Beethoven's 5th Bossa Nova

 

 

 

Terence Greaves, when we first met him, was Dean of Undergraduate Studies at the Royal Northern College of Music. A quiet, unassuming academic we thought. However we soon found out about his naughty side. In his earlier life he had been a lecturer at the Birmingham School of Music, where he had contact with the CBSO - in particular the wind section.
It was the clarinettist John Fuest who encouraged him to write for the CBSO wind quintet, which is where Terry's mischievous side came to light. Beethoven's Fifth Bossa Nova is wicked fun to play, and audiences absolutely love it. He went on to write Rimsky's Rumba and Mozart's Turkey Rock Mambo, all of which are published by Emerson Edition. However it is the Beethoven that is the firm favourite, and inspired this jazzy cover from the cartoonist Bill Tidy.
 

Terence Greaves 1933 - 2009

composer, lecturer, accompanist, and music consultant on ABRSM examinations

 

E42 Terence Greaves - Beethoven's 5th Bossa Nova

https://www.juneemersonwindmusic.com/BEETHOVEN-S-FIFTH-BOSSA-NOVA.html

 

E191 Rimsky's Rumba

https://www.juneemersonwindmusic.com/RIMSKY-S-RUMBA-set-of-parts.html

 

E245 Mozart's Turkey Rock Mambo

https://www.juneemersonwindmusic.com/MOZART-S-TURKEY-ROCK-MAMBO-score-and-parts.html

 





2018 Launchpad Prize Winners #2

Introducing...

Festivo Winds

(Royal Northern College of Music)

The Players

Leila Marshall - flute
Adam Bowman - oboe
Andy Mellor - clarinet
Sara Erb - bassoon
Thomas Edwards - horn

Biography

Festivo Winds are a dynamic group of young musicians from around the world who formed at the RNCM in December 2017. They are a strong group - each member has numerous personal accolades - and together they create a palpable sense of energy and fun. 

The ensemble specialise in the core quintet repertoire, whilst maintaining an interest in arrangements and new works. 

Festivo Winds are the winners of the 2018 Fewkes Woodwind Competition and the June Emerson Wind Music Launchpad Prize. The members are very excited to see what the future holds.

June Emerson Wind Music would like to thank Suzy Stonefield for organising 

the awarding of the Launchpad Prize at the Royal Northern College of Music.

Links

Festivo Winds

Leila.Marshall@student.rncm.ac.uk

Royal Northern College of Music

www.rncm.ac.uk

 

What's your Favourite Wind Quintet?

 

When looking for a photo of this composer smiling, this is the nearest I could find. Nevertheless there is humour and tenderness in his music, and it's a pity that it isn't heard more often. When my quintet gets together there is nearly always a moment when someone says 'Oh let's play the Milhaud!'
On a concert-giving holiday near Aix-en-Provence a couple of us tracked down his house and found it was a sub-police-station on the ring road. We bounced into the front office and asked whether it would be possible to come and play his quintet in his house. The desk-sergeant, or whatever they are called in Provence, looked completely blank. Who was this 'Milhaud' and what were these two bizarre Englishwomen on about? I believe the building has since been demolished.

Each of the seven short movements of 'La Cheminée du Roi René is a little masterpiece, with its own character, style and unexpected but delicious harmonies. It starts with a solemn village procession, followed by a gentle summer Morning Serenade. The Jugglers come along next, larking about, followed by a rather poignant dance-like 'Maousinglade'. 'Joutes sur L'Arc' is a lively jousting contest on the river Arc, followed by an energetic hunting scene, where the piccolo adds some fizz to the activity.
My favourite movement of all is the final Madrigal - Nocturne. You can imagine that all the villagers have gone home, exhausted, and the countryside is bathed in moonlight. The ending is heart-stoppingly tender.
June Emerson

https://www.juneemersonwindmusic.com/LA-CHEMINEE-DU-ROI-RENEE-score-and-parts.html

2017 Launchpad Prize Winners #2

Introducing...

Chameleon Wind Quintet

(Royal Northern College of Music)

The Players

Anna Murphy - flute
George Strickland - oboe
Jessica Tomlinson - clarinet
Joshua Jones - saxophone
Eleanor Mills - bassoon

Biography

Formed in October 2016, Chameleon is a group of musicians who met at the RNCM in Manchester. United by their ability to double/triple, they formed a group where each member performs on multiple instruments, often within the same piece.

