The fourth commissioning band premiere performance of Richard Blackford's 'Orbital' will be given by Tredegar Band later today (Saturday 10th October at 7.00pm) as they make an educational outreach visit to Ardingly College in West Sussex.

The composer will also be in attendance as well as giving A level music students a workshop talk about compositional technique and outlooks as well as how he wrote the work.

The performance will round off a full day of activity that will see the band also give a series of workshops before joining forces with students for an evening concert.

Commission

Commissioned by the cooperation band, Cory, Flowers, Foden's and Tredegar in conjunction with conductor Martyn Brabbins and in collaboration with Radio 3, it has already gained widespread critical acclaim following its first series of premiere performances.

Aimed at established Championship and high quality First Section bands, it is now available for purchase from Nimbus Music Publishing.

'Orbital' is based on Samantha Harvey's 2024 Booker Prize winning novel which follows six astronauts aboard the International Space Station as they orbit Earth, reflecting on subjects including the existence or nature of God, the meaning of life, and existential threats such as climate change.

Thrilled

Speaking about the event, Tredegar's MD Ian Porthouse said: "We are thrilled to give us performance of this great new work — and especially with the composer in attendance.

Ardingly has a fantastic musical outlook that includes brass and percussion at its heart and we are really looking forward to the visit."