Program No. 97 - 6th April 2014

Hour 1 (Jazz and Contemporary Brass)
Billy Joel

But Billy Joel doesn't play any brass instruments.

Correct.

This will be the start of a series of programs this year where I look at well known rock and pop artists and feature those tracks that have brass playing.

A couple of years ago on the show I strung out a two hour show featuring Billy Joel, including jazz and brass band arrangements of his songs.  I won't be doing that this time around.  Just straight songs from the man himself.

1.    Easy Money
2.    Tell Her About It
3.    Keeping the Faith
     - An Innocent Man (1983)

4.    Zanzibar
5.    Until The Night
     - 52nd Street (1978)

6.    Scenes From An Italian Restaurant
     - The Stranger (1977)

7.    Big Man On Mulberry Street
8.    River Of Dreams
     - 2000 Years - Millennium Concert

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Hour 2
Michael Giacchino

At the start of the year we looked at the movie scores of Michael Giacchino composed for Pixar Studios, including The Incredibles, Up and Cars II. Tonight we look at some of his other movie scores.  We wont be playing his music from either of the latest Star Trek movies, as we have a Star Trek show coming up.

1.     Knife to A Gun Fight
     - Mission Impossible - Ghost Protocol (2011)

2.    Super 8 Suite
     - Super 8 (2011)

3.    Roar!
     - Cloverfield (2008)

4.    John Carter Suite
     - John Carter (2012)

5.    Go Speed, Go!
6.    Casa Cristo
     - Speed Racer (2008)

7.    End Credits Can Suck It!
     - Land of The Lost (2009)

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Hour 3 (Brass Bands and Ensembles)
2014 Australian National Championships Test Pieces

Over the Easter weekend the Australian National Brass Band Championships will be on again, this time up in sunny Brisbane.

On the show tonight we'll run through the program, and also play a couple of test pieces.

1.    A Malvern Suite (Ebbw Valley Brass)
     - The Nationals 2013

2.    St Magnus (Yorkshire Building Society Band)
     - 2004 European Championships

3.    Forest of Dean (Sun life Band)
     - Bourgeois (1994)

I'm taking a couple of weeks off, and will back with a new show on 27th April.

Have a Happy Easter.

Program No. 96 - 30th March 2014

Hour 1 (Jazz and Contemporary Brass)
Trumpet Magic - A Tribute to Rafael Mendez

For the first time on Brass Monkeys we will be featuring one album.

This album was released in 2006 and is a tribute to the legendary Mexican trumpet player Rafael Méndez.

The trumpet player is the current principal trumpet player of Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, Geoffrey Payne, and he is more than ably backed by said orchestra, under the direction of Jean-Louis Forrestier.

Sadly we cant play the entire album due to time considerations, but the tracks that we will be playing are:

1.     Hejre Kati
2.     Dance Of The Comedians
3.     Bell Song From Lakme
4.    Habanera from Carmen
5.     Dance Boheme from Carmen
6.     Czardas
7.     Zigeunerweisen
8.     Canto Moro
9.     Plegaria Taurina
10.   Farewell My Grenada
11.   La Virgen De La Macarena

Next week, we will start our series looking at brass playing in popular songs of the last 30 to 40 years. We'll begin with brass used by American singer Billy Joel.

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Hour 2 (Movie Scores)
John Williams and Steven Spielberg in the 1990s
 

 About 6 weeks ago we looked at the collaboration between John Williams and Stephen Spielberg in the 1980's which included the Indiana Jones movies, as well as E.T., Empire Of The Sun and Always.  This week we look the continuation of this partnership in the 1990's.

1.    The Banquet Scene
2.    The Ultimate War
     - Hook (1991)

3.    Journey to The Island
4.    T-Rex Rescue & Finale
     - Jurassic Park (1993)

5.    Main Theme
     - Schindler's List (1993)

6.    The Long Road To Justice
     - Amistad (1997)

7.    Hymn To The Fallen
     - Saving Private Ryan (1998)

Next week, we take another look at the works of Michael Giacchino, as we explore his works away from Pixar.

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Hour 3 (Brass Bands and Ensembles)
Philip Wilby (Part II)

Last week we looked at three major works composed by Philip Wilby that incorporated music from composers such as Paganini, Vivaldi and Mozart.  This week we continue through his catalogue of major works for brass band.

1.    Dove Descending (Yorkshire Building Society Band)
     - Kings of Europe (2004)

2.    The New Jerusalem (Tertnes Brass)
     - Norwegian Brass Band Championships (1999)

3.    Jazz (Grimethorpe Colliery Band)
     - From Sonnets to Jazz (1997)

Next week we are going to be looking at some of the test music for the upcoming Australian National Brass Band Championships, to be held in Brisbane over Easter.