As there is no existing repertoire for Chameleon, we do our own arrangements (though we would love to collaborate with orchestrators/arrangers/composers for future projects!). This means we can push the boundaries of typical wind ensembles, and can experiment with new combinations of wind instruments.

We base our set-up on a traditional wind quintet, replacing French Horn with Saxophone, and each member is principally one of the other four instruments - Flute, Oboe, Clarinet and Bassoon. Our unique range of doubling instruments also means we can transform from a wind quintet to a sax group during a piece.

We have a keen interest in performance and outreach, bringing our music to other people in both the concert hall and in the community.

June Emerson Wind Music would like to thank Suzy Stonefield for organising 

the awarding of the Launchpad Prize at the Royal Northern College of Music.

Links

Chameleon Wind Quintet

chameleonquintet@gmail.com

Royal Northern College of Music

www.rncm.ac.uk

The June Emerson Wind Music Launchpad Prize 2017

About the Prize

The Launchpad Prize was an idea that began as a desire to help young musicians in some significant way. With our limited financial resources it was difficult to come up with something that would make enough of a difference to make it worthwhile. The idea of sponsoring a prize at one of the UK music colleges was something we just couldn’t afford, and we also felt that we’d like to be able to offer something to more than just one college and be a little more ‘hands on’. We eventually decided that we would assist one predominantly final year wind ensemble from each of the major UK music colleges to launch themselves onto the professional circuit.

First awarded in 2009, the Launchpad Prize consists of practical help, including:a substantial JEWM music voucher; dedicated space on the JEWM website; publicity at any time through our online media channels (JEWM blog, Twitter, Facebook etc); editorial coverage wherever possible; unlimited free advertising flyers in JEWM music orders in order to publicise themselves; exclusive access to the JEWM shop with use of all music and facilities; complimentary copies of any existing and future Emerson Edition publications which fit their instrumental line-up, and anything else we can think of.

The 2017 Winners!

Royal Welsh College of Music & Drama

Coburn Saxophone Quartet

Royal Northern College of Music

Chameleon Wind Quintet

Royal College of Music

Aesthesia Saxophone Quartet

Profiles of each of this year's winners will appear on this blog over the coming weeks...

A Quintet Selection...

Some of our Favourite Wind Quintets

by June Emerson

(and The Canile Quintet)

It was a freezing night in 1969 when five wind players first met to play together in Hertfordshire. It was a successful and somewhat riotous evening and we became a regular wind quintet: The Camerata. Over the years two personnel changed and the name was changed accordingly, but 41 years later three of us were still together, with two others, as The Canile Quintet. Michael, the clarinettist, had suffered for some time with his eyes, and by 2011 he couldn’t see well enough to play any longer. It looked as if it was all over.

By July 2015 however, after several gruelling eye operations and with music enlarged to A3 size, he was ready to have another go. Hesitant and careful at first, by the end of the third day things were pretty well back to normal, and out came the champagne!

We played through almost all of our repertoire, and at the end I asked everyone to name their favourite quintet, and give the reasons for their choice. It was an extremely difficult exercise, and in the end we each chose two. These are the results:

Wendy, flute:

Invitación al Bolero from the Suite Popular Cubana by Dario Morgan, because in a short and beautiful piece everyone has something gorgeous to play.
Quintet Op.56 No.1 by Franz Danzi because there is so much of interest for all the instruments.

Steve, oboe:

Capriol Suite by Peter Warlock because it’s a lovely arrangement of lovely music which is far too good for string players.
Pastorale by Gabriel Pierné because it brings back happy memories of playing it at an outdoor concert in France - oboe offstage at the end.

Michael, clarinet:

Trois Pieces Brèves by Jacques Ibert because it is wonderfully written, particularly the second movement for flute and clarinet. The last movement is a challenge from which we were once saved at an outdoor concert in France by the arrival of the Mistral.

Novelette in C major by Francis Poulenc, because I just love it.

