A very specific brass tribute is to be paid to life, career and legacy of Elgar Howarth at the RNCM in Manchester on Friday 24th April (7.30pm).

Howarth, who passed away last year, was a former student at the then Royal Manchester College of Music, as well as the University of Manchester. Later he was appointed as a Fellow of the RNCM and regularly returned to conduct, teach and inspire.

The concert will feature the KNDS Fairey Band, the RNCM Brass Ensemble and Paramount Brass conducted by Mark Heron, Andre Chan and Juan Jose Munoz Borja.

Works

Speaking about the repertoire to be featured, Mark Heron told 4BR: "The concert will open with his early brass band work, 'Mosaic' played by KNDS Fairey.

He was also a great supporter of new music and led the premieres of some of the most iconic operas of the 20th century, including Ligeti's 'Le Grand Macabre' and no less than four by Sir Harrison Birtwistle.

To celebrate this we've commissioned two current RNCM students, Harry Baines and Ruoyo Geng to write new works for symphonic brass ensemble. In a nod to Howarth's time as Principal Guest Conductor of Opera North, we will also premiere a new arrangement by Murray Grieg of 'Siegfried's Funeral Music' from Wagner's 'Gotterdamerung'.

He added: "Howarth's association with the Philip Jones Brass Ensemble is well known and it was that ensemble that Derek Bourgeois wrote a brass quintet in 1975. Regarded by them us unplayable, Bourgeois then reworked it into what is now the 'Concerto for Brass Quintet and Brass Band'.

Paramount Brass (Lewis Barton, Honor Farley, Sam Froggatt, Nathan Joseph, and Ben Russon) will be the soloists in a rare performance of something of a neglected masterpiece."

The concert will open with his early brass band work, 'Mosaic' played by KNDS FaireyMark Heron

Pictures at an Exhibition

Mark revealed the second half of the concert will feature Howarth's masterly transcription of Mussorgsky's 'Pictures at an Exhibition' accompanied by an animated film created by ION Concert Media at the instigation of Michael Tilson Thomas and the New World Symphony Orchestra.

It will be performed by KNDS Fairey and the RNCM Brass Ensemble who will share movements before uniting for what promises he said to be "not to be a very quiet"'Great Gate of Kiev'.

Tickets:

https://www.rncm.ac.uk/performance/the-knds-fairey-band-and-rncm-brass-ensemble/