The set-works that will be used at the 2023 Australian National Championships in Newcastle, New South Wales over the Easter period of 7th-10th April have been announced.
It will be the first time in four years that the contest, first held in 1935 will have taken place, with Newcastle's Town Hall and Civic Theatre hosting over 5000 competitors and up to 85 bands in its brass and symphonic wind categories.
Chairperson Jeff Markham stated that the event will also be live streamed.
Test Pieces:
Open A Grade: Siege (Jared McCunnie)
Open B Grade: Hope (Dorothy Gates)
Open C Grade: The Viking Age (Thierry Deleruyelle)
Open D Grade: Music for Greenwich (Edward Gregson)
Junior A Grade: A Moorside Suite (Gustav Holst)
Junior B Grade: Capriol Suite (Peter Warlock arr. Phillip Littlemore)
Junior C Grade: Cramer Street (Mark Ford)
Siege
Jared McCunnie's 'Siege' was written in response to a terrorist attack in Sydney in December 2014, where a man held 18 people hostage for over 16 hours in the Lindt Chocolate Cafe in the city.
It is the composer's emotional response to what he says was "the tension, unease and hurt caused by the event"which resulted in three people being killed (including the perpetrator).
The final 'Elegy' section is dedicated to the lives of hostages Tori Johnson and Katrina Dawson, who were tragically killed. It also captures Australia's heartfelt response to the victims of the attack.
