3. The Cooperation Band (Katrina Marzella Wheeler)
Programme: La Première
The Cooperation band’s programme is set in Paris in 1913 at the Théâtre des Champs Élysées—packed with the great and good of Parisian high society and cultural life.
On stage is Sergei Diaghilev’s Ballets Russes, about to deliver a new work by Igor Stravinsky, entitled ‘The Rite of Spring’. What happened next has become legend, and is retold here is a series of newly-commissioned works, vivid arrangements and theatrical storytelling, led by actor Elizabeth McNally guided by the spirit of a certain Coco Chanel, who was there in the audience.
There was chaos. Stravinsky stormed out in fury, Diaghilev, revelled in his engineered scandal—and the musical world was changed forever.
Chanel recalls it all as the cooperation band invites you to recall the folklore: plotting, fake news, genius, glamour and notoriety of the most notorious premiere night in classical music history.
Act 1: Paris 1913 Conspirators Overture (Andrew Duncan) Sergei, the Puppet Master (Lucy Pankhurst) Soloist: Chris Flynn (euph)
Act 2: Théâtre des Champs-Élysées Polovtsian Dance No. 1: Andantino (Borodin arr. Snell) The Riot at the Rite (Simon Dobson)
Act 3: Aftermath / Legacy A Fake News Party @ Montmartre (Lucy Pankhurst) Hymne à l’Amour (Marguerite Monnot arr. Andrew Duncan)
Saturday 15, 12:06:27
2. KNDS Fairey (Garry Cutt)
Programme: Pictures at an Exhibition
For their long-awaited return to BIC the KNDS Fairey Band bring us one of the truly great brass arrangements from the classical music repertoire.
'Pictures at an Exhibition' was written by Modest Mussorgsky in 1874 as a piano suite depicting 10 paintings by his friend, the Russian architect Viktor Hartmann, at the Imperial Academy of Arts in St Petersburg following his death.
It was later famously transcribed by Ravel in 1922, whilst Elgar Howarth arranged it for the Philip Jones Brass Ensemble in 1977, later recasting it for brass band.
This performance reprises a critically acclaimed music-to-screen project originally commissioned by the USC School of Cinematic Arts in the USA ' a wonderfully immersive animation brings to life Howarth's score, with each of Hartmann's paintings depicted with in-sync musical accompaniment.
Sequence:
Promenade 1 is followed by Gnomus (The Gnome)
Promenade 2 is followed by The Old Castle
They then move to Bydlo (Cattle), and through to Promenade 4 and the Ballet of Unhatched Chicks and The Market, before a trip to The Catacombs.
Promenade 8 then takes us on the final stretch to Baba Yaga (The Hut on Hen's Legs) and the glorious finale of The Bogatyr Gates ' The Great Gate of Kiev.
Comments by Rob Richardson
Pictures at an Exhibition (Mussorgsky arr. Howarth)
Principal cornet Iain Culross starts off the iconic trumpet fanfare from the back of the stage, and this is played with stylistic, orchestral poise. Good balance across the band through this opening, and the animated sequence on the screen adds to the pictures created here.
The band have a great sound moving into the second 'Picture', and the lights around the hall synchronise with the animated sequence really effectively.
The main theme comes back through solo euphonium into the third 'Picture', and there is a lightness to this developing into a darker melody, first in euphonium and then taken up by flugel and muted soprano. There's a good underlying pulse here which keeps the music flowing, while the band handle their balance well, creating a sense of building anticipation.
Solo euphonium rises to his feet for the start of the next 'Picture', accompanied by a moving bass line which can be felt more than heard, helping to underpin the warm, lyrical solo, which is handled brilliantly by Pete McDonough. The anticipation builds into something more menacing through this movement, led by the basses, but the band crescendos as an (animated!) tuba marches towards a castle on the screen, before dying down to nothing. Really effective in this section.
