CD: Celebrate!

CELEBRATE!
5O YEARS OF THE FLOWERS BAND
Flowers Band
Conductor: David Childs
Flowers: FB 002
Buy this CD here!
 
Conducted by David Childs, this band is on sparkling form as it offers us an eclectic mix of brass band music, some fabulous arrangements and no less than seven première studio recordings. As if this was not enough, we’re treated to six of the band’s exceptional soloists.

Quite appropriately, the recording begins with a much-loved original composition by Edward Gregson, Prelude for an Occasion, written in 1968 - the very same year that Flowers Band formed. Performed with pride and real verve, it proves a great prelude to an incredibly gritty, funky and exciting arrangement of the Dirty Dozen Brass Band’s Blackbird Special - a triumph of huge magnitude, performed with a sense of fun and style that can’t fail to put a smile upon one’s face. The inclusion of Leonard Bernstein’s Candide Overture in this, the composer’s centenary year, is particularly apt on a celebratory release, but it is in Chick Corea’s La Fiesta that the band shows its strength and style - one of the finest tracks on the CD.

All the soloists deliver with panache, from Rob Wilshaw’s silky smooth rendition of Iveson’s Londonderry Air, to Grant Jameson’s virtuostic performance of Karl Jenkins’s A Troika Tidy; solo cornet player, Andrew Smith, and the band’s very own Judy Garland - tenor horn Emily Evans, expel their exquisite sounds and lyricism during their respective solos, Cloths of Heaven and Over the Rainbow, whilst Carlton Sykes delivers a devilishly impressive take on Carnival for Bass. The band’s star soprano cornetist, Paul Richards, features twice and for good reason - he soars above the band with fabulous ease in two wonderful contributions to the soprano repertoire by Jonathan Bates.

One track that shines especially brightly is a gem of a composition from Ben Hollings; Memories of a Lost Boy is the true definition of extraordinary - the sounds that this composer extracts from this ensemble are quite sublime - a true work of genius. It’s worth purchasing this CD purely for the experience of hearing band and composer working in such harmony.
 
As a showcase of all that is great and good about our modern-day brass band, this CD is a celebration that all involved can be immensely proud of - a real triumph on all levels.

SIMON COWEN – PRINCIPAL TROMBONE, ROYAL LIVERPOOL PHILHARMONIC

 

This review appeared in the December 2018 edition of BBW. For more reviews, articles and news subscribe to BBW Digital, available to read online (annual subscription: £30), or subscribe to BBW's printed magazine delivered by post: £40 (UK); £68 (Europe); £81 (Rest of the World). Alternatively, receive both the Digital and printed editions combined: £55 (UK); £83 (Europe); £96 (rest of the world) - saving 50% on the Digital edition! Click here to subscribe!