June, bassoon:

La Fille aux cheveux de lin from Debussy Suite No.1 as a sort of test, because it is only after a week of living, eating, drinking and playing together that we can get all the nuances and entries perfect.
La Cheminée du Roi René by Darius Milhaud, because of the wonderful sonorities, and the tender coming together of flute and clarinet in the final bars.

Christine, horn:

Sortie in E Flat by Léfebure-Wély because I want it played at my funeral, and I challenge anyone to hear it without smiling.
Quintette in C major by Claude Arrieu, because it is so quirky, and I love the rich harmonies in the slow movements.

Since its foundation the quintet has raised over £20,000 for various charities, and hopes to keep going for a good while longer. We’ll be celebrating the 50th Wedding Anniversary of Wendy and Michael in 2016.

LINKS:

For accommodating larger size music Michael can recommend

the Stagg extra wide music stand

Launchpad Prize Winner's Profile No.3: The Risatina Quintet

THE PLAYERS

Alexandra Boeree - flute

Khemi Shabazz - oboe

Livia Frankish - clarinet

Deanna Greenwood - bassoon

Derryck Nasib - horn

BIOGRAPHY

The Risatina Quintet, based in Greenwich, London, originally formed in 2012 from a group of students studying together at Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance. 

Quickly moving on from standard wind quintet repertoire, the Risatina Quintet became rapidly interested in alternative music for wind quintet across multiple genres from pop and jazz to Afro-Cuban music and film arrangements. 

The Quintet has performed at a variety of functions and events and in 2015 undertook a tour of the UK performing concerts around the country over a week.

"Risatina" means "giggle" in Italian, a very apt name for our group who believe in the fun of a performance, and a performance that makes people smile.

Website:

http://therisatinaquintet.wix.com/the-risatina-quintet

Email:

therisatinaquintet@gmail.com

Soundcloud:

https://soundcloud.com/the-risatina-quintet

June Emerson Wind Music would like to thank Anna Noakes for organising the 

awarding of the Launchpad Prize at Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance. 

LINKS

Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music & Dance
www.trinitylaban.ac.uk

Launchpad Prize Winner's Profile No.2: Seren Winds

THE PLAYERS

Katie Lower - flute

Eric Wolfe-Gordon - oboe

Laura Potter - clarinet

Bartosz Kwasecki - bassoon

Michael Gibbs - horn

BIOGRAPHY

Seren Winds is a Cardiff-based wind quintet comprised of postgraduate students and graduates from the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama. They regularly perform in and around Cardiff, including engagements in the Wales Millennium Centre and St David’s Hall as pre- and post-concert recitals.
In 2015 so far they have taken part in the Carl Nielsen International Chamber Music Competition and the June Emerson Wind Music Launchpad Prize.
The Quintet enjoyed a tour to Quiberon, France, this summer, to introduce a new music festival, 'Les Musicales de Quiberon', by invitation from Pascal Gallois.
Seren Winds are also available to play at public and private events, weddings and corporate events. They perform a variety of works from the classical period through to the twentieth century and are able to arrange lighter pieces upon request.

www.serenwinds.co.uk

June Emerson Wind Music would like to thank Kevin Price for organising 

the awarding of the Launchpad Prize at the Royal Welsh College of Music & Drama.

LINKS

Royal Welsh College of Music & Drama

www.rwcmd.ac.uk

June Emerson Wind Music - Launchpad Prize 2015

About the Prize

The Launchpad Prize was an idea that began as a desire to help young musicians in some significant way. With our limited financial resources it was difficult to come up with something that would make enough of a difference to make it worthwhile. The idea of sponsoring a prize at one of the UK music colleges was something we just couldn’t afford, and we also felt that we’d like to be able to offer something to more than just one college and be a little more ‘hands on’. We eventually decided that we would assist one predominantly final year wind ensemble from each of the major UK music colleges to launch themselves onto the professional circuit.

First awarded in 2009, the Launchpad Prize consists of practical help, including:

a substantial JEWM music voucher; dedicated space on the JEWM website; publicity at any time through our online media channels (JEWM blog, Twitter, Facebook etc); editorial coverage wherever possible; unlimited free advertising flyers in JEWM music orders in order to publicise themselves; exclusive access to the JEWM shop with use of all music and facilities; complimentary copies of any existing and future Emerson Edition publications which fit their instrumental line-up, and anything else we can think of.