The next 'Picture' is much lighter and has a cheeky, scurrying quality, and muted cornets do well to handle most of these entries cleanly, despite being both very quiet and very high — well done! This works well, and the animation complements this section effectively.
Onto the next 'Picture', and again this features a scurrying (albeit more full-blooded) melody passing around different sections of the band, and comes off well without any moments of disjointedness.
The next 'Picture' is completely different in character, as the lower band demonstrate a great sound and balance through this section. A big contrast from the previous section, with Fairey demonstrating great control over the colour of their sound here — menacing, to warm, back to menacing again. This is really effective music, played very well.
The next 'Picture' is somewhat more serene, and played really beautifully, with the house lights dimming to darkness and a soft close, before the next 'Picture' starts with a bang — literally! The band has lit into life, and multicoloured stage lights help to convey the more haunting imagery on the screen, showing a house in the woods. This is like something out of a Tim Burton film — really well crafted. Again the band scurries around, and has great balance through this section — the melody line is never lost, despite the dynamic contrast and difficult technical close.
The final 'Picture' is the iconic Great Gate of Kyiv — as the sun rises through the gate and the stage is bathed in a warm orange glow, the band sound majestic through this superb theme. A quieter interlude with soprano, cornet, horn and flugel works well, and as the bell tolls and we approach the end there is a tension building from around the stand. Again the band's control of their sound and balance is key here. This builds to a strong close, with big sounds around the stand — there is no sense of tiredness here, no gaps in a great band sound, and a really well-controlled finish.
Overall Thoughts
Musically brilliant from Fairey here, with some very impressive band sounds and full of energy to the very end. An interesting concept with the different 'Pictures' illustrated and animated on the screen, although (for me) some of these animations felt disjointed in style, and while some were very effective, I'm not sure how cohesive this was as an overall package. Great performance from the band though.
This year Cory is completing a trilogy of classic movie themes which began in 2023 with 'King Kong', continued last year with 'The Magnificent Seven' and concludes here with a 40th anniversary celebration of the hit film, 'Back to the Future'.
In addition they also celebrate another milestone ' the bi-centenary of the birth of Jean-Baptiste Arban in 1825. Author of the iconic 'Cornet Method' (the brass players' 'bible').
Where would any player be today without their copy?
1. Main Theme from Back to the Future (Alan Silvestri arr. Philip Harper) 2. Samba de Haps (Mark Taylor arr. Harper) 3. Lullaby of the Sky (mainly Ravel arr. Harper) Soloist: Sheona White (won 'Best Horn' in 2017) 4. Enchantment in Paris (Offenbach, arr. in the style of J.B. Arban) Soloist: Tom Hutchinson (4 times best PC — yet to win Best Instrumentalist) 5. The Power of Love (Hayes, Lewis and Colla arr. Harper)
So, prepare for the off and as Philip Harper says: 'Buckle up and be prepared to be taken on an extraordinary journey, because where we're going, we don't need roads''
Comments by Rob Richardson
Main Theme from Back to the Future (Alan Silvestri arr. Harper)
The defending champion takes to the stage with Philip Harper in a waistcoat resembling a disco ball, and the band play the national anthem with poise… and then again, as though we've gone back in time already. Then, after firing up the flux capacitor (by getting the audience clapping together nearly in time), we're off: straight into the unmistakable theme from the iconic movie.
This music is really brought to life with the band's complete control of dynamics, never sounding strained either at the very loudest or quietest moments, and with real drama and contrast, without losing energy through to the very end. As we reach 88mph, we end up back in 19th-century France to reunite with Jean-Baptiste Arban and his family.
Samba de Haps (Mark Taylor arr. Harper)
And now, in the absence of a flux capacitor, we need to get Tom Hutchinson to 88 notes per second to get back to Brass in Concert in 2025!
