A Fantasy on the Hymn Tune 'Helmsley'- With Clouds Descending is a fantasy on the powerful Advent hymn Helmsley which is long associated with another Advent hymn - Wesley’s Lo! He Comes with Clouds Descending . The hymn tune is divided into an introduction and three completeverses of Helmsley which surround a slower central section whose melody is derived from the last line of the hymn tune. Philip Sparke’s grade 4 arrangement of this majestic piece for Concert Band is equally suitable as a concert opener or amain concert piece.

Part of the Anglo Music Play-Along Series Philip Sparke’s 15 Easy Christmas Carols is aimed at the young instrumentalist who can play just over an octave. Specifically tailored to suit the individual instrument this book introducesthe beginning player to the world’s most popular Christmas tunes by selecting simple yet attractive melodies that fit their limited range. This book will provide invaluable additional material to complement any teaching method and includes both pianoaccompaniment and a demo/play-along CD.

for Oboe and Concert Band-Composer Philip Sparke decided to use the idea of white to write a piece that was both bright and light in terms of harmony colour and orchestration. He achieves this by using simple major and minor chords and emphasising the pure transparent timbres of the upper woodwinds of the band. He was also keen to capture the essence and history of the oboe as a solo instrument. A perfect way to put your oboist in the spotlight.

Quelle est cette odeur agreable-‘Whence is that Goodly Fragrance Flowing?’ is the first line of an old French Christmas song that originated in the 17th century. In 1728 John Gay used this joyous and markedly festive melody that honours Jesus Christ and His miraculous birth in his Beggar’s Opera . Philip Sparke has given this melody a new lease of life with his charming and imaginative arrangement for the Christmas season.

10 Selected Solos with Piano Accompaniment-Philip Sparke’s Super Solos is the third volume of a progressive series of solo books that takes the young wind player from beginner to accomplished musician. Following on from the first two books in the series ( Starter Solos and Skilful Solos ) this collection generally contains longer pieces suitable for the developing young musicians. Specifically tailored for each instrument Super Solos extends technical and musical demands takes the player into new keys with larger instrumental ranges and adds new notes in a gradual and logical manner.The books provide invaluable additional material to complement any teaching method. Including play-along CD.Philip Sparke’s Super Solos is the third volume of a progressive series of solo books that takes the young wind player from beginner to accomplished musician. Following on from the first two books in the series (Starter Solos and Skilful Solos) this collection generally contains longer pieces suitable for the developing young musicians. Specifically tailored for each instrument Super Solos extends technical and musical demands takes the player into new keys with larger instrumental ranges and adds new notes in a gradual and logical manner. The books provide invaluable additional material to complement any teaching method. Including play-along CD.

Bolero was originally written as a ballet for a famous ballerina and achieved great success on the stage. Nowadays the ballet itself is only rarely performed and even though Ravel thought the orchestra would seldom play it it has become one of the best-loved pieces for the concert stage. This arrangement by Philip Sparke keeps very close to the original score in this melodically and rhythmically unique work.

These 30 Original Chorales and Warm-Ups have been designed to develop the most important aspects of band playing by providing material that can be used at the start of a rehearsal to test balance dynamics tuning flexibility and articulation. Band directors are encouraged to adapt them to address the specific needs and challenges of their ensembles. Dynamics and tempo indications are not given and should be chosen by the director as required. All the chorales are strictly four-part. This multi-purpose collection is an essential purchase for every ambitious band!

Horn and Piano-Part of the ANGLO MUSIC PLAY-ALONG Series Philip Sparkes 15 INTERMEDIATE CLASSICAL SOLOS is aimed at the young instrumentalist who can play about an octave and a half and follows on from Sparkes 15 EASY CLASSICAL SOLOS. Specifically tailored to suitthe individual instrument this book introduces the developing player to the world of the classics by using simple yet attractive melodies that fit their limited range. The carefully selected pieces include music from the 17th to the 19th century and cover a wide variety of styles from Handel to Tchaikovsky and from Clementi to Brahms. The book will provide invaluable additional material to complement any teaching method and includes both piano accompaniment and a demo/play-along CD. Part of the Anglo Music Play-Along Series Philip Sparke's 15 Intermediate Classical Solos is aimed at the young instrumentalist who can play about an octave and a half and follows on from Sparke's 15 Easy Classical Solos. Specifically tailored to suit the individual instrument this book introduces the developing player to the world of the classics by using simple yet attractive melodies that fit their limited range. The carefully selected pieces include music from the 17th to the 19th century and cover a wide variety of styles from Handel to Tchaikovsky and from Clementi to Brahms. The book will provide invaluable additional material tocomplement any teaching method and includes both piano accompaniment and a demo/play-along CD.