The Winners!

Royal Welsh College of Music & Drama

Seren Winds

Trinity College of Music

The Risatina Quintet

Royal College of Music

Hestia Saxophone Quartet

Guildhall School of Music & Drama

Elysium Brass

Profiles of each of this year's winners will appear on this blog over the coming weeks...

Emerson Edition Ltd - New Publications - October 2011

Unaccompanied Flute Jazzarhythms Paul Lewis E627 £5.50 Grade 6/7 Duration 8’40” Four new jazzy solos for flute: Teatime Jazz, Birthday Blues, Dotted Waltz and Midnight Rag. ISMN: M-57040-810-8

Flute & Piano Desert Winds Michael Regan E604 £6.50 Grade 7/8 Duration 4’00” An interesting and challenging suite of movements depicting three types of desert wind: Harmattan, Santa Ana and Brickfielder. ISMN: M-57040-811-5

Flute Quartet Sprites Geoffrey Walker E631 £9.50 Grade 7/8 Duration 2’30” A scherzo for flutes – a modern mystical echo of the magical worlds created by composers such as Mendelssohn and Weber. ISMN: M-57040-809-2 score & parts

Clarinet & Piano Brook Green Suite Gustav Holst, arr. Russell Denwood E602 £8.00 Grade 5 Duration c.10’00” Originally written for the string orchestra of St Paul’s School for Girls, this charming suite works brilliantly for clarinet & piano. ISMN: M-57040-783-5

Clarinet & Piano Serenade Frank Bridge, arr. Russell Denwood E624 £6.50 Grade 5/6 Duration 2’40” This is a gorgeous piece for clarinet and piano, adapted from the original for violin/cello, written in 1903. ISMN: M-57040-807-8

Bassoon & Piano Blue Fulvio Caldini E650 £6.00 Grade 8 Duration 4’30” A challenging, but brilliantly written bluesy showpiece for the more advanced bassoonist. ISMN: M-57040-813-9

Bassoon & Piano Autumn Day & Crunch Cat! Eve Barsham E626 £6.00 Grade 2/3 Duration 3’30” Two characterful and contrasting pieces for bassoon – good fun to play and enjoyable to listen to. ISMN: M-57040-805-4

Bassoon & Piano Walking Cimbrone David Dubery E639 £6.50 Grade 6/7 Duration 3’40” A characterful concert piece, written for Graham Salvage and inspired by a stray dog encountered whilst on holiday in Italy. ISMN:M-57040-814-6

Horn & Piano For Leah Arthur P. Barnes E637 £7.50 Grade 6/7 Duration 6’00” Written for his granddaughter’s senior year recital, this new piece by American composer, Arthur P. Barnes, makes an excellent addition to the horn-player’s repertoire. ISMN: M-57040-815-3

Trumpet & Piano An Excursion Gordon Carr E609 £9.50 Grade 8 Duration 10’00” An exciting new work for the more advanced trumpeter – recorded by Simon Cheney on his CD, ‘An English Trumpeter’. ISMN: M-57040-804-7

Clarinet, Bassoon & Piano Eight Pieces Op.83, Volumes 1 & 2 Max Bruch, arr. Russell Denwood Vol.1: E622 Vol.2: E623 £15.00 each Grade 8 Duration 15’30” & 17’30” An excellent arrangement of this wonderful set of Romantic chamber pieces. A new corrected edition of the original (for clarinet, viola & piano) is also published by Emerson Edition. Vol.1 ISMN: M-57040-800-9 score & parts Vol.2 ISMN: M-57040-801-6 score & parts

Wind Quintet Five Madrigals Henk Kox E632 £22.50 Grade 8 Duration 14’30” Not easy to play, but a witty and very effective piece in five movements: Leave the Cities, The White Cottage at the River, Tick-Tack Ticks Walk, Malparthus is Renard’s Home & Cinq Leffes Blondes S’il Vous Plait. ISMN: M-57040-803-0 score & parts

Wind Quintet Six Miniature Pastorals Frank Bridge, arr. Russell Denwood E618 £16.50 Grade 8 Duration 11’30” An arrangement of six of Frank Bridge’s Miniature Pastorals, originally written for piano. ISMN: M-57040-802-3 score & parts