CD: Fantasy

Paul Cosh, conductor, educator and former professional trumpeter, reviews the new album from London Symphony principal trumpeter, Philip Cobb.

Fantasy
Philip Cobb: cornet, trumpet, flugel
The Central Band of the Royal Air Force
Conductors: Wing Commander Duncan Stubbs and Squadron Leader Piers Morrell
Doyen: DOY CD366

Philip Cobb is the latest in a long line of brass band cornet players to have reached the heights as an orchestral trumpet player. He follows in the footsteps of Willie Lang, James Watson, Rod Franks and Maurice Murphy. All of these are marked out by their quintessentially British sound that is derived from their brass band background. Wynton Marsalis puts this beautifully in his introduction to this CD. “Phil plays with a lyric sweetness and a bravura majesty.”

Philip has chosen the music as tribute to the players, in brackets, and solos that inspired him. The brass band favourites of Napoli (Jim Shepherd) and the Debutante are played with great panache, with an astounding flexibility and quality of sound over the widest register. The bravura majesty, mentioned by Wynton, is never more apparent than in the performances of the Slavische Fantaisie (Richard Marshall) and the Grand Russian Fantasia. I must mention here the wonderful accompaniment of the RAF Central Band under the direction of Wing Commander Duncan Stubbs. The colour palette that a wind band brings to these excellent arrangements really does enhance the musical experience of this familiar repertoire.

Philip Cobb gives a magnificent performance of the Harry James Concerto as a tribute to his two predecessors at the LSO - Maurice Murphy and Rod Franks. What a tribute; panache, flair and risk-taking at its very best. Philip has a stunning technique and facility that never ceases to amaze, but his innate musicality is never missing. Small moments of rubato in Napoli and the sheer elegance of A Trumpeter’s Lullaby (Roger Webster) are beautifully controlled, and in these small moments, the quality of the RAF Central Band’s accompaniment is only too obvious.

Philip Cobb is one of the great cornet/trumpet players of our age, and whilst his technical brilliance is almost incomparable, it is in his melodic playing that we hear the best of him. We are all impressed by flamboyant pyrotechnics, but it is in the beauty of a simple melody that our hearts are touched. Philip’s performance of The Song to the Moon is so beautiful that it will take your breath away. If you need a reason to buy this album, this is it.

Visit www.worldofbrass.com to buy this disc.