Euphonium Concerto No. 3-Each of the three movements of this challenging concerto written by Philip Sparke for the euphonium virtuoso Steven Mead is named after a famous diamond: Earth Star is rather stern in mood opening with a free fantasyfor the soloist over a static chord from the piano. Ocean Dream uses a varied quote from the composer’s Music for Battle Creek including a melting slow melody that was originally written withSteven Mead in mind. Blue Heart was written at Steven Mead’s suggestion in bebop style and takes the form of a jazz waltz.

A Ballet for the Endangered Species- Dance of the Whale was commissioned by the Spanish music foundation Musica et Orbi at the instigation of its president Frank De Vuyst. It is part of a unique project which involved nine composers each writing a short movement describing ananimal of the composers’ choice to form a suite called Bestiarium . A consortium of bands around the world helped to fund the project and the world premiere of the suite took place in March 2013 in Medellín Colombia. Dance of the Whale uses the tenor instruments of the band to describe a lazy and graceful dance by a blue whale and is dedicated to endangered species around the world.

A Suite of British and Irish Folk Songs- Songs from Across the Water was commissioned by Pennsylvania Symphonic Winds - Phil Evans Founder and Director. Phil Evans hails from the UK and served for 25 years in the Band of HM Royal Marines. Now resident in the USA he founded Pennsylvania Symphonic Winds in 2008 giving them the tag line ‘An American Band with a British Accent’ as he wanted to combine the best of both countries’ band traditions. With this in mind composer Philip Sparke decided to create a suite of British folk songs scored with an American influence to fulfil the philosophy of the band’s tag line. The three movements which are played without a break are based on the following folk songs which come from all corners of the British Isles: The Three Ravens & The Cruiskeen Lawn The Lark in the Clear Air and The Piper o’ Dundee & Men of Harlech . Songs from Across the Water was commissioned by Pennsylvania Symphonic Winds - Phil Evans Founder and Director. Phil Evans hails from the UK and served for 25 years in the Band of HM Royal Marines. Now resident in the USA he founded Pennsylvania Symphonic Winds in 2008 giving them the tag line ‘An American Band with a British Accent’ as he wanted to combine the best of both countries’ band traditions. With this in mind composer Philip Sparke decided to create a suite of British folk songs scored with an American influence to fulfil the philosophy of the band’s tag line. The three movements which are played without a break are based onthe following folk songs which come from all corners of the British Isles: 'The Three Ravens & The Cruiskeen Lawn' 'The Lark in the Clear Air' and 'The Piper o’ Dundee & Men of Harlech'.

17 Graded Solos for Oboe and Piano- Sounds Classical for Oboe is a collection of graded solos selected specifically for the developing oboe player. Designed to correlate with grades 1-4 of the exam syllabus of the Associated Board of the royal Schools of Music the pieces are drawn from four centuries of classical repertoire ranging from Susato to Sullivan and will provide ideal material forpractice or recital. Also available: Sounds Classical for Bassoon AMP 362-400 Sounds Classical for Oboe is a collection of graded solos selected specifically for the developing oboe player. Designed to correlate with grades 1-4 of the exam syllabus of the Associated Board of the royal Schools of Music the pieces are drawn from four centuries of classical repertoire ranging from Susato to Sullivan and will provide ideal material for practice or recital. Also available: Sounds Classical for Bassoon AMP 362-400.