Program No. 94 - 9th March 2014

Hour 1 (Jazz and Contemporary Brass)
Wynton Marsalis

photography: Jost L. Knaepen

Wynton Marsalis is a trumpet player who is equally at home in both jazz and classical music genres. He has been awarded 9 Grammys in both and has also been awarded for a Pulitzer Prize For Music.

Born in New York City in 1961, Wynton is part of a gifted music family that includes his father, Ellis Marsalis Jnr (pianist) and brothers Branford (saxophonist), Delfayo (trombonist) and Jason (drummer).

Wynton Marsalis has been featured as a soloist or jointly with other artists in over 100 albums. This first program on Marsalis' music seeks to only dip into the different genres that he plays. Later in the year we will look at Marsalis's works in a bit more depth.

1.    Tiger Rag (with Mark O'Connor's Hot Swing Trio)
     - In Full Swing (2003) 

2.    Hickory Dickory Dock
     - Winton Marsalis The Majesty of The Blues (1989)

3.    Pachelbel: Canon In D (with English Chamber Orchestra)
     - Baroque Music For Trumpets (1990)

4.    Arban: Fantaisie Brillante (with Eastman Wind Ensemble)
5.    Rimsky-Korsakov: Tsar Saltan - The Flight Of The Bumblebee (with Eastman Wind Ensemble)
     - Carnaval (1990)

6.    New Orleans Bump
     - Standard Time, Vol. 6: Mr. Jelly Lord (1999)

7.    Layla (with Eric Clapton)
     - Wynton Marsalis & Eric Clapton Play the Blues (Live from Jazz At Lincoln Center) (2011)

Next week, another we turn our attention to another trumpet player - Maynard Ferguson.

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Hour 2 (Movie Scores)
Miklós Rózsa

Miklós Rózsa was born in Hungary, trained in Germany and lived in England, USA, Italy and France. Whilst he has composed a substantial body of "serious" and concert works, he is best known for his work in cinema, having composed scores for almost 100 movies, including a number of blockbusters in 1940s, 50s and 60s.

He was nominated for 13 Academy Awards, and won 3, with Spellbound (1946), A Double Life (1948) and Ben-Hur (1960).

1.    El Cid - Fanfare & Entry Of The Nobles
2.    El Cid March
     - El Cid (1961)

3.    Overture
     - Ben-Hur (1959)

4.    Triumphal March
     - Quo Vadis (1951)

5.    Challenge & Finale
     - Ivanhoe (1952)

6.    King of Kings
     - King of Kings (1961)

7.    Suite from "Sahara"
     - Sahara (1943)

8.   The Thief of Baghdad Suite: I. Overture
     - The Thief of Baghdad (1940)

9.   Tribute to a Bad Man: Suite    
     - Tribute to a Bad Man (1956)

10.  Finale
     -  Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid (1982)

Next week, another composer of legendary status. Elmer Bernstein, with a look at some of his best known movies scores over his 51 year career. with over 200 films and TV shows to choose from, the selection will be difficult. I think Ghost Busters, The Magnificent Seven and To Kill a Mockingbird will feature on the show.

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Hour 3 (Brass Bands and Ensembles)
Kenneth Downie

Kenneth Downie has composed over 50 pieces over the last 40 years. Born in Glasgow in 1946, he was started his working life as a musician before going into the jewellery business in 1976.  22 years later he returned to his musical  roots with the acceptance of an invitation by David King to become the first ever composer in residence to the Yorkshire Building Society Band.

His piece St Magnus was recently chosen as the test piece for both the 2014 Australian National Brass Band Championships (A Grade) as well as the 2014 UK Regional Contests (Championship Section). St Magnus will be featured on our show in a few weeks' time.

1.    The Victor (Melbourne Staff Band)
2.    The Joy of Loving Hearts (Melbourne Staff Band)
     - Chronicles (2011)

3.    King Of Heaven (Melbourne Staff Band)
     - Fiesta! (2007)

4.    Dance Fever (Yorkshire Building Society Band)
5.    My Father's World (Yorkshire Building Society Band)
      - Vitae Lux (1999)

6.    Rhapsody on 'The Isle of Mull'  (Yorkshire Building Society Band)
     - Hymn of the Highlands (2002)

7.    The Piper o' Dundee (Sheona White with Yorkshire Building Society Band)
     - The Voice of the Tenor Horn (2000)

8.    Spirit of Celebration (Yorkshire Building Society Band)
     - European Championships 1998

Next week we look at some of the major works of another celebrated composer of brass band music, Philip Wilby.