Philip Harper's narration tells the story of the Arban family, and the explosion in their fireworks factory. Cornets move to stand around the back of the band, and the samba gets underway. This is a real contrast to the opening theme, but the band have effortlessly transitioned into the groove, with a stylish solo from Hannah Plumridge on flugel. Some scrappiness in the florid cornet lines doesn't distract from the effectiveness, and the band keep the energy up to the end — but Tom still isn't quite up to 88 notes per second yet!
Lullaby of the Sky (Ravel arr. Harper, Tenor Horn Soloist — Sheona White)
Sheona White's gorgeous horn sound sings the lullaby, accompanied by muted cornets and percussion. This is expertly handled and a real display of lyrical quality. As the band joins, the sound remains warm, with some pizzicato work around the stand working really well to create an almost music-box-like effect. The back row and Sheona leave the stage to a subtle close, signifying the death of Arban's brother in the hot-air balloon ride, bringing this fabulous piece to an end. This is really effective, and played so, so well.
Enchantment in Paris (Offenbach arr. in the style of JB Arban, Cornet Soloist — Tom Hutchinson)
Tom still isn't up to speed, and we're running out of time — Arban's parents are about to meet at the Enchantment in Paris dance! In the style of the much-loved (or feared) cornet solos at the back of the big yellow book, Tom oozes quality through the Air, with such a pure tone… and then the notes-per-second meter on the screen starts to rise as we hit the variations! The second variation nearly gets to 60 notes per second with some effortless triple tonguing; the third takes us to 80… although I'm not sure how we'll get up to 88! A lot of inspiration has been drawn from the Arban Carnival of Venice in the structure of these variations, as Tom pulls off a fiendish final variation to get us back up to 88 notes per second, to a chorus of cheers from around the hall.
We're back — although, despite their best efforts, they were still on the dreaded number 1 draw!
The Power of Love (Hayes, Lewis and Colla arr. Harper)
This is a fantastic arrangement and really shows off the band's sound and adaptability — again very different in style to the other pieces in the programme, but so effective. Each section features in turn: first cornets, then euphs and trombones, and finally horns, before a jazzy swing break in the middle. Brett Baker's unmistakable trombone sound then takes us back to the original style. This is a real powerhouse arrangement of the well-known song, and dancing and swaying cornets and trombones see us through to the end with a recapitulation of the main Back to the Future theme to close, with a strong crescendo to finish.
Overall Thoughts
It might have been the dreaded number 1 draw for Cory today, but they've really set a marker here with a well-crafted and expertly handled performance. Outstanding soloists, great band sound and control throughout — this will be a tough one to beat.
Adjudicators: Florent Didier and Benjamin Haemhouts (Quality of Performance); Jocelyne Moren (Best Soloist and Sectional Awards); Anne Crookston (Programme Content); Sue Collier and Al Booth (Entertainment and Presentation)
There is a really inclusive atmosphere at the event today — including those who will be giving their opinions.
4BR's comments are being written by Rob Richardson, who is joined in the press box by his wife Liv, social media creator and the person behind 'It's Not A Trumpet'. Liv will also be sharing her own opinions on her Facebook page.
We will be connecting up with them both through the day to see what they think — and see if you agree with them.
Saturday 15, 10:28:16
Hello and welcome to the 48th Brass in Concert Championships
November 13 • Audley Brass (First Section National Finalists 2025) are seeking an Eb BASS PLAYER as we work towards our Dickens A Christmas Carol theme concert, the Beartown Brewery Christmas party and the 2026 Area contest.
November 13 • Crewe Brass are looking for PERCUSSION (TUNED and KIT) to join our highly motivated 4th section band. We are a very welcoming and sociable band, with a positive outlook and a reasonably busy calendar of engagements. Other enquiries are welcome.
November 13 • Crewe Brass are looking for a BBb BASS player to join our highly motivated 4th section band. We are a very welcoming and sociable band, with a positive outlook and a reasonably busy calendar of engagements. Other enquiries are welcome.
