Saturday, 6 May 2006
On May 4th David Childs and the Central Band of the Royal Air Force gave the world premi'e8re performance of Gareth Wood'92s exciting new Euphonium Concerto during a concert at Birmingham'92s Adrian Boult Hall.
Central Band of the Royal Air Force
The new concerto is dedicated to David and will be available to all euphonium players in the coming months. Geoffrey Brand of G&M Brand publishing house commissioned the work and was present in the audience for the premi'e8re performance together with his son Michael and the composer himself.
On the concerto David commented, '93It is a superb addition to the ever growing repertoire for euphonium. It pushes the soloist both musically and technically but also provides great satisfaction in performance. I am very grateful to both G&M Brand for commissioning the work and of course Gareth Wood himself; he has composed a fantastic new Concerto which I am sure will prove popular with euphonium soloists throughout the world. '94
The Concerto is in three movements: The first an energetic Allegro featuring extreme agility from the soloist and a strong rhythmic accompaniment from the band. The excitement and dynamic grows throughout before an abrupt ending leaves the listener waiting in anticipation for the 2nd Movement; a beautiful Andante. The music here begins with solo contributions from flute, clarinet and muted cornet before the euphonium enters with a simplistic, but beautiful solo line. During this movement the band soar through some great romantic tutti passages as the soloist progresses through a gambit of musical styles before eventually ending the movement quietly and atmospherically. The final movement, a 9/8 Allegro is full of energy. Again the soloist hass various technical hurdles to overcome, but so too do the band. The percussion section is used to great effect in this movement; most notably during a rhythmic cadenza towards the end of the work. As the soloist nears the conclusion of the cadenza, the band joins and again the music grows in speed, dynamic and excitement before the soloist flourishes to the final note.
Duncan Stubbs, a former bassoonist and Music Director of the RAF Central Band conducted the premiere performance. Music has been a part of the Royal Air Force since 1912, when the Service existed as the Royal Flying Corps. By 1920 the Central Band of the Royal Air Force had been formed and since that time they have built a reputation for musical excellence at the highest level. In recent years links have been formed with Conservatoires and composers such as Joseph Horowitz, Edward Gregson, Martin Ellerby and now Gareth Wood.
Gareth Wood studied composition and the double bass at The Royal Academy of Music, joining the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra in 1972. Since then Gareth has toured extensively and is now closely involved with the RPO's education programme conducting the orchestra regularly. Gareth'92s compositions have been recorded and performed throughout the world. David plans to produce the premi'e8re recording of Gareth'92s new euphonium concerto for CD release early next year.
Central Band of the Royal Air Force
The new concerto is dedicated to David and will be available to all euphonium players in the coming months. Geoffrey Brand of G&M Brand publishing house commissioned the work and was present in the audience for the premi'e8re performance together with his son Michael and the composer himself.
On the concerto David commented, '93It is a superb addition to the ever growing repertoire for euphonium. It pushes the soloist both musically and technically but also provides great satisfaction in performance. I am very grateful to both G&M Brand for commissioning the work and of course Gareth Wood himself; he has composed a fantastic new Concerto which I am sure will prove popular with euphonium soloists throughout the world. '94
The Concerto is in three movements: The first an energetic Allegro featuring extreme agility from the soloist and a strong rhythmic accompaniment from the band. The excitement and dynamic grows throughout before an abrupt ending leaves the listener waiting in anticipation for the 2nd Movement; a beautiful Andante. The music here begins with solo contributions from flute, clarinet and muted cornet before the euphonium enters with a simplistic, but beautiful solo line. During this movement the band soar through some great romantic tutti passages as the soloist progresses through a gambit of musical styles before eventually ending the movement quietly and atmospherically. The final movement, a 9/8 Allegro is full of energy. Again the soloist hass various technical hurdles to overcome, but so too do the band. The percussion section is used to great effect in this movement; most notably during a rhythmic cadenza towards the end of the work. As the soloist nears the conclusion of the cadenza, the band joins and again the music grows in speed, dynamic and excitement before the soloist flourishes to the final note.
Duncan Stubbs, a former bassoonist and Music Director of the RAF Central Band conducted the premiere performance. Music has been a part of the Royal Air Force since 1912, when the Service existed as the Royal Flying Corps. By 1920 the Central Band of the Royal Air Force had been formed and since that time they have built a reputation for musical excellence at the highest level. In recent years links have been formed with Conservatoires and composers such as Joseph Horowitz, Edward Gregson, Martin Ellerby and now Gareth Wood.
Gareth Wood studied composition and the double bass at The Royal Academy of Music, joining the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra in 1972. Since then Gareth has toured extensively and is now closely involved with the RPO's education programme conducting the orchestra regularly. Gareth'92s compositions have been recorded and performed throughout the world. David plans to produce the premi'e8re recording of Gareth'92s new euphonium concerto for CD release early next year.
