an encore with the march ‘Praise’, which ended with the whole band on their feet facing the audience.  

It rounded off an enjoyable programme with a refreshing mix of the familiar and the unfamiliar, and something to suit all tastes.

Peter Bale