Concerto for Brass Band- Perihelion was commissioned by the Cory Band as their own-choice piece for the 2013 European Brass Band Championships held in Oslo Norway. Winning the set piece section of the contest and coming second to Eikanger-Bjorsvik Musikklag with their own choice selection Cory went on to become European Champions for the fifth time.Cory MD Philip Harper had asked for a ‘Concerto for Band’ to fully exploit his outstanding band of virtuosi and composer Philip Sparke created a one-movement work with contiguous sections first featuring horns and flugel then trombones followed by cornets and a slower central section for percussion and baritones euphonium andbasses.The piece is abstract in nature without a specific programme and the title merely reflects the fact that the piece was begun on January 2nd 2013 the day of Earth’s perihelion - the point in its orbit when it is closest to the sun. It could also be argued that the piece weaves between moments of brilliant optimism and dark shadow both of which can be the result of bright sunshine.

Symphony No. 3-Philip Sparke’s third symphony A Colour Symphony was commissioned by “sinfonischen blasorchester wehdel” conducted by Thomas Ratzek. In the five movements ( white yellow blue red and green ) the composer creates links betweenthe instrumentation and harmonic elements and the actual colour of the spectrum the movement stands for. In order to create the greatest richness possible Philip Sparke used a very large instrumentation including low woodwinds harp piano andcelli. A Colour Symphony is an impressive and iconic addition to the standard repertoire for large symphonic bands.

Reflections on an Old Japanese Folk Song is based on the tune Suiryo-Bushi which comes from the shamisen tradition and opens with two contrasting statements of the melody followed by several variations each in an own style based uponthe same tune or sometimes only fragments of it. In one of the variants the pentatonic scale is used. The final section is in the form of a scherzo which eventually forms the accompaniment to a final presentation of the folk tune.

These 30 Original Chorales and Warm-Ups have been designed to develop the most important aspects of band playing by providing material that can be used at the start of a rehearsal to test balance dynamics tuning flexibility and articulation. Band directors are encouraged to adapt them to address the specific needs and challenges of their ensembles. Dynamics and tempo indications are not given and should be chosen by the director as required. All the chorales are strictly four-part. This multi-purpose collection is an essential purchase for every ambitious band!

Ludwig van Beethoven quitte Bonn sa ville natale à l’automne 1792 pour tenter sa chance dans la Vienne impériale. Il a vingt-deux ans. En plus des cours avec Haydn il travaille avec Albrechtsberger et Salieri et réussit à se forger une solide réputation de pianiste virtuose.Le bal annuel organisé par la Caisse des pensions des artistes des Beaux-Arts de Vienne était alors un événement très prisé de la haute société viennoise. À cette occasion les grands compositeurs de l’époque comme Haydn Kozeluch Dittersdorf ou Eybler étaient sollicités pour écrire de nouvelles musiques de danse. En 1795 Ludwig van Beethoven composa une série de Douze menuets et Douzeallemandes une danse villageoise en vogue en Bavière et en Autriche et qui donnera naissance à la célèbre valse viennoise à la fin du XVIIIe siècle. Originellement pour orchestre Beethoven en réalisa une réduction pour piano également plébiscitée par le public. Philip Sparke a choisi d’arranger deux danses de cette série en prenant le soin de conserver le caractère coloré et rustique des pièces originales.

Cette marche de Noël a été réalisée spécialement pour permettre aux Orchestres Juniors d’ouvrir ou de clore avec éclat un concert autour de la Nativité. Le thème principal est un thème original sur lequel viennent se greffer deci delà de nombreux courts fragments mélodiques extraits de célèbres noëls tels qu’ Adeste Fidelis Deck the Halls Good King Wenceslas et Jingle Bells . God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen constitue la ligne mélodique du trio.

Its title Hail the Dragon! references a work Philip Sparke wrote in 1984 The Year of the Dragon. The piece opens with a lively and energetic fanfare. The mood becomes more subdued in the centre section as the cornet introduces a new theme that builds to an emotional climax. This leads into a recap of the opening fanfare which acts as a type of descant to short quotations from the last movement of The Year of the Dragon before reaching a thunderous finale.

In 2006 a long-time dream of Philip Sparke finally became reality: to compose a set of variations on the famous chorale from Saint-Saëns’ renowned Organ Symphony. In 2009 the composer reworked the piece for brass band. The resulting Saint-Saëns Variations has been simplified shortened and in many places completely recomposed to distill the essence of the symphony even further and allow younger bands to enjoy the power of Saint-Saëns’ masterpiece in an approachable yet completely faithful work.